BackgroundResearch into the impact of problem gambling on close social networks is scarce with the majority of studies only including help-seeking populations. To date only one study has examined concerned significant others (CSOs) from an epidemiological perspective and it did not consider gender. The aim of this study is to examine the health, social support, and financial situations of CSOs in a Swedish representative sample and to examine gender differences.MethodsA population study was conducted in Sweden in 2008/09 (n = 15,000, response rate 63%). Respondents were defined as CSOs if they reported that someone close to them currently or previously had problems with gambling. The group of CSOs was further examined in a 1-year follow up (weighted response rate 74% from the 8,165 respondents in the original sample). Comparisons were also made between those defined as CSOs only at baseline (47.7%, n = 554) and those defined as CSOs at both time points.ResultsIn total, 18.2% of the population were considered CSOs, with no difference between women and men. Male and female CSOs experienced, to a large extent, similar problems including poor mental health, risky alcohol consumption, economic hardship, and arguments with those closest to them. Female CSOs reported less social support than other women and male CSOs had more legal problems and were more afraid of losing their jobs than other men. One year on, several problems remained even if some improvements were found. Both male and female CSOs reported more negative life events in the 1 year follow-up.ConclusionsAlthough some relationships are unknown, including between the CSOs and the individuals with gambling problems and the causal relationships between being a CSO and the range of associated problems, the results of this study indicate that gambling problems not only affect the gambling individual and their immediate close family but also the wider social network. A large proportion of the population can be defined as a CSO, half of whom are men. While male and female CSOs share many common problems, there are gender differences which need to be considered in prevention and treatment.

This study aimed to investigate, from a gender perspective, how different features of problem gambling present in men and women who gamble regularly in Sweden were distributed in four domains based on gambling type (chance or strategy) and setting (public or domestic). Problem gambling features were based on the nine items in the Problem Gambling Severity Index (PGSI). It was hypothesized that men and women gamble in different domains. Further, it was hypothesized that male gamblers overall experienced more problems with gambling than female gamblers, although in the same domains they would report the same level of problems. A further hypothesis predicted that regular female gamblers would experience more health and social problems and men would experience more financial difficulties. Interviews with a subsample of gamblers (n = 3191) from a Swedish nationally representative sample (n = 8179) was used to examine how features of problem gambling correspond with gender and the domains. Only the first hypothesis was fully supported. Men were more likely to participate in forms of gambling requiring strategy in a public setting, and women were more likely to participate in chance-based gambling in a domestic setting. Male and female gamblers had similar levels of problem gambling in the bi-variate analysis, but if controlling for age and gambling in multiple domains, women were more at risk than men. Additionally, men and women presented similar health and economic situations. The differences between male and female gamblers in Sweden have implications for research and prevention.

The study examines two Swedish replication prevalence studies (n ¼ 10,000 and n ¼ 15,000) with the aim of exploring evidence for a feminization of gambling in Sweden between 1997Sweden between /1998Sweden between and 2008Sweden between /2009. Gambling domains were classified based on the games' basic orientation towards strategy and chance, as well as on each game's setting in either a public place or a home environment. The criterion for a domain was that the respondent had gambled at least twice a month in any mode of gambling within the domain. Logistic regression analysis showed no signs of a feminization. Instead, the gender order in gambling seems to be reinforced. Preferences for the different types of domains were still highly gendered, despite the fact that men in 2008/2009 tended to gamble more on games of chance, especially in public places. The implications of the findings in relation to gender equality and constraints on women's leisure activities are further discussed.

In the present study, Internet gambling was studied with data from the first two waves of the Swedish longitudinal gambling study. Self-reported gambling problems, alcohol consumption, smoking, mental health, social support, gender and other socio-demographic factors were evaluated with respect to the prevalence of Internet gambling in 2008 and 2009 and the incidence in 2009. Multivariate logistic regression was used. In 2009 most Internet gamblers (72%) were men. However, women seem to have become more involved in Internet gambling. In 2009, 62.5% of new Internet gamblers since 2008 were men. Mental health, alcohol, smoking and social support were not predictive factors for incident Internet gambling. Self-reported gambling on regulated Internet sites showed higher prevalence rates of problem gamblers than gambling on land-based forms in 2008, but not in 2009. At both time-points, unregulated sites had the highest rates of problem gambling. The findings suggest that a gender perspective on Internet gambling is needed as well as carefully designed policies and research related to the regulation of Internet gambling.