Pathological gambling in Spanish children and adolescents: an emerging problem

Abstract

Several studies have shown a high prevalence of pathological gamblers among adults in Spain (between 1.5% and 1.7%) of the population (18 years and older). In other countries the prevalence of pathological gambling in children and adolescents has been higher than in adults. Here some results of the first studies conducted in Spain concerning the prevalence of pathological gambling in school children and adolescents (11-16 years) are presented for two cities located in different northern regions of Spain, A Coruña (Galicia) and Gijon (Asturias), with representative samples of school children. The prevalence was 2.2% (n = 1,200) and 1.6% (n = 2,185), respectively, for the use of slot machines, using the 1993 DSM-IVJ Questionnaire of Fisher, and 2.4% in the first city with the South Oaks Gambling Screen-Revised Adolescent for all types of gambling. The analyses suggest there is an emerging problem among children and adolescents in Spain perhaps leading to an increased number of pathological gamblers as adults.