Online sports betting is exploding among young adults. March Madness in particular offers huge opportunities for reckless behavior.
Increases in online betting are due to the use of smartphones, micro-betting, social media, and advertising.Co-Author: Charles Spenser Egnatz “You’ve got to know when to hold ‘em, know when to fold ‘em, know when to walk away, and know when to run….
” —Kenny Rogers,, the ability to bet continuously and in the moment has escalated with the advent of many new sports betting apps.Smartphone betting, with instant access anywhere, anytimeAll of this adds to the promotion and pressure to join in the fun. But this fun can be dangerous. It may include risk factors that could lead to compulsive gambling. Some of these influences include:Parlay betting, or the ability to bet small stakes on a specific combination of outcomes, potentially leading to big wins. However, the house usually wins, and odds are stacked against participantsThe rate of gambling addiction through sports gambling is twice as high as for other forms of gambling. The same research indicates that young adults are significantly at risk, particularly men.includes the following criteria if it leads to clinically significant impairment based on 4 or more of the following criteria in the past 12 months:2. Is restless or irritable when attempting to cut down or stop gambling.4. Is often preoccupied with gambling .7. Lies to conceal the extent of involvement with gambling.What Can Be Done?Do not gamble if you are in a distressed emotional state.Use limit setting tools that are part of most online gaming apps, such as deposit limits, spending limits, and time limits. Since young adults are at greatest risk, parents and all caregivers can provide support in many ways: Have ongoing and frequent conversations about gambling, including focusing on the financial risks and game design that leads to addiction, rather than moral lectures.What is your experience? What do you find so compelling? What have you learned about it? What do you think are its dangers? And be sure to address these open-ended questions with curiosity and empathy but without judgment. We cannot help our young people if we do not understand the appeal of their use of digital media. Encourage your young people to monitor their payment systems, and offer to help with this Enlist siblings, peers, mentors, and trusted family friends and relatives to participate in the dialogue. If you have a friend or contact who can explain probability and odds, see if your adult child would talk with them to become more literate about gambling. Remember that there are national support resources for those who may be in need of help with problem gambling, including: the National Council on Problem Gambling; Gamblers Anonymous, or 1-800-GAMBLER. Online sports betting is very different than what Kenny Rogers sang about. You can walk away or run from a gambling table but just try to walk away or run from your smartphone! Few of us can do this anytime, no less than when we are caught up in a betting frenzy.The problem of online betting is yet another side of digital media we all need to be aware of. This major frontier has invaded our lives so quickly that few of us can truly understand how to take control of it before it takes control of someone close to us. Let’s add online betting to our understanding of the use and misuse of social media, apps, and the internet.Find an Obsessive-Compulsive TherapistSelf Tests are all about you. Are you outgoing or introverted? Are you a narcissist? Does perfectionism hold you back? Find out the answers to these questions and more with Psychology Today.
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