Examining the risk and protective factors of addiction in online gambling in adults

Online gambling behavior can range from a harmless activity to a serious psychiatric disorder. This study aims to identify risk and protective factors by examining the relationships and differences at the levels of social, problem, and pathological gamblers regarding socio-demographic, health-related, and gambling-related characteristics, motivations, and cognitions. Surveys were administered online to 556 participants aged between 18-71 years, using purposive and snowball sampling methods. The surveys included a Demographic Information Form, Internet Gambling Addiction Scale (IGAS), Gambling Disorder Screening Test (GDST), Five-Factor Gambling Motives Scale (GMS), Gambling Risk Screening Scale (GRSS), Gambling-Related Cognitions Scale (GRCS-T). Due to the failure to meet parametric test assumptions, analyses were conducted with Bonferroni-adjusted Kruskal-Wallis, Mann Whitney U, and Chi-Square tests. Findings identified risk factors associated with problem and pathological gambling including being male, having a high school or associate degree, being single, poor family relations, inadequate social support, low or no participation in hobbies, substance abuse, high frequency of tobacco use, having attempted suicide, starting gambling in childhood or adolescence, experiencing significant financial gain/loss initially, having a gambling environment, high frequent gambling, frequent participation in slots and betting types, engaging in five or more types of gambling, past gambling disorder treatment, gambling for entertainment/excitement, avoidance, earning money, and socialization purposes, and cognitive distortions related to gambling. Conversely, being female, being married, having children, having a graduate or doctoral degree, good family relations, strong social support network, high participation in healthy/enjoyable activities, non-gambling social environment, low frequency of gambling, only engaging in one type of gambling throughout life, and starting gambling in adulthood (over 25 years old) were identified as protective factors associated with social gambling. Keywords: Online gambling addiction, risk factors, protective factors, individual characteristics, gambling-related cognitions, reasons for gambling.