Who is Most at Risk For Becoming a Pathological Gambler?
Research has shown that there are factors that increase the risk of being a pathological gambler. Surveys of pathological gamblers show a greater proportion of:9 • males, • children of pathological gamblers, • people with the attitude that money causes and is also the solution to all their problems, • individuals with a poor education, • single persons, and • individuals whose household income is below the mean. These findings are from prevalence surveys, not from studies of who is in treatment. White middle-aged males are the pathological gamblers most likely to end up in treatment.10 Researchers have been less successful in determining what causes problem gambling and what the differences are between problem and normal gamblers. There are many people who have a variety of risk factors but don’t become problem gamblers. Studies Indicate That There is a One to Five Percent Incidence of Problem Gambling in the Adult Population.11 Specifically, the studies usually show the following resu
