Claims of Increased Gambling Addiction Disputed
In a recent article published by a San Francisco therapist, it was claimed that the wholesale proliferation of online gambling sites has lead to a parallel increase in the incidence of gambling addiction. Mr. Michael Halyard, a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, stated in his article that the increased availability of gambling opportunities provided by the internet was responsible for generating a significant increase in the number of subjects with addictive gambling disorders.
He went on to support his argument by citing the experience of colleagues who have recently reported increasing numbers of online punters, including many who are under the legal age, contacting them for help with their habit. He added that gambling has now become ubiquitous and that, whereas it was once necessary to visit a casino, card room or betting shop for a flutter, almost anyone can now indulge their urge to gamble without ever leaving their homes.
Halyard was vociferous in his condemnation of the expanding gambling industry, claiming a direct and indisputable link between its growth and the increasing cases of compulsive gambling, the pathological cousin to problem gambling that, in stark contrast, may be overcome by simple self-discipline.
His claims, however, fly directly in the face of conventional wisdom regarding the nature of such addictive behaviour that has been proven to be associated with increased levels of dopamine or diminished levels of nor-epinephrine in the brain as compared with normal subjects. The characteristic chemical imbalance is not restricted to gambling disorders but is also associated with drug abuses such as heroine and cocaine addiction.
The chemical imbalance has been shown to impair the area of the brain that is associated with decision making. This impairment provides a clear explanation as to why subjects, who are well aware of the consequences of their addiction and have a genuine desire to be free of it, remain totally incapable of recovery without external intervention.
Halyard’s claims were not substantiated by any statistical findings and appear to have been based entirely upon anecdotal evidence that would normally be regarded as having no standing in a reputable research project.
By contrast, reputable scientific studies such as those carried out by Dr Howard Shaffer at the Harvard Medical School suggest that gambling addiction remains restricted to a very small percentage of the total number of people who enjoy a flutter. Clearly, as an increasing number of people discover the pleasures of gambling, a small percentage will continue to fall prey to its dangers but no significant increase in the overall frequency of this form of addiction is currently evident.