Abstract
Pathological gambling creates enormous problems for the afflicted individuals, their families, employers, and society, and has numerous disastrous financial consequences. The present study evaluates the financial burdens of pathological gambling by questioning pathological gamblers in treatment in Gamblers Anonymous (n=60; 56 males, 4 females; mean age = 40 years old) about personal debts, loss of productivity at work, illegal activities, medical costs and the presence of other dependencies. Results show that important debts, loss of productivity at work and legal problems are associated with pathological gambling. Discussion is formulated in terms of the social cost of adopting a liberal attitude toward the legalization of various gambling activities.
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This study was completed with the financial support of the FCAR, CQRS and Loto-Quebec grants. Authors wish to thank Lisa Kelley for her helpful comments on an earlier version of the manuscript.
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Ladouceur, R., Boisvert, J.M., Pépin, M. et al. Social cost of pathological gambling. J Gambling Stud 10, 399–409 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02104905
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02104905