Gambling in Transition: Assessing Youth Narratives of Gambling in Nigeria

Abstract

Nigeria has witnessed some significant changes in gambling which have resulted in more people becoming interested in the activity. In an attempt to increase participation, bookmakers have introduced a variety of innovations. Literature has established that this increased participation is intergenerational, cross-cultural, and inter-religious. Particularly among Nigerian youth, participation in gambling cuts across all age groups, socioeconomic status, and gender. Both financial and social rewards have been identified as reasons why many youths gamble. Through a qualitative lens, this study investigates how the dynamics of gambling in recent times have affected the biographies of youth within a relatively deprived socio-economic locality in Kwara State, Nigeria. Thirty young gamblers between the ages of 15 and 29 were engaged in a semi-structured interview session. Drawing from the meaning of 'youth' from a sociological lexicon, one can advance this unique narrative of the transitions in gambling activities which can occur as a result of the youths' biographies and socio-economic status. Nigerian youth adopt three specific gambling types as a coping strategy in the face of a crisisridden socio-economic structure characterised by poverty, and unemployment. As such, gambling has become a normative activity experimented by the youth to survive the harsh economic conditions. This study therefore argues the need to situate the discourse of youth gambling within the social, cultural, and economic context in which they are located in Nigeria. In addition, the authors provide a framework for understanding the complexity of youth gambling in Nigeria.

A Perspective on Age Restrictions and Other Harm Reduction Approaches Targeting Youth Online Gambling, Considering Convergences of Gambling and Videogaming

“…From the reviewed studies, there appears to be widespread adoption of legal age restrictions on gambling; however, studies of effectiveness pertaining specifically to online gambling appear limited. This may reflect indirect effects of harmreduction regulations that primarily aim to denormalize and prevent youth from learning of financial and social rewards through gambling (114,115). Enforcement of age restrictions, however, is another challenge.…”

Interrogating the Concept of ‘Community’ in Community Policing Operations in Nigeria

“…The neglect of young people in the day to day decision making process in most communities in Africa and Nigeria speak volumes (Adebisi et al, 2020). The young people and youths form the largest uneducated and unemployed population in Nigeria (Okolie & Igbini, 2020).…”

“…These youths and young people feel disconnected from the communities and governments in their states and nations. In an attempt to survive on their own, most of these youths and young people engage in one antisocial behavior or another (Adebisi et al, 2020). Youths are equally the targets of police brutality and maltreatment in the communities in Nigeria.…”

Using SNSs for early detection of disease outbreak in developing countries: evidence from COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria

“…Twitter has been seen as an evolving broadcasting platform for public health education and news, demonstrated by its utility during H 1 N 1 pandemic planning activities in 2009 and the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) outbreak in 2014 ( Sullivan et al, 2012 ; Odlum and Yoon, 2015 ). The majority of its users are youths who have been characterized as very innovative and constantly try out new things, approaches, or methods in any activity they get involved in ( Adebisi et al, 2020 ). The ability of Twitter in terms of broad reach, timeliness, and low overhead captures prevalent disease trends, collects information, and disseminates knowledge.…”