#gambling-harm — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #gambling-harm, aggregated by home.social.
-
DATE: May 11, 2026 at 08:00AM
SOURCE: PSYPOST.ORG** Research quality varies widely from fantastic to small exploratory studies. Please check research methods when conclusions are very important to you. **
-------------------------------------------------TITLE: People with a natural tendency toward greed face a higher risk of gambling problems
A recent psychological study suggests that people with a natural tendency toward greed are more likely to participate in gambling and experience negative consequences as a result. The findings indicate that greedy individuals tend to hold distorted beliefs about their chances of winning and their ability to stop playing. This research was published in the journal Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin.
The authors of the study sought to explore the specific psychological traits that might drive problematic gambling behavior. Joshua Weller, an associate professor in behavioral decision making at the University of Leeds, explained the rationale for the study. “Gambling is incredibly widespread and growing in scope in many countries,” Weller said. “For many people, it’s just entertainment, but for others, it can lead to the experience of real harms, from financial difficulties to impacts on relationships and mental health.”
Previous research has examined how broad personality traits relate to gambling problems. “A lot of research has focused on well-known personality traits like impulsivity or sensation-seeking,” Weller continued. “What struck us, though, is that one trait that feels very intuitively relevant, greed, hadn’t really been examined in real-world gambling contexts.”
The authors wanted to look specifically at dispositional greed, which is a personality trait defined by a constant, unquenchable desire for more. “Dispositional greed is essentially the tendency to always want more and feel dissatisfied with what you have,” Weller noted. “This can be felt not only for money and material things, but also non-material entities too like power, status, even social media ‘likes’.”
The researchers proposed that greedy individuals might be naturally drawn to gambling because it offers a seemingly quick way to acquire more wealth. “It seemed plausible that gambling, which promises the possibility of quick financial gain, might be especially attractive to people high in this trait,” Weller said. “So, we wanted to test the degree to which greed associates with how people gamble, and importantly, whether it’s linked to negative consequences.”
To investigate these ideas, the researchers conducted two separate studies using large groups of people from different countries. The first study involved a representative sample of 1,118 adults from the Netherlands. Participants completed surveys that measured their levels of dispositional greed and materialism. Materialism is a related concept, but it specifically involves placing high value on buying and owning physical goods.
The Dutch participants also answered questions about their gambling habits over the previous twelve months. The scientists asked them if they had participated in various types of games, such as lottery draws, scratch cards, sports betting, or casino games. They also completed a standard questionnaire designed to measure negative consequences associated with gambling.
The results of the first study provided evidence that dispositional greed is linked to broader gambling habits. The authors found that greedier individuals were more likely to engage in multiple different types of gambling activities. This association remained mathematically significant even when the researchers accounted for the participants’ levels of materialism. This suggests that the pure desire for more, rather than just a love of material goods, drives the behavior.
To get a more comprehensive understanding, the scientists conducted a second study in England, a country with a much larger and more established gambling market. This second study included a final sample of 4,783 adults. Some of these individuals were recruited from the general population, while others were specifically chosen because they had a stated interest in gambling.
In the second study, participants completed a short questionnaire to measure their dispositional greed. They also answered questions to measure their levels of motor impulsiveness, which is the tendency to act without thinking. The scientists wanted to make sure that greed had a unique effect on gambling, separate from simply being an impulsive person.
Participants then reported how often they gambled, the types of games they played, and how much money they had spent on gambling in the past fourteen days. To measure negative consequences, the respondents completed a widely used survey that asks people if they have chased their losses, borrowed money to gamble, or felt guilty about their habits. Additionally, the researchers asked the participants who gambled to answer questions about their thought patterns, aiming to measure several cognitive distortions.
The scientists found that higher levels of dispositional greed were strongly associated with a higher likelihood of gambling. Greedy individuals also tended to play more frequently and participate in a wider variety of gambling activities. In addition, dispositional greed was positively linked to higher scores on the measure of problem gambling severity. This means that greedy individuals were more likely to report negative financial and emotional consequences from their habits.
Weller noted the unique role of greed in these outcomes. “We were somewhat surprised that greed predicted gambling harm severity beyond impulsiveness,” he said. “Impulsivity is often treated as the central personality driver of risky behaviors like gambling, and greed itself has been linked to impulsiveness in the past. However, our findings suggest greed adds something distinct.”
The authors suspect that greed provides a distinct motivational push. “While acting quickly or without thinking may be related to gambling, especially in emotionally charged situations, the persistent drive to acquire more and one’s current dissatisfaction with their present condition, may support the drive to gamble as a way to satisfy both,” Weller said.
When looking at the psychological mechanisms involved, the researchers found that greed was closely tied to flawed ways of thinking. People with higher greed scores reported more positive expectations about gambling, mistakenly believing it would relieve stress or bring them happiness. They also exhibited a higher illusion of control, which is the false belief that personal skill can influence a purely random game of chance.
Weller summarized the broader implications of these cognitive patterns. “The key takeaway is that gambling behavior isn’t just about luck, being a risk-taker or being impulsive,” he said. “It’s also shaped by deeper motivational traits like greed. We found that people who score higher in dispositional greed are more likely to gamble, to gamble across more activities, and to experience more negative consequences from gambling.”
The cognitive distortions seem to fuel a harmful cycle. “What’s particularly interesting is how this seems to play out psychologically,” Weller added. “Greedier individuals were more likely to feel confident they’ll win, focus strongly on financial gains and downplay losses, and endorse distorted beliefs about gambling.”
This specific mindset might make it harder for individuals to walk away from a game. “So, at a broader level, the takeaway isn’t ‘greedy people gamble’,” Weller explained. “It’s that a greedy mindset can make gambling feel more appealing and potentially more difficult to disengage from. That’s important for both individuals and for how we think about prevention and intervention.”
Regarding the study’s scope, Weller pointed out some constraints. “Yes, there are a few that are avenues for future research,” he said. “First, these are mostly cross-sectional data, so we can’t say that greed causes gambling harms. It’s also possible that gambling experiences reinforce greedy thinking, or that both influence each other over time.”
The researchers also relied on self-reported survey data. “Second, we asked people to reflect on their gambling experiences and beliefs retrospectively, rather than investigating how greed was associated with actual gambling behavior as it unfolds, as in a casino or whilst making sports bets during a game,” Weller noted.
Another limitation relates to the types of participants involved. “Third, our samples were from the general population rather than clinical populations,” Weller added. “So, though we do see links with problem gambling indicators, we’re not directly studying diagnosed gambling disorder.”
Weller also warned against misusing the findings to shame individuals. “I would strongly caution the reader to avoid oversimplifying these results as ‘greed is bad and explains everything,'” he said. “As being ‘greedy’ is typically not viewed in a positive light, socially, placing the individual solely at blame for the experience of negative gambling consequences invites the potential for stigmatizing people experiencing gambling harms.”
Blaming the individual completely can create harmful barriers to recovery. “While personal factors may indeed account for more negative gambling consequences, it has the potential to square the onus of responsibility on the person experiencing harm,” Weller explained. “In turn, it could potentially lead to increased guilt and shame for these people and decreases in help-seeking when they need it.”
Finally, the researchers suggest looking at the broader context of gambling addiction. “It also might shift the focus to solely person-level intervention, rather than considering if more effective interventions could be realized at the industry and public policy level,” Weller said. “Greed is one piece of a much bigger puzzle that includes environment, access to gambling, life circumstances, and other psychological factors.”
The study, “Hungry Ghosts Eat Casino Chips: Associations Between Dispositional Greed and Gambling,” was authored by Joshua Weller, Marcel Zeelenberg, and Barbara Summers.
-------------------------------------------------
DAILY EMAIL DIGEST: Email [email protected] -- no subject or message needed.
Private, vetted email list for mental health professionals: https://www.clinicians-exchange.org
Unofficial Psychology Today Xitter to toot feed at Psych Today Unofficial Bot @PTUnofficialBot
NYU Information for Practice puts out 400-500 good quality health-related research posts per week but its too much for many people, so that bot is limited to just subscribers. You can read it or subscribe at @PsychResearchBot
Since 1991 The National Psychologist has focused on keeping practicing psychologists current with news, information and items of interest. Check them out for more free articles, resources, and subscription information: https://www.nationalpsychologist.com
EMAIL DAILY DIGEST OF RSS FEEDS -- SUBSCRIBE: http://subscribe-article-digests.clinicians-exchange.org
READ ONLINE: http://read-the-rss-mega-archive.clinicians-exchange.org
It's primitive... but it works... mostly...
-------------------------------------------------
#psychology #counseling #socialwork #psychotherapy @psychotherapist @psychotherapists @psychology @socialpsych @socialwork @psychiatry #mentalhealth #psychiatry #healthcare #depression #psychotherapist #GreedAndGambling #DispositionalGreed #GamblingHarm #CognitiveDistortions #ProblemGambling #GamblingPsychology #ImpulsivityVsGreed #MentalHealthAwareness #PreventGamblingHarm #ResponsibleGambling
-
Catching up on #Moto2, #MotoGP, #WSSP and #WSBK races I’ve missed, and it’s amazing* how Kayo’s replays -always- start right at a gambling ad. #GamblingHarm #FuckGambling
-
I’m honestly waiting on someone to say the difference is Prediction Markets don’t have the limitations on what can be bet on. YES BECAUSE GAMBLING IS RESTRICTED BY LAWS! IF IT WASN’T IT’D BE OPEN TO THE SAME THINGS! THIS 👏 IS 👏 JUST 👏 GAMBLING!!! 👏 #GamblingHarm
-
Watching John Oliver from a few days ago, and I’m struggling to see how Prediction Markets aren’t gambling? #GamblingHarm
-
The intersection of mobile ubiquitousness and algorithmic targeting has fundamentally altered the landscape of compulsive behavior. 🏛️📜
"Why Online Gambling Addiction Is Rising in 2025 and Beyond." For those interested in tech regulation, behavioral psychology, and public health, this is an excellent resource.
Full article here:
🔗 https://www.mattsheabooks.net/why-online-gambling-addiction-is-rising-in-2025-and-beyond/#PublicHealth #MattShea #TechEthics #BehavioralScience #DigitalEconomy #SocialAwareness #GamblingHarm
-
Bombarding gamblers with offers greatly increases betting and gambling harm
#HackerNews #gamblingharm #offers #betting #addiction #awareness #responsiblegambling
-
5 Hidden Ways the Gambling Industry Engineers Harm
Originally Published on January 6th, 2026 at 01:54 pmIntroduction: The Illusion of Choice
For many, gambling is seen as a form of entertainment, a voluntary activity where personal responsibility is paramount. We’re told to gamble responsibly. But, if things go wrong, the blame is often placed on the individual’s lack of self-control.
But what if that entire narrative is a dangerous fiction?
A new public health study reveals gambling harm is not an unfortunate side effect of a few people’s poor choices. Instead, it is the calculated outcome of a powerful and deliberate “gambling ecosystem” designed to maximize profit at a severe human cost.
This system operates using tactics that public health experts call the “commercial determinants of health.” The same strategies used by the tobacco and fossil fuel to drive profit by undermining public wellbeing.
This post will reveal five of the most impactful insights from the study, exposing the hidden truths of an industry that has mastered the art of engineering harm.
1. The “Responsible Gambling” Slogan is Designed to Blame YOU
The familiar phrase “gamble responsibly” is not a genuine public health message but a strategic discourse meticulously promoted by the industry. The primary function of this narrative is to shift the focus, and the blame, onto the individual consumer.
By framing harm as a personal failing, it deflects attention. It deflects it from:
- Predatory industry practices
- Unsafe products
- A system that profits from addiction
This blame-shifting has severe consequences, creating a culture of shame that prevents people from seeking help and isolates them when they are most vulnerable. As the study’s authors note:
This emphasis on individual responsibility diverts attention from the practices of the industry. It generates stigma and shame for those harmed. It downplays serious harms caused by gambling. Worst of all: it contributes to the suicide toll.
This psychological framing is so damaging because it convinces individuals that their suffering is their own fault, making it harder to recognize the external forces at play and seek the support they need.
Are you a professional looking to stay up-to-date with the latest information on, sex addiction, trauma, and mental health news and research? Or maybe you’re looking for continuing education courses?
Stay up-to-date with all of Dr. Jen’s work through her practice’s newsletter!
2. The Gambling Industry’s Goal is For You to “Play to Extinction”
Behind the glamorous advertising and messages of entertainment lies a stark and chilling internal objective. The study highlights a term used by gambling industry representatives to describe their core aim: “playing to extinction.”
This isn’t an exaggeration; it’s the industry’s own vocabulary for its business model:
“…gambling industry representatives describe their aim is to maximise revenue per available customer (revpac), and encourage ‘playing to extinction’, the point at which a customer has exhausted all available funds.”
The phrase has a chilling double meaning.
It refers to the financial extinction of a customer’s funds, but in the context of gambling-related suicide, it acquires a much darker significance.
The industry’s profit model depends on pushing customers into the exact states of financial ruin and profound despair that are known precursors to suicide. It is a business model that treats human crisis as a key performance indicator. Rather than a tragic crisis.
3. Products are Engineered to Undermine Your Control
Modern gambling products, especially digital ones, are not simple games of chance. They have been intentionally intensified with features like:
- Increased speed
- High complexity
- “Frictionless” transactions
All designed to encourage extended use and bypass a person’s executive function.
The industry also employs digital tactics like sludging. Deliberately designing interactions to make it difficult for customers to act in their own best interest. Such as withdrawing funds or closing an account. This tactic also manifests physically. For 15 years, the Australian industry has resisted modern, universal pre-commitment systems that allow users to set binding loss limits. Instead, it has relied on a form of physical sludging: “manual, paper-based self-exclusion” that requires a person to fill out separate forms for every single venue they wish to avoid.
Product design also deploys psychological tricks to encourage overspending.
The study points out that a single ticket in the Australian “Powerball” lottery can be priced as high as AUD$46,249.65. This serves as a psychological anchor. While few would buy it, its existence makes spending smaller—yet still exorbitant—amounts like hundreds or thousands of dollars seem reasonable by comparison.
Need support and not local to the Lehigh Valley? Check out the LGBT National Help Center.
4. “Good Causes” are Used as a Smokescreen
A common defense of the gambling industry is that it funds worthy causes, from sports teams to community charities. The research argues this is a calculated strategy to create an “‘alibi’ to legitimise gambling operations” and procure a “social license” to operate.
This linkage creates a “symbiotic, reflexive relationship” where community groups become financially captured. Reliant on gambling revenue, these beneficiaries become powerful allies in resisting reforms that could threaten their funding, even if those reforms would reduce harm. This insidious dependency creates a powerful barrier to reform.
As one researcher observed, the dynamic is inescapable:
… at first the lottery was primarily dependent on the good cause and then, gradually, the good cause became increasingly dependent on the lottery.
5. The Gambling Industry Distorts Science and Influences Policy
Like the tobacco and fossil fuel industries before it, the gambling ecosystem actively works to control and distort the scientific evidence base to protect its interests. The study identifies two key tactics:
- Funding “safe” research: The industry funds and promotes research focused on the individual, such as the influential “pathways model.” This model frames gambling harm as an artifact of pre-existing conditions like “antisocial personality disorder,” thereby shifting blame from the addictive product to the flawed consumer.
- Discrediting effective solutions: The ecosystem publicly casts doubt on proven harm-prevention tools. The paper cites an industry-linked researcher who claimed that universal pre-commitment systems might have a “detrimental effect and may aggravate the problem.” Crucially, the study notes that a subsequent review of the evidence cited for this claim found “no support for this conclusion,” noting the studies had significant “methodological limitations.” This reveals a pattern of distorting weak evidence to undermine effective public health measures.
This distortion of science is coupled with political donations and the “revolving door”—where politicians and staff take industry jobs after leaving office—to block or delay meaningful reforms that could save lives.
Conclusion: Shifting from Individual Blame to Systemic Accountability
The evidence is clear: gambling harm is not a simple story of poor individual choices. It is the predictable and profitable result of a commercial system meticulously designed to addict users, shift blame, and protect its revenue streams at all costs. From manipulative product design to the distortion of science, the gambling ecosystem functions as a commercial determinant of health, actively generating and sustaining harm.
This reframing moves the problem from one of personal responsibility to one of systemic accountability. Seeing the deliberate system that drives these harms, what does real responsibility—from our governments, communities, and the industry itself—truly look like?
Are you looking for more reputable data-backed information on sexual addiction? The Mitigation Aide Research Archive is an excellent source for executive summaries of research studies.
Do you feel your sexual behavior, or that of someone you love, is out of control? Then you should consult with a professional.
Have you found yourself in legal trouble due to your sexual behavior? Seek assistance before the court mandates it, with Sexual Addiction Treatment Services.
#behavioralAddiction #commercialDeterminantsOfHealth #darkPatterns #gambling #gamblingAddiction #gamblingHarm #gamblingIndustry #gamblingPolicy #harmReduction #onlineGambling #preCommitmentLimits #predatoryDesign #problemGambling #publicHealth #responsibleGambling #selfExclusion #sludging #sportsBetting #stigmaAndShame #suicidePrevention -
-
Time to ban gambling adds and lobby groups altogether among other measures to curb the social scourge it is.
“Sportsbet has previously paid $110,000 for a platinum membership to Labor’s business forum, which provides it increased access to ministers including cabinet members. But it downgraded its membership to the $88,000 option last financial year, according to latest disclosures, which show it also donated $60,000 to the Liberals and $15,000 to the Nationals.”
#GamblingIndustry #GamblingLobbyist #AusPol #gamblingreform #GamblingHarm
Read more
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/oct/10/sportsbet-dines-with-government-minister-at-labor-fundraiser-despite-calls-to-reject-lobbying-from-industry? -
Let it fail…let it be dead. Retrain employees and place them in good jobs and good riddance to the money launderers.
#GamblingHarm -
Owner of Ladbrokes & Neds sued for anti money laundering failure. #GamblingHarm #FuckGambling www.abc.net.au/news/...
Owner of Ladbrokes and Neds su... -
Hard to disagree with Kohler's analysis 👍😷🥱
#GamblingHarm #gambling #auspol #australia #addiction
Gambling should be regulated as a drug of addiction
https://thenewdaily.com.au/news/2023/07/20/gambling-drug-addiction-regulation-kohler/ -
Canberra Times demonstrating its ongoing commitment to community safety
-
"“Denormalisation” was a key strategy of tobacco control efforts in Australia. These are now seen as a massive public health success, with smoking and associated disease rates dropping dramatically."
#GamblingHarm #Regulation #AusPol
https://theconversation.com/sport-is-being-used-to-normalise-gambling-we-should-treat-the-problem-just-like-smoking-205843