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Bakgrund: Personer med spelproblem har betydligt oftare suicidtankar, suicidplaner och suicidförsök än den allmänna befolkningen. Spelproblem är ett folkhälsoproblem då det kan ge allvarliga sociala, hälsomässiga och ekonomiska konsekvenser för individen, för närstående och för samhället i stort. Syftet med den kvalitativa studien är att öka kunskapen om spelberoende samt få fördjupad förståelse för de spelfria spelberoendes upplevelser om deras väg till tillfrisknande. Metoden jag har använt mig av är kvalitativt inriktad forskning till följd av att jag vill förstå problemspelares upplevelser och syn på deras livsvärld och på så sätt få detaljrika berättelser. Resultatet av studien är att åtta kvalitativa forskningsintervjuer har genomförts med åtta spelfria spelberoende från tre ideella föreningar i tre olika städer i landet. Intervjumaterialet har därefter analyserats utifrån två teoretiska verktyg; Känsla av sammanhang (KASAM) och stigma. Slutsatsen av studien är att intervjupersonerna hade upplevt personlighetsförändringar där lögn, manipulationer och stjäla pengar blev deras vardag. De levde i sin bubbla för att de kände skam och skuld över att berätta för sina närstående om spelberoendet som orsakade förödande negativa konsekvenser för deras psykiska hälsa, sociala relationer och ekonomi. Vägen mot tillfrisknandet har varit i samband med kapitulationen och stödet från anhöriga men framförallt från självhjälpsgrupperna som har varit avgörande för upprätthållandet av återhållsamheten. / Background: People with gambling problems have significantly more frequent suicidal thoughts, plans and suicide attempts than the general population. Gambling problems are a public health problem as it can have serious social, health and economic consequences for the individual, for relatives and for society as a whole. The purpose of the qualitative study is to increase knowledge about gambling addiction and gain an in-depth understanding of the former gambling addicts´ perceptions and experiences about their path to recovery. The method I have used is qualitative research as a result of the fact that I want to understand problem players' experiences and views of their world of life and thus get detailed stories. The result of the study is that eight qualitative research interviews were conducted with eight former gambling addicts from three non-profit support groups in three different cities in the country. The interview material was then analyzed based on two theoretical tools; Sense of coherence (SOC) and stigma. The conclusion of the study is that the interviewees had experienced personality changes where lying, manipulation and stealing money became their everyday life. They lived in their bubble because they felt ashamed and guilty about telling their loved ones about gambling addiction that caused devastating negative consequences for their mental health, social relationships and finances. The path to recovery has been in connection with the capitulation and support from relatives, but above all from the self-help groups that have been crucial for maintaining restraint.

The objectives of this study were to provide a detailed biopsychosocial description of the characteristics of a sample of 100 individuals screened and referred by the National Responsible Gaming Programme helpline for their outpatient treatment programme over an eighteen month period, and, importantly, to measure the success of this specific treatment programme at set intervals, up to a one year follow-up period. While 80% of the sample did not relapse during the six-week treatment programme, the number of treatment seekers without any gambling relapses during each follow-up period declined, and those falling back into gambling increased as time went on. After one year 47% of treatment seekers managed not to revert back to gambling – total abstinence. A further 28% reported having relapsed once or twice or that their gambling was controlled. 25% of treatment seekers reported that they reverted back to gambling fulltime which leaves the success rate of the treatment at 75%. Treatment seekers reported an overall reduction in gambling participation, debt and expenditure and an overall improvement in social and vocational functioning. There is evidence in this study to support the perspective that pathological gambling is a multidimensional disorder and that certain sub-groups of gamblers have distinct gambling behaviour. / Psychology / M.Soc.Sc.

Gamification kan enklast beskrivas som tillämpningen av speldesignselement i en kontext orelaterad till spel. Gamification-mekaniker används inom nätkasinobranschen som ett medel för att engagera slutanvändarna och skapa interaktion mellan användaren och systemet. Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka hur spelmekanikerna inom nätkasinobranschen kan användas utan att vara motstridig till svensk lagstiftning, samt vilka konsekvenser som appliceringen skulle kunna få på användarnas upplevelse. Metoderna för studien var litteraturgenomgång och en fallstudie. Resultatet tyder på att det finns spelmekaniker som inte bryter mot svensk lagstiftning, till exempelvis erfarenhets- och inlösningsbara poäng. Avslutningsvis presenteras förslag på hur de identifierade spelmekanikerna som går emot svensk lagstiftning kan användas och vilka åtgärder spelföretag kan ta för att minimera risker för att spelare, genom diverse spelmekaniker, utvecklar riskfaktorer för problemspelande.

This study was concerned with the health implications of new forms of gambling such as casinos, pokie machines and internet gambling for Māori women and their families in Auckland and the Bay of Plenty region of Aotearoa (New Zealand). It set out to discover what culturally appropriate services were available and the extent to which Māori women gamblers were utilising them. The literature documenting Māori perceptions of gambling shows that Māori women gamblers and their partner/whānau members and gambling service providers have been little studied previously. These goals translated into the following specific aims: 1) to study how Māori women problem gamblers, their partner or whānau members and key informants perceived gambling, what it meant to them and why they did it; 2) to investigate the consequences of gambling for Māori women, whānau and service providers in dealing with the effects of gambling; 3) to report on how these three groups dealt with the effects of gambling; and 4) to discover what helped to bring about positive changes for the three groups. All of the aims were achieved. A Māori approach (Kaupapa Māori), combined with a naturalistic approach to data collection, was adopted. Qualitative methods are most appropriate to use when working with some Māori, as there is a growing realisation that research with Māori needs to be interactive. A Māori research procedure modelled on the ritual ceremony of encounter (Pōwhiri) provided an appropriate structure for the development and presentation of the research process. The major focus was on the qualitative data obtained from semi-structured interviews in two locations - Rotorua and Auckland. The interviews were conducted with twenty Māori women gamblers, sixteen whānau members including partners and ten interviews with staff involved in services that provided help for problem gamblers. The three interview schedules were based on a number of broad themes and open-ended questions to obtain meaningful descriptive data. The interviews were audio recorded and used to produce transcripts that were then sent back to the participants for feedback. Qualitative data analysis was conducted on the returned documents. The findings from this study revealed major impacts of the women's socio-economic, familial and societal circumstances on gambling behaviour and its effects, which are areas of concern for mental health professionals and researchers. The mythical Māori canoes on which Māori voyaged from their place of origin (Hawaiiki) to Aotearoa, the Waka, provided an appropriate metaphor to present the interrelationship between the pull and push factors toward gambling, and its implications for society. This is illustrated as a spinning waka, Te Waka Hūrihuri. On the other hand, Te Waka Māia (courageous) demonstrates the relationships between the variables that help Māori women gamblers to cope and helpful strategies found to assist them to modify or stop their gambling behaviour. It is recommended that the government limit the proliferation of gaming venues and continue to encourage development of emerging Māori services. Moreover, a coordinated approach is essential, as Māori women gamblers, partners and whānau members need to heal together for positive outcomes for Māori health development in Aotearoa. The main implication of this study is that a wide range of further research into Māori and gambling is required. Recommendations on ways in which the current delivery of services in Rotorua and Auckland could be improved are: That the Ministry of Health purchase services that establish support groups for Māori people with problem gambling and their whānau, and That non-Māori provider services and organisations support the development of emerging Māori services. Heeding the outcome of this research should help improve New Zealand's existing health policy and capacity for Māori women's health development. It should also enrich our understanding of the adaptation patterns of Māori whānau member/s, and thus should have implications, not only for Māori health policies, but also relevance for the wider field of international cross-comparative research on indigenous gambling and mental health issues. Limitations of this study included a small, localised sample that means the findings can only tentatively be generalised to the wider population of Māori women gamblers. Nonetheless, information gained from the study contributes to understanding of the adaptation patterns of Māori women gamblers, their whānau member/s, and those who are trying to help them. It is hoped that the study will make it at least a little less true that every day is a war day for Māori women and their whānau trying to deal with the problem of gambling.

No description available.

The objectives of this study were to provide a detailed biopsychosocial description of the characteristics of a sample of 100 individuals screened and referred by the National Responsible Gaming Programme helpline for their outpatient treatment programme over an eighteen month period, and, importantly, to measure the success of this specific treatment programme at set intervals, up to a one year follow-up period. While 80% of the sample did not relapse during the six-week treatment programme, the number of treatment seekers without any gambling relapses during each follow-up period declined, and those falling back into gambling increased as time went on. After one year 47% of treatment seekers managed not to revert back to gambling – total abstinence. A further 28% reported having relapsed once or twice or that their gambling was controlled. 25% of treatment seekers reported that they reverted back to gambling fulltime which leaves the success rate of the treatment at 75%. Treatment seekers reported an overall reduction in gambling participation, debt and expenditure and an overall improvement in social and vocational functioning. There is evidence in this study to support the perspective that pathological gambling is a multidimensional disorder and that certain sub-groups of gamblers have distinct gambling behaviour. / Psychology / M.Soc.Sc.

With the exception of horse racing, any form of gambling was criminalised in South Africa until the dawn of constitutional democracy in 1994. In the same year, the Lotteries and Gambling Board Act, 1993, came into force decriminalising, amongst others, casinos and gambling games within the Republic. This Act has since been repealed and gambling is governed by the National Gambling Act, 2004, as well as by provincial gambling laws. Interactive / online gambling is illegal pending authorisation by a national legislation. Such legislation, the National Gambling Amendment Act, 2008, seeking to regulate interactive gambling awaits proclamation of the date of its commencement by the President. The National Gambling Policy, 2016, dashes any hope of regulation of interactive gambling, however, as it seeks to embargo the introduction of (new) forms of gambling, including but not limited to interactive gambling. The scourge of problem gambling and the protection of traditional forms of gambling, that is, casinos, are the main reasons for advocating for the continued prohibition of interactive gambling. Problem gambling is not unique to interactive gambling, but affects all modes of gambling. South Africa is among countries with a high rate of problem gambling. It is feared that interactive gambling will exacerbate the scourge of problem gambling as gamblers with access to the internet will now have unlimited gambling opportunities around the clock. On the other hand, interactive gambling offers practical solutions to the implementation of harm minimisation strategies to deal with problem gambling such as limitations on gambling deposits, losses and time. Prohibition of interactive gambling is difficult to enforce and deprives the country of an opportunity to control, through licensing, this mode of gambling and possible benefit from taxation and licensing fees. It further exposes gamblers – who despite prohibition choose this mode of gambling – to unregulated and illegal gambling websites. This thesis attempts to provide safeguards for regulation of interactive gambling and to embrace the benefits of the technological development that makes interactive gambling a reality. The United Kingdom (UK) is a prime example of a country that has successfully legalised and licensed interactive gambling in its jurisdiction. / Criminal and Procedural Law / LL. D.

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