Online Gambling is a growing phenomenon that allows players to gamble from the comfort of their own homes, using their mobile phones, laptops or computers. It is available around the world, and is regulated in many countries and jurisdictions. While it can be a fun way to relax, there are also risks involved in playing gambling games, and players should always exercise caution and play responsibly.
The environment, life contexts and relationships in which people engage in gambling are key influences on their behaviour. Within the selected articles, variables acting at the contextual level were scarcely investigated (except in the university context).
Despite the fact that the home is the main place where people gamble online, one in five of those who gamble say they have done so outside their house, with work, friends’ houses, cafes and restaurants being other important locations. This is unsurprising given the increasing blurring of the boundaries between home and work lives, and lockdowns during working hours.
There is a concern that legalised gambling promotes problematic and harmful behavior, which can lead to financial stress, relationship breakdown, family violence, mental illness and suicide. In order to minimize harms, there is a need for population-wide interventions to include ending advertising and promotions, universal pre-commitment (requiring people who gamble to set binding limits on time and money spent gambling) and self-exclusion from gambling providers. These tools would help to reduce addiction and reliance on gambling, while promoting social integration and community cohesion.