ŠTETNI UTICAJ KOCKANjA: ANALIZA DOMAĆIH EMPIRIJSKIH ISTRAŽIVANjA

Abstract

Direct and everyday lay observation testifies to the large number of betting and gambling locations in our country and to their constant attendance, as well as to the daily and intensive marketing promotion of these venues in all media. Therefore, the public generally does not recognize the harmful potential of gambling activities, accepts gambling as a legal and legitimate free activity or form of entertainment, and usually perceives potential addiction as less serious, which creates significant obstacles in the treatment of individuals with gambling disorders. The paper analyzes empirical data on gambling and pathological gambling and concludes that there is a clearly insufficient number of domestic empirical studies on problematic and pathological gambling, and that the data on the already scarce studies are mostly indirectly available through various media and other announcements, which complicates the analysis, methodological comparison, and synthesis of the obtained results. Nevertheless, even the existing limited and methodologically inconsistent studies indicate a high prevalence of gambling among adults and an high level of youth participation in gambling activities. For an objective understanding of the complex phenomenon of gambling and its harmful consequences, as well as for the creation of public policies and preventive strategies, a broader, methodologically reliable empirical insight into the issue of pathological gambling is necessary.