Revista de conductas, terapia y rehabilitación adictivas

Gambling: Cultural Factors, Motivations and Impacts on Quality of Life

Tariku A. Abdi

Gambling: Cultural Factors, Motivations and Impacts on Quality of Life

This is a book review. In this book review, the author explored gambling motivations and the impact of gambling on quality of life of the gamblers and families, communities and societies of the gamblers. In the review, the author addressed cultural components like cultural values and acculturations influence adolescents and young adult gamblers initiation and maintenance of gambling and problem gambling. In the review, the researcher also addressed that adolescents and young adults are motivated to gamble for various reasons like entertainment, excitement, amusement, learning and accomplishing, and also, serious cognitive bias, risk-prone attitudes, and higher levels of stress and anxiety. Researches also indicated that there is gender difference on what motivate gamblers to initiate and maintain gambling and problem gambling. Finally, the author addressed that with respect to the impact of gambling on the quality of life, public health position recognizes that gambling yields both potential costs (like a wide range of difficulties on the individuals, families, and communities either indirectly or directly but also negative consequences of gambling like disorders) and benefits (like sense of connectedness and socialization through discretionary leisure time entertainment, enhancing the income of the individuals, strengthening memory, coping strategies and etc) that affect all aspects of the community, including health and socioeconomic dimensions.