Report
Qualitative research on the consequences of gambling
Qualitative research on the consequences of gambling: follow-up interviews with participants from the Gambling Survey for Great Britain
Contents
- Executive summary
- 1 - Introduction
- 2 - Methodology
- 3 - Overview of impacts of gambling on participants
- 4 - Participants’ journeys with adverse or severe consequences from gambling
- 5 - Interrelation of different adverse or severe consequences from gambling
- 6 - Preventing and reducing consequences
- 7 - Conclusion and recommendations
- Appendix A - Qualitative research on the consequences of gambling
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.
Case study 3: Ali, male participant aged 45 to 54
Timeline for case study 3.
Age
Experiences with gambling and gambling consequences
Age 5
External Factor: Early experiences of gambling with family
Age 10
External Factor: Continued experiences of gambling with family
Age 20
External Factor: first job - exposure to lottery though selling lottery tickets in role
Age 30
External Factor: Stable employment - income throughout adult life meaning disposable income available for gambling
Age 45
External Factor: Covid-19 Pandemic - frequency of gambling increased due to boredom and more disposable income. Children leaving home - increased disposable income leading to increased gambling
Age 50
External Factor: Starting therapy - opportunity to discuss gambling consequences with a professional
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.
References
4 The limit was introduced on 1 October 2024: https://www.national-lottery.co.uk/games/gamestore/scratchcards
4.2 - Changes to gambling consequences through time
Last updated: 9 May 2025
Show updates to this content
No changes to show.