Feb 21, 2026 | RESEARCH, YOUTH GAMBLING
Read the original article on The BASIS.
By John Slabczynski
Gambling can create financial, social, psychological, and physical harms. Of particular concern is suicidality, which recent research has identified as a potential gambling harm. As we undergo worldwide gambling expansion, it is imperative that public health experts and the gamblers themselves know more about this link, including whether problem gambling predicts future suicidality. This week The WAGER reviews a study by Oliver Bastiani and colleagues that explored the relationship between problem gambling and suicidality among the same participants over time.
What were the research questions?
Do gambling problems predict future suicidality?
What did the researchers do?
The researchers used data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, a United Kingdom-based birth cohort study. They limited their analysis to data collected from 2,801 participants who completed assessments between the ages of 16 and 25. During these years, participants provided information on their suicidality and gambling problems. The researchers used logistic regression to examine whether having gambling problems at age 20 or 24 increased the odds of reporting past-year suicide attempts at age 24 or 25, controlling for some known risk factors such as sex, alcohol consumption/harms, and previous suicide attempts.
What did they find?
Most participants reported no problem gambling at both age 20 (70.4%) and age 24 (76.5%). Approximately 2.6% reported a past-year suicide attempt at age 24 and 1.9% did so at age 251. Problem gambling severity at age 24 was associated with increased odds of past-year suicide attempt at the same age. Longitudinal analyses revealed that problem gambling at age 20 was predictive of past-year suicide attempts at age 24 but not at age 25. On a shorter timespan, problem gambling at age 24 predicted past-year suicide attempts at age 25. (See Figure.)
Figure. Displays the odds of reporting past year suicidality at ages 24 and 25 by problem gambling severity at ages 20 and 24. Odds ratios can be interpreted as having X times higher odds of reporting an event. For example, a one-point increase in problem gambling severity (e.g., answering “most of the time” instead of “sometimes” on one question) at age 24 was associated with having 1.13 times higher odds of reporting past year suicidality at age 24.
Why do these findings matter?
These findings provide more support for the idea that problem gambling contributes to future suicidality, because in this study, problem gambling preceded suicide attempts. Because problem gambling can be detected and managed at an early stage, it is essential to spread the word about brief gambling screening to healthcare providers and anyone else in a position to intervene, such as college health services staff and debt counselors. Furthermore, public health advocates can use this information to more effectively advocate for preventive tools like mandatory cool-off periods, which can disrupt gambling flow states and discourage long sessions, or tighter regulations on gambling and gambling advertising.
Every study has limitations. What are the limitations in this study?
The relationship between problem gambling and suicidality is probably more complicated than a single study can reveal. For instance, this study did not explore the possibility that suicidality predicted future problem gambling (i.e., reverse causality), which might happen if people develop gambling problems while trying to escape from painful suicidal thoughts. Another complication is that problem gambling tends to occur alongside depression, anxiety, and illicit drug use, which the researchers were unable to control for, and which might have partly accounted for the relationships with suicide attempts.
Jan 29, 2026 | PROBLEM GAMBLING, RESEARCH, SPORTS BETTING, YOUTH GAMBLING
Read the original article on The BASIS here.
By John Slabczynski
As legalized sports betting grows in popularity, public health experts have raised concerns about its potential harms. As advertisers and sports leagues continue to make gambling a key part of spectatorship, this could normalize betting as a natural part of sports fandom. Previous research suggests that these practices are contributing to an increase in gambling problems, particularly among young adults. To better address these concerns, public health advocates need to understand the specific problems associated with young adult sports betting. This week, The WAGER reviews a study by Nerilee Hing and colleagues that explored young adult sports bettors’ experiences of gambling harm and their perspectives on changing their gambling behavior.
What were the research questions?
(1) How do young adult sports bettors experience gambling harms? (2) How do they conceptualize and engage in changing harmful gambling?
What did the researchers do?
The researchers recruited 50 Australians between the ages of 18 and 25 who reported experiencing moderate or severe harm from sports betting in the past year. Participants completed interviews with the research team that asked about the nature of sports betting-related harms they experienced, perceived barriers and facilitators of gambling behavior change, and strategies they used to change their gambling. The researchers then coded the transcribed interviews to identify relevant themes.
What did they find?
The interviews revealed five distinct types of sports betting-related harm: 1) financial harm, 2) harm to mental health, 3) harm to work or study, 4) relationship harm, and 5) harm to physical health. Participants reported that many of these harms built up over time and intersected with one another. For example, several participants indicated that financial harms grew over time, and that these harms worsened their mental health. At the time of interviews, some participants were unwilling to change their gambling behavior. Others, however, pointed to improved knowledge of gambling disorder and an awareness of gambling harms as key factors in choosing to change their harmful behavior (see Figure).
Figure. Displays participant quotes representing each theme identified through thematic analysis. Click image to enlarge.
Why do these findings matter?
Information on the types of harm experienced by young adult sports gamblers can help public health practitioners identify potential gambling problems quickly and accurately, allowing for timely intervention and support before more significant harms happen. This study’s findings on behavior change are especially important. Many participants emphasized the value of awareness of gambling as an addiction as a catalyst for behavior change. Initiatives such as The Faces of Gambling that highlight how gambling problems develop from the perspective of people with lived experience may be especially effective in reducing the prevalence of gambling harms.
Every study has limitations. What are the limitations in this study?
This study screened participants for a history of experiencing gambling harms using a list of previously researched harms, which may have primed the sample to report these very same types of harm. Similarly, because the study focused on moderate to severe cases of gambling disorder among young adults, the results of this study may not be generalizable to those who experience less severe forms of the condition, or the wider gambling population.
Jan 19, 2026 | PODCAST, RECOVERY POSTCASTS
A podcast exploring issues surrounding problem gambling and gambling related harm. Presented by addiction counsellor, Barry Grant, and addiction counsellor, author and expert by lived experience, Tony O Reilly. This podcast is an awareness raising project of Extern Problem Gambling, part of the registered charity, Extern Ireland. https://www.problemgambling.ie/
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If you would like to support the podcast, you can donate here: https://www.problemgambling.ie/donate.html Hosted on Acast.
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Jan 19, 2026 | PODCAST, RECOVERY POSTCASTS
Battling gambling problems as a veteran or active-duty service member takes significant support. Fight stigma and build your knowledge with Army veteran Dave Yeager’s Fall In Podcast. Conversations cover the latest in military gambling and recovery resources. LISTEN
Jan 8, 2026 | RESEARCH
Read the original article on The BASIS here.
By John Slabczynski
Like other addictive behaviors, gambling disorder is linked with risk for suicidality. This is particularly alarming during an era of gambling expansion. To save lives, public health advocates need to understand this relationship. For example, to what extent does gambling disorder increase the risk for suicidality when co-occurring conditions, such as depression and anxiety, are accounted for? This week, The WAGER reviews a study by Adonay Kidane and colleagues that explored the relationships among gambling disorder, suicidality, and co-occurring conditions.
What was the research question?
How do gambling disorder and other mental health issues relate to suicidality within a large nationally representative sample?
What did the researchers do?
The researchers used two nationally representative Swedish datasets, the National Patient Register (NPR) and the Cause of Death Register (CDR). The NPR includes records of mental health disorder diagnoses, suicide attempts, and more. The researchers used it to identify 3,594 patients diagnosed with gambling disorder between 2005-2019. Using a case-control design, they selected two age- and gender-matched patients from the dataset without gambling disorder, resulting in 10,782 total participants. The researchers then merged in CDR data on completed suicides. Through logistic regression, they explored how gambling disorder and other mental health diagnoses relate to suicidality, which was defined as the presence of either a suicide attempt or completed suicide.
What did they find?
Participants diagnosed with gambling disorder (17.7%) had 2.8 greater odds of suicidality compared to matched controls (1.6%) (see Figure), controlling for demographics and comorbid mental health diagnoses. In this model, substance use disorders had the highest risk increase for suicidality (see Figure).
Figure. Displays the odds of suicidality as a function of several potential risk factors among the total sample (N = 10,782). Odds ratios can be interpreted as having X times higher odds of reporting an outcome. * denotes a statistically significant relationship.
Why do these findings matter?
These findings indicate that gambling disorder is associated with increased risk for suicidality even when the researchers accounted for other conditions that might independently create risk for suicide. This underscores the need for routine suicide risk-assessment and safety planning among those experiencing gambling disorder.
Every study has limitations. What are the limitations in this study?
This study was a secondary analysis of existing datasets, so it is limited by how the original data were collected. The NPR, for example, only identifies cases for which a formal diagnosis was made. Most people with gambling disorder do not seek help, so those who do get formally diagnosed might have more severe cases compared to the general population.
For more information:
Individuals who are concerned about their gambling may benefit from engaging with Gamblers Anonymous. Others who are concerned that they may hurt themself may benefit from visiting the CDC webpage on suicide prevention. Additional resources can be found at the BASIS Addiction Resources page.
—John Slabczynski
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