Gambling is an increasing problem for college students. Gambling is on the rise—and gambling among youth and young adults is more prevalent than ever before. Twenty-five years ago, legalized gambling was rare, confined to the Nevada desert, Atlantic City, a few racetracks, and two or three state lotteries. Today 48 states and more than 250 Native American tribes allow gambling.
Gambling has gone mainstream, and is often state-run. New forms of gambling have mushroomed, including state lotteries, scratch games, bingo, video poker, slot machines, video keno, sports wagering, pari-mutuel betting on horses and greyhounds, and poker. That’s not even including the Internet, which has opened a whole new venue for gambling.
Millions of adults participate in gambling with few or no negative consequences. However, gambling has the potential to become addictive and that’s the catch.
It’s estimated that 80% of college students have engaged in gambling in the past year. Close to 20% report gambling on a weekly basis and 5% have a true gambling problem.