4. Participants’ journeys with adverse or severe consequences from gambling
Participants were asked about their first experiences with gambling and the range of consequences, either positive or negative, they experienced. The interviews explored how adverse consequences changed over time and which factors had contributed to their worsening or improvement. Where possible, the interviews were supported by the use of timelines to map how participants’ journeys with gambling and adverse consequences related to wider life events and external factors. This chapter explores participants’ initial experiences with gambling and gambling consequences, before exploring changes through time and the role of external factors.
4.1. Initial experiences with gambling
Participants who took part in interviews were of varying ages and life experiences and had varied experiences with gambling. Some participants had first taken part in gambling in recent years and others had experiences spanning decades. For some, their first contact with gambling was during childhood or adolescence, often starting with observing parents or other family members who gambled (and in some cases witnessing them experience adverse consequences), but also directly participating in gambling activities. This included playing cards with family and friends for money (albeit often only wagering small amounts), betting on sports and horse or dog races, or using fruit machines in arcades and other shops. Case Study 1 demonstrates the journey of one participant who had early experiences with gambling consequences due to a family member experiencing harm. This participant had positive experiences of gambling in their 20s, before first experiencing adverse impacts during the COVID-19 pandemic. Other participants reported starting gambling later in their life (at varying points from their 20s to their 40s), in some cases linked to a desire to earn more money (for example, with increased costs related to having children) or due to the influence of friends made later in life.
Case Study 1: Steven, male participant aged 35 to 44 years
Steven had early exposure in childhood to negative gambling consequences due to the experiences of a close family member. As an adult, Steven started working in a low paid role, and took part in occasional gambling, mostly during trips to casinos with friends. These experiences were largely positive but due to having a low income, he felt the impact of any financial losses more significantly. In Steven’s 30s, during the Covid-19 pandemic, he moved from gambling in casinos to online. A series of wins through online gambling led Steven to increase the frequency of his gambling, and he first started experiencing negative consequences. At first these consequences were financial; debt and increased credit card loans. These financial challenges were made worse by external factors in Steven’s life, for example increased costs as his young children got older, and a rising cost of living. Stress related to these financial consequences then impacted Steven’s mental health. In recent years Steven experienced the loss of a family member, and he described using gambling as a release from challenges in his life and his experience with grief, leading to further negative consequences on his finances and mental health. Steven is now exploring support options for his experiences with gambling.
TIMELINE: Case study 1
Participants described taking part in a range of different gambling activities at different points in their gambling journey. Some participants initially took part in gambling in person but then moved to online gambling, others had always gambled online, while a further group of participants opted for a mix of online and in person gambling. Similarly, participants had varied initial experiences with adverse consequences, influenced by patterns of gambling participation as well as wider life events and circumstances. The following sections detail this variety of initial adverse consequences experienced by participants.
Negative financial consequences as initial adverse experiences from gambling
A common first experience of negative consequences described by participants involved issues linked to finances. This was tied to spending more on gambling than was affordable for a certain period (ranging from months to several years). These negative consequences varied in terms of severity, from having less money for leisure activities and other personal expenses, to being unable to pay for utility bills or rent, to missing mortgage payments and becoming unhoused.
‘I was spending all my salary on [gambling] - and I wasn't paying my mortgage and I just was spending it all. I barely was eating at times.’
– Female interview participant, aged 45 to 54 years
These financial consequences occurred at different points in participants’ journeys with gambling. Some participants started gambling as a fun, sometimes social, activity and did not experience any negative financial consequence for several years until one or more external factors intervened (more details on external factors are described in Section 4.3). These external factors (such as becoming unemployed or separating from their spouse) either increased the frequency of gambling and/or the amount spent or reduced their disposable income, leading to adverse consequences. Other participants reported spending more than they could afford on gambling early in their journey, and in these cases participants highlighted external factors as a catalyst for their challenges with gambling (for example, going through a difficult period of their life and using gambling as a coping mechanism or using gambling to make up for the loss of income during the COVID-19 pandemic).
‘Then it's just after COVID, or just during COVID, and funds were low […]. It was difficult and I thought, how to maintain and that's when I got the first taste and I kind of got... From COVID, I just kept betting and I was on a bit of a winning streak and I thought, well... From then onwards, it just has gone downwards.’
– Male interview participant, aged 35 to 44 years
Negative relationship impacts as initial adverse experiences from gambling
A group of participants reported relationship issues as their initial adverse experience from gambling. In some cases, this was tied to conflict about money spent on gambling, particularly in relationships with shared financial responsibilities (such as rent, bills, mortgages and/or the costs of raising children). Participants reported being judged negatively for their spending, even if they had gambled within their means, because of the perception that money could have been spent elsewhere. This could lead to conflict within relationships. In other cases, this linked to stigma related to gambling participation. For example, a participant described how they felt stigmatised by their daughter when she became aware of their gambling. This participant did not report any financial issues directly related to gambling but felt judged by their own daughter who had a negative opinion of gambling and often remarked that the money spent in gambling could have been used for other purposes.
‘So, it was like the stigma surrounding it, it was almost like, oh God, you're a gambler. You're addicted to gambling now, even if I put a fiver on a Lottery; that was just like the negative connotation that my mum or my family might have surrounding it.’
– Male interview participant, aged 35 to 44
4.2. Changes to gambling consequences through time
Participants described a variety of journeys with gambling consequences, often spanning many years or decades. These journeys are not linear and range from a progressive worsening of gambling consequences to journeys where a worsening was followed by improvements and to journeys where participants’ experiences with consequences changed very little over time. The types of changes described in this section were mainly caused or compounded by external factors which will be described further in Section 4.3.
Rapid changes to experiences of gambling consequences
Some participants explained that after starting gambling the frequency of their activity and/or the amount spent increased in a relatively short period of time (within the time span of a few months to 2 years). In some cases, this increase in gambling meant a diversification of activities: for example, starting with scratchcards and lottery tickets and then adding (in person or online) casinos, or betting on sports or dog or horse races. Participants associated these changes with different external factors, such as using gambling as a coping mechanism following periods of stress or mental health problems, trying to supplement their income after losing their job or as a consequence of the cost-of-living crisis, or moving to online gambling.
‘The ease of direct debits and phone probably means that I maybe do more than I would otherwise. […] We wouldn't normally spend £5 a time if we went in the shop, but on the phone it's so easily done.’
– Male interview participant, aged 35 to 44
After rapid increases in gambling activity, participants reported experiencing negative financial consequences often alongside relationship issues and negative consequences to their mental and physical health (such as stress, anxiety, depression, poor sleep, and poor nutrition). Participants explained that seeing their situation rapidly worsen or, in some cases, cause arguments with friends or family, convinced them to stop or reduce their gambling.
Limited changes to experiences of gambling consequences over time
Another group of participants reported that their gambling activities had changed little over time. These participants took part in a wide variety of gambling activities, including betting on sports or purchasing lottery tickets and scratchcards. This group of participants were generally gambling within their means and reported negative consequences more rarely. Similar to those experiencing more rapid changes, a variety of external factors also were identified by this group of participants as having had an impact on how they gambled and the consequences they experienced. These factors included gambling only as a social activity, or taking part to ‘ fill the time’ when working from home.
‘I wouldn't say that I gamble much at all, but that is based on the fact that my dad is actually a gambling addict, […] I do have [a] complicated relationship with gambling, I'd say, because I think the fear of becoming addicted to gambling because I can see the impacts [it] has on my life, my mum's life, stops me from gambling as much as maybe the usual person - as much as my husband or a regular person in the street.’
– Female interview participant, aged 25 to 34
Returning to gambling after previous experiences of adverse consequences
Some participants explained that their experience with gambling was characterised by a period of a few years in which they had stopped gambling followed by a return to gambling in more recent years. Some of these participants described the time before stopping as a period of more frequent gambling and higher spending and experiences of adverse consequences. This group had often stopped gambling due to significant negative impacts they had experienced (such as relationship challenges), or a more general desire to change their life which was associated with changing jobs, starting a new relationship or stopping using alcohol or drugs (as is shown by the participant’s journey in Case Study 2). For this group, starting gambling again was usually characterised by lower spending and frequency, with lower negative consequences, and by the use of strategies or tools (for example, budgeting or self-exclusion tools) to reduce the risk of experiencing significant negative consequences again.
‘I feel like I've got a bit more self-control because I know when enough is enough, whereas four or five years ago it would be, oh, okay another half an hour and that's when I would have kept going. Now, I know about the tools that sites have on.’
– Female interview participant, aged 25 to 34
Case Study 2: Jack, male participant aged 35 to 44
Jack started gambling aged 16, participating in lotteries and scratchcards. He liked that money spent on these forms of gambling sometimes goes towards charities. In his early 20s, Jack started a high-paying job which enabled him to spend around £1,000 a week gambling on lotteries and roulettes, without experiencing severe financial consequences. However, he did have to borrow money from family occasionally due to his gambling. His workplace environment encouraged alcohol and drug use, which Jack felt affected his decision-making around gambling and made him more ‘impulsive’, enjoying the thrill of betting large sums of money. In his late 20s, Jack changed job, which led to a reduced income, and abstaining from alcohol and drug use. His career change, alongside entering a long-term relationship, led to him stopping gambling. In his mid-30s, after a colleague talked to him about online gambling, Jack started gambling again online. Jack currently spends £70 to £80 a week gambling online and regularly plays new games. Despite spending less than when he was in his early 20s, Jack sometimes feels guilty about how much he spends on gambling and experiences low moods when he loses. In addition to this, when Jack returned to gambling, he tried to participate in gambling with family members, to make it into a more social activity. However, after experiencing judgement, he no longer discusses gambling with family members.
TIMELINE: Case Study 2
4.3 External factors
During interviews, participants were invited to reflect on the external factors that had impacted their experiences with gambling participation and subsequent adverse consequences from gambling. Participants reported a range of external factors that in some cases worsened adverse consequences and in other cases mitigated or prevented them. These factors were wide ranging, and unique to each participant’s life circumstances and events, as well as broader social and economic factors. In some cases, the same external factors had a different impact on different participants, either worsening or mitigating adverse consequences. Case Study 3 shows a range of external factors (including factors related to employment, family, relationships and health) which impacted one participant’s journey.
Case Study 3: Ali, male participant aged 45 to 54
Ali had early experiences with gambling as a child, using fruit machines at the local fish and chip shop, as well as arcades on family holidays at the seaside. Ali’s first experiences with gambling as an adult were on the National Lottery, and Ali had exposure to the lottery through work; his first job involved selling lottery tickets. These experiences were positive, and Ali enjoyed the feeling of excitement from taking part. As he got older, he started a career which gave him a stable income, and the ability to spend more on gambling. Ali started betting on football online and experienced occasional negative financial consequences such as the use of savings or overdrafts for gambling. In his 40s, Ali experienced the Covid-19 Pandemic as well as his children leaving home. Both of these factors led to increased disposable income as well as increased boredom which led Ali to increase his gambling. This increased spend led to tensions in his marriage and negative impacts on his mental health. Recently, Ali has started therapy for reasons unrelated to gambling. However, therapy has allowed Ali to discuss his experiences with gambling consequences with a professional and explore techniques for reducing negative consequences.
TIMELINE: Case study 3
The following section sets out the key external factors that we have identified and discusses the ways these have impacted experiences with gambling consequences, both positively and negatively.
Employment and income
Participants described numerous ways that employment and income interrelated with their experiences of gambling consequences. Participants reported that an increase in disposable income (for example, due to career progression or becoming employed) was both a reason to take part in (or increase) gambling because of increased resources, and also a reason to gamble less (because gambling was previously used to try to supplement their low income). Similarly, a reduction in disposable income (for example, due to unemployment, retirement or divorce) or a low-paid job was also reported as an influencing factor; some reported a reduction in gambling following the reduction in income due to decreased resources, while others indicated increasing gambling participation to try to increase their income.
‘The thing about when you work here as a student, you can only work 20 hours per week. When you need to make money, you don't really have a lot of options. […] Then I think I had maybe a feeling that, okay, maybe I can go back to where I once was [taking part in gambling] and see if I can make money out of it.’
– Male interview participant, aged 25 to 34
Childhood experiences with gambling
Participants described several ways their experiences of gambling consequences were tied to childhood experiences. In some cases, they described direct exposure to gambling as a child (such as playing card games or slot machines in arcades and other shops), stimulating interest in it for years to come. Others explained how seeing other people gambling, usually parents, had an impact on them. In some cases, this made participants more cautious about gambling and its potential consequences because of having directly observed negative consequences during childhood. Other participants instead described these experiences at a young age as having facilitated their current gambling and its negative consequences because they keep chasing the thrill and excitement they felt when observing the adults around them gamble as a child.
‘I think it was more when I was younger going sitting in a pub and seeing my stepdad playing slot machines and seeing him win… Then growing older, becoming legal age to be able to buy scratch cards and the thrill and the adrenaline you get when you're oh, am I going to win, am I not?’
– Female interview participant, aged 25 to 34
Relationships and social life
Participants highlighted the importance of their social relationships in shaping both their gambling participation and negative experiences. Some participants explained that at some points in their lives they had a safety net (mainly composed of family members and partners) who they could rely on if they had spent too much on gambling. Having the chance to easily borrow money or ask others to cover their bills allowed them to continue gamble more than they could afford and prevented more significant financial consequences. Similarly, having friends who also gamble was identified by participants as a key factor that increased the desire to participate in gambling activities (such as playing bingo, going to casinos, playing poker and other card games, or going to dog and horse races). However, this also decreased participants’ ability to avoid gambling. In some cases, this led participants who were trying to reduce their gambling, to also reduce the time they spent with friends or family, or stop seeing them altogether.
‘Sometimes I do become quite heavily influenced because, obviously, they'll be like, “Yes, okay, no problem, you don't have to play”, and then I see them, and they go to the casino, and they play and they have fun. Sometimes I feel like maybe a few quid here and there won't hurt.’
– Female interview participant, aged 45 to 54
However, social isolation was also reported as a factor that could lead to gambling more frequently (usually online), and to the worsening of negative financial consequences. For example, one participant recounted how having to work far from home and spending several nights a week in hotels increased their gambling activities both in terms of time and money spent which led to instances of large financial losses and the inability to build up savings and spend money on other activities (such as holidays).
Changes to family life
Some participants reported how changes to family life also had an impact on their gambling participation and experiences of negative consequences. For some, having children was a reason to cut spending on gambling due to having new responsibilities and priorities. In addition to this, some participants with children felt that their caring responsibilities left them with less time to spend on gambling. Conversely, a participant described how after their children left home, they started gambling more and spending more money (due to more free time and an increased disposable income due to less money spent on their children) which was the start of them experiencing negative consequences.
‘I think [negative consequences] coincided with my daughters leaving home and me having more time. Well, us both having a bit more time to notice what each other's doing. Yes, it's having that more time and opportunity to be doing things, and perhaps a little bit of boredom sometimes can set in.’
– Male interview participant, aged 45 to 54
Health and wellbeing
Participants described mental health problems (such as anxiety, depression or stress) as both a relevant external factor and a negative consequence of gambling, sometimes occurring in a circular reinforcing relationship. Participants experiencing mental health problems explained that gambling was for them a way to cope with depression or stress or to escape from an unsatisfying everyday life or from negative life events (such as a bereavement).
‘Just generally it can be like if you go through a bad spell, whether you've had a bad time at work or you've lost a loved one or a friend, things like that. I lost a friend who was quite young, he had a heart attack while he was out running, and things like that can trigger the feeling or the need to feel better about yourself. One of the ways that I can do that is by placing a bet and thinking that I'm going to win something big.’
– Male interview participant, aged 45 to 54
However, often the stress and sense of guilt that followed losing money from gambling negatively impacted their mental health further. Participants also highlighted wider factors such as autism (using gambling to ‘self-regulate’ when stressed or depressed), and the use of alcohol and drugs interrelating with their experiences of gambling consequences. Some participants explained that for them, drinking alcohol was associated with more impulsive choices and to the tendency to gambling more, leading them to take more risky decisions when gambling and leading to negative consequences such as larger financial losses.
‘I feel like when I drink, I feel like I can't control at that time if I am outside and if I have to gamble [...] in that moment I don't feel like I would lose or something. Then I just go for it.’
– Male interview participant, aged 25 to 34
Wider socio-economic factors
As well as factors related to participants’ personal lives, broader socio-political factors and events influenced how, when, and why participants had experienced certain adverse consequences from gambling. Some participants explained how COVID-19 and increased costs of living had an impact on their experience with gambling by reducing their disposable income which they subsequently tried to supplement with gambling, leading to further negative financial impacts.
Migration and moving to new areas
Other participants described how their experience of migration had impacted gambling participation. In one case, a participant explained that after migrating to the UK they struggled with money and thought that gambling could be a way to increase their income. However, this led to financial difficulties which were exacerbated by the absence of a support network of family members and friends. Conversely, another participant reported that their experience with migration had a positive impact on their gambling because moving to the UK allowed them to stop seeing friends with whom they used to gamble which in turn helped the participant stop gambling. Participants who were born in the UK and relocated to areas where events like horse races are an important part of the local life also reported changes to their gambling participation (betting on races as part of local events) and increased expenditure.
‘To not acknowledge [the importance of the race for the town] and […] put a bet on, you really feel like you're not part of the culture - wrong word - but just part of that experience for the town, if that makes sense. Yes, to not get involved completely, almost feels like you're the outsider.’
– Male interview participant, aged 35 to 44
Factors related to the gambling market
Participants also discussed factors related to the gambling market which influenced their experiences with gambling consequences. Some participants, particularly those who had taken part in gambling for multiple decades, found that the introduction of online gambling had made it easier to gamble and to spend money. These participants felt that online gambling was more convenient and allowed them to gamble at any time, and anywhere. In comparison, participants described how gambling in-person was limited by opening times, having to go to a specific place, and the greater time required to place a bet or buy a ticket or scratchcard.
‘I think it's just too easy to do that online, too easy to just put in some money from your bank account. It just makes it so much more accessible. You obviously don't have to go anywhere. No one sees what you're doing as well [...] I wouldn't go into a shop and spend £20 or something on scratch cards, whereas online you could do that easily, play a game.’
– Female interview participant, aged 45 to 54
Participants also highlighted that advertising and marketing, especially the widespread availability of adverts related to gambling, had an impact on gambling participation, especially on those trying to reduce their gambling. Some participants described how when they were teenagers and saw advertising and newspapers articles about the National Lottery which made them feel like everyone was taking part in gambling. Other participants reported feeling like the advertising of gambling products was difficult to avoid, leading them to gamble more frequently. One participant described how being targeted with specific marketing techniques (such as ‘free spins’, a promotional offer where a certain number of attempts are free) resulted in them spending more despite their desire to save money.
‘It's had an impact because I knew I wanted to do things and then I'm trying to keep my money and then I see this marketing and oh, you get 10 free spins, we'll give you 10 free spins and as soon as you use those 10 free spins and you haven't got anything, they give you £1 or £2 to get you going. It makes you put your own money on and then that's impacted you again.’
– Male interview participant, aged 35 to 44
There was also variation in experiences based on participants’ ages. One participant remarked that with the current age limitations they would have never been able to start gambling at a very young age, as they did in the 1970s. Another participant explained that the recent introduction of limits on the number of scratchcards4 that can be purchased in the same transaction is reducing their drive to gamble.
‘You can't buy packs anymore, because I used to buy packs and packs of them [chuckles]. You can't do that anymore and you can't buy more than £50 either - well, from one shop anyway. So, yes, that's the differences I've noticed. It's just less drive to gamble, really.’
– Female interview participant, aged 45 to 54
The interrelation of multiple external factors
Interviews showed that these external factors do not act in isolation but are often linked to one or more other factors (for example, the COVID-19 pandemic leading to changes in employment and income and also changes in patterns of socialisation). In many cases, external factors cannot be considered in isolation given their close interconnection. For example, a participant discussed how an increase in their gambling activity with bigger financial losses than usual was linked to them being made redundant. The participant received a large sum of money for their redundancy but also increased their consumption of alcohol as a way to cope with the stress of losing their job. The combination of having a larger than usual sum of money available and of alcohol consumption led to bigger losses than usual.
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4 The limit was introduced on 1 October 2024: https://www.national-lottery.co.uk/games/gamestore/scratchcards
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Last updated: 31 July 2025
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