Gambling Addiction? What Are the Symptoms and How to Recognize It on Time

The Biggest Losers on a Global Scale

Another interesting aspect of gambling to look at is which country has the biggest losers worldwide, it helps put some perspective on the matter. Here we have gathered some information for gambling losses in 2017 on a global scale.

Australia is at the top of the list with $958 gambling losses per adult. Hong Kong takes second place, with 20% less than Australia, at $768 lost per adult, while Singapore comes a close third with $725 lost per adult. Finland comes in fourth place with $515 in losses per adult, followed by New Zealand, which has losses of $454 per adult.

Japan takes 6th place with gambling losses of $447, while Ireland bags 7th place with $433. Norway comes closely behind in 8th place with $430 in losses per adult and the US takes 9th place with $421 lost per adult. In 10th place comes Canada with $382 lost to gambling per adult.

Next up comes Panama in 11th place with losses of $376 per adult, followed by the UK in 12th place who had $346 in gambling losses per adult. Malta and Iceland take 13th and 14th place with $344 and $339 in losses per adult respectively.

Cognitive Distortions Associated with Gambling Disorder

Gambling disorder has many underlying factors that worsen the issue. Many gambling addicts reassure themselves with thoughts like I can stop any time, I have control over the situation, my gambling is not an issue. This is what we call cognitive distortions in the head of a person with a gambling disorder.

One of the more common cognitive distortions associated with gambling disorder is the gambler’s fallacy. This is the erroneous belief that if a particular outcome occurs more frequently, it is less likely to happen in the future and vice versa. The gambler’s fallacy has enveloped many gamblers in it, creating a near-manic like obsession with proving the phenomenon. This will cause repetitive behavior in an individual, thus creating a gambling disorder.

Another interesting fact is that people are more sensitive to losses than to gains. This is why it is more common for people to reject a 50/50 chance of winning or losing, as loss aversion has a stronger hold on an individual.

Illusion of control is another common cognitive disorder in problem gamblers. This is when someone has the idea that they can use skill involvement in situations or games that are considered as games of chance, such as slot machines or lottery tickets.

The illusion of control is facilitated by certain things such as choosing your lottery ticket, apparent competition or, say, instrumental action like throwing a roulette ball. A recent study found that problem gamblers as a whole had much greater confidence in their abilities to control outcomes of games of chance than non-gamblers.

Another interesting factor to look at on the subject is the impact of near miss outcomes on gamblers. Near miss outcomes are when an unsuccessful outcome was proximal to a large jackpot. In contrast to full misses, this type of outcome has the potential to bring up excitement levels and “hook” a gambler into more motivated gameplay and continuing when they may have given up.

The Symptoms of Gambling Addiction

Gambling addiction is a nasty sickness that can cause a lot of needless misery. For one to recognize and understand problem gambling, it is important to know the symptoms of this disorder.

The first sign to look out for is preoccupation with gambling. If you find yourself or someone around you constantly occupied with these activities, there may be a need to pay more attention to the person’s habits. You will also notice a restlessness that leads to irritability, making a person more likely to have an emotional outburst.

Another symptom includes increased stress levels, which can only be relieved by indulging in more gambling activities. This is because an individual is feeling urges to gamble and is having to battle them, causing stress, and so they resort to gambling to deal with it.

When the person loses the inner battle and turns to gambling, they may find themselves lying to close friends and family to cover the guilt they feel for lack of self-control. This can lead to destroying or at least putting stress on family or close relationships, elevating the gambler’s stress level, making them turn to more gambling. Jeopardizing one’s job is a definite indicator that gambling has become an issue for them.

The more serious symptom is when financial issues arise because of excessive gambling. Resorting to fraud, thievery, or loans to continue funding your gambling activities is the clearest sign you can get for gambling addiction.

Recognizing the Problem

Now that you know what the symptoms are, you will also need to know the key things to look out for to recognize gambling addiction in a friend or close family. You will notice behavioral and emotional changes that are easy to spot if you know what to look for.

Emotional changes that derive from stress and anxiety related to the battle of wills in the head of a gambler can be quite obvious to someone who knows the person well. The stress levels can lead to insomnia, which will naturally make the person look worn out and drained. A person with gambling addiction tends to turn pale, suffer from severe headaches, and palpitation.

Someone with a gambling disorder will also tend to hide things from their close ones by lying. This will cause a change in attitude, higher stress levels, and emotional outbursts. The emotional outbursts may even start with the gambler trying to deflect from their own issues by underlining flaws or even imagining personal attacks that lead to conflict.

Lack of control over their financial situation is another red light. If you see a gambler struggling to keep a hold on their life, asking for money, or even stealing, you will know there is something up. Destroying personal relationships is another common indicator of a gambling issue, do not allow this to happen by reacting to the person’s irritable behavior.