Gambling has always had two sides to it — the novelty and fun of spending time at a casino and the dark reality of gambling addiction, which can strain personal relationships, impact mental health, and lead to financial ruin for many. Historically, men have fallen victim to the stereotype of being more susceptible to problem gambling. And while this association might have a lot to do with male-dominated representations in the media and sociocultural factors, there’s hard statistical evidence that men are at higher risk of developing gambling problems than women.
With online platforms and new regulations making gambling more accessible, common, and accepted, are we at risk of a new wave of problem gambling? Are men really more prone to it? Although PA online casino no deposit bonuses are an easy way to get started, these new apps and freebies lower the barrier to entry, potentially making people more susceptible to the dark side of gambling.
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What Classifies as Problem Gambling?
Problem gambling doesn’t involve losing a bet or two or taking a bigger-than-usual risk and not getting a return on your investment. Just like other addictions, the “problem” part happens when these activities start to negatively consume someone’s life and livelihood. The person may be unable to break free from the chase of winning and has put their financial standing at risk, or perhaps they’ve been lying about casino visits or big sports bets to their family and damaging their relationships.
At this point, the roll of the dice or a wager on the moneyline isn’t simply a matter of fun and games anymore; it’s a pressing issue that seriously affects the person and everyone around them.
What Does the Research Say?
Men are indeed more likely to experience problem gambling than women, but in recent times, we’ve seen that gap narrow, according to Yale Medicine. Though the disparity still exists, evidence suggests that women prefer games that require less skill and strategy, like slots, while men are more interested in the opposite.
Back in 2018, the BBC reported that men are 7.5 times more likely than women to develop unhealthy gambling habits. In 2023, the American Psychological Association reported that men with these addictions outnumber women by a 2:1 ratio. Given all the potential factors, these statistics aren’t too much of a surprise.
Psychological and Biological Factors
Experts confirm it — men and boys are the most vulnerable group when it comes to gambling addiction. They’re also the same group frequently participating in video-game-related risk-taking behaviors, such as buying loot boxes. Casino culture in itself taps into our natural psychological processes. Thus, it’s no surprise that the inherent reinforcements, the illusion of control, and reward system activation play massive roles in why addiction happens in the first place. But out of all groups, why men?
Males typically have personality traits that make them more likely to suffer from addiction in general. They’re more hedonistic, take more risks, are more impulsive, and cope with hardships and difficult emotions in ways that involve seeking solace in certain compulsive behaviors. With the appeal of epic winnings on the line, gambling becomes the perfect storm.
Social and Cultural Influences
We could also argue that sociocultural elements have just as much influence as psychological factors. Gambling has always been portrayed as a predominantly masculine activity — just look at all the James Bond movies, Matt Damon and his rivals in Rounders, and video games like Grand Theft Auto and Red Dead Redemption — all these media examples depict it as a cool and thrilling activity. If we go much further back in time to when gambling was developing, we’ll see it was only done in male-dominated spaces once again, in places such as poker rooms and racetracks.
And then there’s the sports betting side of things. Opportunities for women in sports were historically limited until recently, and we can’t forget about the heavy investments in men’s sports over women’s and the many structural inequities that have shaped the sports industry in a certain way. Naturally, sports betting remains male-centric, and these stereotypes and influences will only continue to further those disparities. That heightened participation alone can be likened to how frequent drivers are at more risk of road accidents — the more you take part in that activity, the more potential danger you put yourself in.
Prevention and Intervention
Online platforms haven’t completely ignored these concerns, as each features tools for players to set financial and time-based limits on their accounts. That means they can take more responsibility for their gambling choices and avoid excessive wagers. Of course, this isn’t enough to reduce the likelihood or prevalence of problem gambling altogether, but it certainly acknowledges the need for these types of measures in place.
We’re also seeing a lot of backlash from public health advocates and the sports community, claiming that gambling ads are much too ubiquitous. After all, you can’t watch a game or even a YouTube video sometimes without seeing some sort of online casino commercial. Thankfully, the shifts in cultural norms show that men are starting to embrace healthier outlets and activities like therapy and mindfulness. Maybe one day, we’ll begin to reduce the pervasiveness of problem gambling — hopefully without having to backslide on all the progress we’ve made with online gambling regulations.
