Study growing understanding

Gambling has serious repercussions for the mental health of people who were exposed to their parent’s gambling during childhood, new research has shown.

The Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation study, detailed on page one of today’s edition, sheds new light on the breadth of negative impacts gambling can have on individuals and families – and from the perspective of loved ones, including those exposed to gambling during childhood.

This harm has the potential to impact multiple generations.

The research found that while many people are aware gambling can lead to difficulties such as financial stress or physical or mental health issues, the complex ways in which gambling can affect others is less wellunderstood.

And those impacts are deeply personal and deeply subjective.

The study detailed the negative impacts to child-parent relationships, to education and career opportunities, and to psychological wellbeing and safety concerns as some children felt unloved or unsafe, or took on responsibilities well beyond their years at a young age.

Most participants of the study said they had experienced serious mental health problems such as anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder, and many reported feeling angry and confused about parental gambling as a child, which had grown stronger towards adolescence and early adulthood.

“These effects may be experienced as a perceived lack of love, hope or competent parenting and limit the child’s ability to function as a healthy member of their family or community,” Cafs Gamblers Help community engagement officer John Bradshaw said.

“Gambling harm doesn’t discriminate – it can affect anybody.”

The research also highlights opportunities for people and practitioners to approach treatment in a holistic manner and co-ordinate services, particularly among family welfare services.

Wimmera-based services such as Cafs, also known as Child and Family Services, Ballarat, are utilising the research findings to inform and enhance existing practice – which also requires understanding the contributing factors to behaviour.

Gambling is considered a problem when a person is willing to risk losing something of value for the chance of winning more, the gambling foundation’s definition of the term states. It is a recognised addiction. The research findings come at a time when gambling foundation data shows people visiting Horsham venues put more than $27,000 a day, on average, through poker machines – for a total spend of $5.8-million across the 202021 financial year.

People visiting venues in Ararat spent more than $14,000 a day at its two venues, or more than $3-million a year; and people visiting two venues in Northern Grampians spent more than $11,000 a day, or $2.4-million for the year. These are breathtaking figures. Granted, not everyone who attends a venue with poker machines will gamble, or gamble in a problematic way.

And not everyone who gambles will utilise poker machines – in fact, for many, it’s just a tap of a screen or a click of a button away as smart phones and online methods offer increasing convenience.

Not everyone will seek help for gambling. For those who do, however, or for those who provide it, knowledge is power.

The findings of the study are a step forward in identifying the opportunities and requirements of treatment for the betterment of current and future generations.

• People who are concerned about their own, or someone else’s gambling can access free, confidential advice and referral by calling Cafs on 1800 692 237 or 24-hour services, Gambler’s Help on 1800 858 858 or Youthline on 1800 262 376.