Gambling is not unique to any specific cultural group; Greeks, Chinese, Irish, Italians, and Australians gamble, and there is nothing inherently wrong with gambling – unless it becomes an addiction. Gambling has become a significant industry outside traditional cultural and social norms in Australia, which ferments the idea that it is an individual’s fault if they get addicted and fall on hard times.

Social and cultural controls, which once acted as a handbrake, have disappeared in the corporatised gambling world. A key to the understanding of gambling addiction, according to Dr Anastasia Hronis, is the lack impacts of education on gambling addiction.

Dr Hronis, a clinical psychologist and an academic at the University of Technology Sydney, is sharing her insights into the complexities of gambling addiction in a free online webinar on Thursday, October 19, at 1 p.m. for the Gamble Aware Week, from October 16-22.

Dr Hronis talks about the addictive properties of gambling, noting that some types of gambling, such as poker machines or “pokies”, can be more addictive than socially engaged card games, for example, which require skill.”Gambling is addictive because the rewards are unpredictable.

That means we don’t know when we might win money or how much,” the clinical psychologist told Neos Kosmos.

“However, sometimes people do win money; we refer to it as an “intermittent reward schedule”. This activates the pathways in the brain relating to pleasure and motivation. Dopamine has a key role to play here.”

Dopamine factories

Reverend Tim Costello, from The Alliance for Gambling Reform, talking to Neos Kosmos last year, said that gambling addiction, especially pokies, can be measured in “bankruptcies, family breakdown, poverty, crime that blocks up our courts, and suicide”.

“Only 18 per cent of Australians play the pokies, and yet we have a staggering $66 billion loss in 30 years.”

Australia tops the world in gambling losses. Dr Hronis, also the founder of the Australian Institute for Human Wellness, points to the idea that ‘dopamine is released when a person wins and during the pursuit of winning.

“Think about a poker machine. If you win and get three cherries in a row, dopamine is released, and you feel good. However, if you get two cherries and a lemon, dopamine is still released, and you have the experience of feeling “close” to winning. Pursuing this win is how people can fall into unhealthy gambling patterns.”

Dr Hronis says addiction creates a need to gamble with more money to feel the desired excitement, and restlessness and irritability ensure when they try to stop or cut back. Other critical factors of gambling addiction are feelings of distress, anxiety, guilt, and depression. The idea of trying to “chase your losses” and lying about the extent of one’s gambling and jeopardising other parts of your life, such as relationships or work, can manifest in addiction.”

Remember that a person can also experience gambling-related harms without a gambling addiction.

Gambling creates a distraction from work, relationship stress, financial difficulties or problems sleeping,” Dr Hronis told Neos Kosmos.

She added that gambling is normalised in Australia and well-ingrained in its sporting culture, having roughly 20 per cent of the world’s poker machines and sports betting ads on free-to-air channels.”Research has shown the negative impact that this advertising has on children who also watch sporting matches but can’t fully understand what gambling is and involves,” the clinical psychologist said.

“This is very different to other countries, where there are much stricter rules and regulations around gambling.”

Dr Hronis also talks of the “harmful effects of certain video games” with gambling-like features, such as paying real money for in-game items without value outside the game and children unknowingly engaging with them.

Gambling in the Greek community was traditionally a pastime, an enjoyable form of social contact and entertainment shared with family and friends.

“Card games and tavli have been traditionally popular, but nowadays, people in the Greek community also engage in other forms of gambling such as poker machines, casino games and sports betting.

“Before gambling became an industry, with the proliferation of casinos and poker machines in RSL clubs and hotels, Greeks would gamble at the “kafenio” or in their home and cultural and social restraints existed. When someone was losing excessively, it was customary for a concerned individual to step in and say, “Look, you’re losing; think of your family.”

Mental health impacts of gambling addiction

Gambling can harm people with mental health concerns like anxiety, depression, or even general life stress, Dr Hronis says.

“Gambling itself can also significantly impact a person’s mental health and lead to stress, anxiety and depression.”

Gambling becomes an escape and a form of immediate relief from what they are experiencing.

Dr Hronis advocates for awareness of gambling addiction to make people more sensitive to it, as with other mental health concerns.

“Gambling addiction is often judged harshly by people who don’t understand the complexities involved in how an addiction forms and is maintained. People might think that those struggling with gambling should “just stop”, but it is often not that easy.”

“I believe that it is essential to educate the general public about the risks relating to gambling and help people understand that anyone can be vulnerable to developing a gambling addiction. ”

Dr Hronis added that anyone seeking help on this or any other addiction can do so through the Australian Institute for Human Wellness clinic: www.ausihw.com.au.

She also listed some government services like: www.gambleaware.nsw.gov.au and gamblershelp.com.au.

“If people want help but are unsure where to go, speak to your GP about what local services are available.”

Register for the Webinar here.