A gambling disorder occurs when someone has an uncontrollable urge to gamble, despite the harms—or negative consequences—they experience because of it.

So, what is gambling? Gambling is when you bet money or something of value on the results of a game, competition, or event where chance partially drives the outcome. However, many are confused about what exactly gambling is. Would you consider poker gambling, even though there is skill involved? Would you consider sports betting gambling, even though someone knowledgeable about the sport could make a very educated prediction? Yes, although both games require some skill, a high level of chance is still necessary for you to win.

One reason why gambling disorder has become prevalent, is because access to gambling has dramatically increased over the past decades. Before 1990, legalized gambling was either lottery tickets or a trip to places like Las Vegas. By the 2000s, most people could drive to a casino within 100 miles of their home. By 2020, sports betting became accessible on your phone or computer. This growth in accessibility has changed how people gamble. While accessibility does not cause gambling disorder, it has affected the likelihood of someone gambling too much and developing a gambling disorder.

Gambling disorder is a serious mental health problem that can be challenging to detect. Sometimes, even the person who experiences gambling harms may not recognize they have a problem. It is also one of the more stigmatized problems, as others tend to think the person with the problem can easily stop and fix it.

Symptoms of gambling disorder include:

• Preoccupation with gambling, including actively gambling, planning future gambling activities, and thinking of ways to get more money for gambling.
• Having to increase the amount of money gambled to get the same thrill.
• Lying about gambling habits to family and friends.
• Inability to control or cut back on gambling habits.
• Frequenting gambling establishments often.
• Using gambling as a means to escape problems and stress.
• Experiencing symptoms like irritability and restlessness when attempting to stop gambling.
• Choosing to gamble even with the risk of losing relationships with family and friends.
• Loss of work and educational opportunities because of gambling.
• Asking others for financial help when you have no money left because of gambling.
• Involvement in criminal activity for money to continue gambling or to pay off debts.

People gamble for different reasons. Most gamble because it can be a fun social activity, and they dream about winning money or getting some comps. It creates excitement and a way to escape from life’s challenges. Sports betting, in particular, can be a fun way to enjoy an event.

For some people, however, distractions from life’s problems, the urge for the thrill of winning, and the need for money can drive them to treat gambling as more than a simple, fun activity. Instead, individuals may start to gamble to make money or to avoid difficult emotional experiences. These people may be at significant risk of experiencing gambling-related harms and develop a gambling disorder.

There is no simple answer to why or what causes people to gamble. The fact is that processes in the brain are hard to identify or measure completely. Just like our thoughts and behaviors are rarely black and white, gambling addiction is also influenced by our desires, thoughts, and behaviors, as well as our biology and genetics. However, there may be psychological processes that occur in someone experiencing gambling addiction.

Gambling disorder is characterized by persistent gambling that is difficult to stop or reduce despite experiencing significant negative consequences, harming either the gambler or another person. Gambling disorder is within the Substance-Related and Addictive Disorders section of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5th Edition (DSM-5).

However, having a gambling disorder does not mean the brain is “broken.” Similar to Substance Use Disorders, individuals diagnosed with Gambling Disorder may show increased dopamine transmission within the mesolimbic pathway of the brain in the presence of gambling-related cues. This neural activation has been associated with motivational processes. However, neural connections are plastic—meaning the brain constantly adjusts its structure and function in response to our interactions with our environment. So, somebody can unlearn reactions to gambling cues.

The Reward System

Everyone’s brain contains a mesolimbic pathway, sometimes called the “reward pathway,” which includes a collection of
dopamine-releasing neurons. This tract regulates motivation, reinforcement learning, response-reward (stimulus-reward), and other necessary functions. When a particular stimulus leads to a dopamine release, the brain learns to repeat the behavior that caused the release. Although everyone’s brain experiences this dopamine release, this cycle is often associated with addiction.

Again, having a gambling disorder does not mean the brain is “broken.” Understand that reward pathways and related neurotransmitters are part of everyday life. It is part of being happy and part of being motivated to do the things we do.

For someone with a gambling problem, however, there may be a lack of rewarding alternatives in their life. Others might struggle to control the urge or the impulse to place a bet. Further, life challenges or a history of life challenges or traumas may also make gambling engagement hard to control. Finally, some combination of these life events can lead to a strong desire to gamble. There also is a chance that the dopamine system may then become a coping mechanism that overrides any desire to stop gambling.

As psychologists, we also know that our thoughts, urges, impulses, and even our neural connections are able to be changed over time and with treatment to allow someone with gambling disorder to unlearn their addiction. If you or someone you know is struggling with gambling addiction, we at TGC are here to help.

No one thing predicts that a person will likely develop a gambling disorder, but two predictors that do stand out as leading to a higher risk include:

1. has a family member who has/had a gambling disorder.
2. started gambling at a young age.

Is Gambling Addiction Genetic?

Contrary to popular belief, addictive behaviors are not a directly identifiable part of someone’s genetic code. What someone may inherit is a tendency to be impulsive.

Impulsivity contains three components:

1. recognizing that something might be rewarding
2. developing a drive or motivation to engage in the rewarding thing
3. having difficulty inhibiting a response

The tendency to act on impulse increases the likelihood someone may develop an addictive behavior.

Furthermore, it may be that exposure to gambling behavior by family members allows for more frequent gambling exposure—and possibly exposure at a younger age—that then can increase the risk for gambling problems. So, exposure to gambling by family members can make it appear genetically linked when that may not be the case.

Change can happen. Over 87% of those who complete gambling-specific cognitive behavior treatment will significantly decrease symptoms, reduce gambling frequency and intensity, and realize improvements in their overall well-being. So, the professional offering treatment must know the gambling-specific CBT research.

Treatment can be one-on-one, as a group, in-person, or via telehealth. Again, the professional needs to know the gambling treatment research. The process is to help a person change the way they think about gambling, understand risky situations related to their gambling, and build adaptive skills to support themselves on the road to recovery. Once these changes occur, the individuals seem to benefit most when they continue to repair the interpersonal and financial harms that gambling has caused.

Decades of research at The Gambling Clinic prove this treatment can be effective in individuals who experience gambling-related harms.

If you or a loved one could benefit from gambling-related therapy, contact us at The Gambling Clinic today. We are here for you.

Explore our additional learning resources to see how you or a loved one can gain control over a gambling disorder.

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