PROFESSIONAL GAMBLER:
A professional gambler gambles to a game where the element
of skill is sufficient to give him a benefit. He might
be inspired by financial gain.
PROBLEM GAMBLER:
Such a person shows signs of the potential for becoming
a pathological gambler. A compulsive (pathological)
gambler has a constant and increasing failure to resist
the urge to gamble. The gambling behavior then damages
his personal, family and work life. Major
part of gamblers belongs to casual or occasional gamblers.
However, professional and problem gamblers make gambling
their way of life and subsequently, the professional
gambler gambles to live and the problem gambler lives
to gamble.
The worst kind of gambling could be
a lucky draw or guess-game in which there is no logical
explanation of the results of the game. Such a game
does not involve any skill or experience on the part
of the gambler and the only attraction is the huge amount
of prize that a player may win only if he is lucky.
Unfortunately, in most countries where education is
not common, people choose playing these games even over
working since they don’t need any qualification
or mind-work. In most cases the only prerequisite to
play such games is money.
Most gamblers when fall short of their
own money, they start using the funds that belong to
their families and friends in the hope that they can
pay it back when they would get the prize. They don’t
even spare the money kept with them for safekeeping
by others. At first people do it for compensating the
loss, later it becomes a need for them as they have
to repay enormous money back.
The families of problem gamblers have
to bear gravely and go through physical and emotional
abuse from the gambler and threats and harassment from
creditors of the gambler. The families have to suffer
neglect, stress, and violence. Further, as compulsive
gambling leads to numerous legal problems including
frauds, insolvency, and crime in the countries where
gambling is illegal, the families are often the first
to feel the adverse effects.
A study shows that pathological gamblers
use tobacco, alcohol, marijuana, cocaine and drugs more
frequently than other groups, irrelevant of their age.
They also report smoking and drinking more than persons
falling within other categories. Similarly, problem
gamblers report engaging in illicit behavior and experience
depression, arrest, treatment for a drug or alcohol
problem, and difficulties with family members or friends
at higher rates than other groups. It is also true that
threatened adolescent gamblers are more likely to have
sold personal or family property or possessions, stolen
other things, bought or sold stolen property or borrowed
money from friends/acquaintances without their knowing
to obtain money to gamble or to pay off gambling debts.
Most common social effects of gambling
include negligence towards family, friends and other
activities including their profession, loss of trust
between individuals and families and need for gambling
money can lead to debt and crime whereas economic effects
of gambling consist of the use of money for gambling
instead of family living and potential for crime.
A gambler would be a problem gambler
when there is an increasing frequency and amount of
money gambled; he spends time gambling at the expense
of his family or job time; he is preoccupied with gambling
or obtaining gambling money; he continues to gamble
despite negative effects on family and work to make
up for the money already lost; he borrows, steals or
takes secret loans for gambling; brags about wins but
never talks about losses; has mood swings in relation
to wins and losses and so on.
CONCLUSION
Being addicted to gambling is as bad
as being alcoholic or drug addict.
Non-gambler does not exhibit gambling
behavior. Several motivations include:
Anti-gambling because of religious, moral or even political
reasons; would-be gamblers who are not in proximity
to gambling activity; ignorant non-gamblers with no
practical knowledge or experience with gambling; and
uninterested people who are knowledgeable about gambling
but have no interest in it.
|
