Gambling is a part of human history that evokes a broad range of emotions and behaviors. While many people gamble without problems, a small subset of gamblers develop pathological gambling disorder, characterized in DSM-IV as a “Disorder of Impulse Control Not Elsewhere Classified”. Pathological gamblers often engage in destructive behaviors: they commit crime, they run up large debts, they harm relationships with family and friends, and some even kill themselves.

It is hard to generalize about the experience of gambling because it takes place in so many different ways, from placing bets on a football game or a scratchcard to playing slot machines. But there are some common features. All forms of gambling involve making a bet. This bet is matched to ‘odds’, which determine how much money you could win if you gambled successfully. In addition, gambling may involve skills that might improve the odds of winning. For example, knowledge of strategies might help a bettor to increase their chances of winning in some card games; or knowledge of horses and jockeys might improve predictions of probable outcomes in horse races.

As access to gambling has increased, psychologists have become concerned that more people will develop problem gambling. And they are worried that young people, especially boys and men, who have easy access to the newer forms of gambling such as online and sports betting, will be most likely to develop these problem behaviors. To understand why, it is important to know something about how gambling works.