Effects of sports betting motivations on sports betting addiction

The concept of betting in sports has become an activity in sports, which has been studied by different disciplines as a phenomenon in sports, with the innovations brought by technology and new media tools. Many earlier studies conducted on sports betting and addiction have examined sports betting in the context of gambling behavior and have not taken into account the specific motivations of sports betting. Therefore, the motivations of sports betting and the effects of them on sports betting addiction are unknown. In this context, the aim of this research is to examine the effects of motivation factors specific to sports betting on sports betting addiction. The final sample (n = 643) includes sports fans with various motivations. We developed a "Sports Betting Motivation Scale (SBMS)" and adapted "Sports Betting Addiction Severity Index (SBASI)" to determine the motivations of individuals to bet on sports. Accordingly, we developed SBMS in order to determine the motivations of individuals to bet on sports at the first stage and determined that the motivation of individuals to bet on on sports as "make money", "socialization", "being in the game", "fun" "recreation-escape", "knowledge of the game" and "interest in sports branch". In the second stage, however, we examined the effects of each of the sports betting motivations on the risks of sports betting addiction. As a result of the research, "make money", "socialization" and "being in the game" motivations were found to be positive predictors of sports betting addiction risk, while "Fun" motivation was a negative predictor. The motivations "recreation-escape", "knowledge of the game" and "interest in sport branch" were found not to be significant predictors of the risk of sports betting addiction.