34 Percent of BC Teens Say They Gamble, Play Gaming Activities for Money

A person uses a cell phone in a file photo. The Canadian Press/Sean Kilpatrick

Three in 10 B.C. teens are participating in gambling or gaming behaviours that may become addictive, according to a recent report.

The McCreary Centre Society has published a report that draws on data from the 2023 Adolescent Health Survey, which includes more than 38,000 youth in the province aged 12 to 18. The survey is completed in B.C. every five years.

It found that 34 percent had engaged in gambling or gaming activities for money in the 12 months preceding the survey.

Researchers looked at eight types of activities, including gaming purchases, buying lottery or scratch tickets, and online sports betting.

Eleven percent of teens reported playing cards or dice in person, compared to 8 percent in 2018. Another 5 percent reported playing cards or dice online, compared to 2 percent five years earlier.

Youth participation did not increase across all forms of gambling, however. Seven percent said they had purchased lottery or scratch tickets, compared to 8 percent engaging in such activities in the 2018 survey. Fewer teens also reported taking part in sports betting in person compared to 2018, with figures of 6 percent versus 7 percent, respectively.

The report indicated an 18 percent rise in the number of teenagers participating in gambling for money when compared to data from 2018.

Those in the Fraser Valley and Vancouver Coast regions were the “least likely” to have gambled for money in the past year, the report said. It also noted that 8 percent of youth in the Interior and North had purchased lottery or scratch tickets in the past 12 months, compared to 6 percent in Fraser Valley and the Vancouver Coastal region.

Youth that were gaming and gambling for money were more likely to report their habits had become “problematic,” according to the report.

It said that 12 percent of youth surveyed said they needed help for their gaming, with one percent saying they needed help for gambling. One percent said they needed help for both behaviours.

Teens in the Vancouver Coastal region were more likely to report needing help, at 14 percent, compared to 10 percent of youth from Vancouver Island and the Interior.

University of Victoria assistant professor of psychology Paweena Sukhawathanakul, who researches youth development, said such behaviours are a cause for concern.

“Observing these trends can be concerning for many, especially for parents who may be wondering if their child’s behaviour is problematic,” she said in an email to The Epoch Times.

She said her research focuses largely on substance use among youth, but noted that gambling addiction is similar. Like substance addiction, gambling can become an addiction when the behaviour and urge to gamble “causes significant distress and impairs one’s ability to function across multiple settings.”

Persistent thoughts about gambling, using it as a mood stabilizer, and feeling a strong urge to gamble more are symptoms to watch for, Sukhawathanakul said. Other warning signs include feelings of restlessness, irritability, or loss of control when trying to reduce the behaviours, and an “obsessive need to regain lost earnings immediately after losing.”

“Other signs that the behaviour is problematic involves relational issues like lying to others to conceal their behaviour, not being able to fulfil occupational, educational or social obligations because of their gambling behaviour,” she said. Relying on others to financially support gambling behaviours or bail them out of a desperate financial situation caused by gambling are also warning signs.

Risk Factors

The report found that those who participated in gaming or gambling activities exhibited certain shared characteristics, such as a sense of not fitting in with their peers, a perception of spending excessive time alone, and a history of being bullied within the past year.

“Problematic gaming and gambling were also more common among youth who were gaming after the time they were expected to be asleep,” the report said, adding the teens would bet with virtual credits they bought with real money.

It also identified “protective factors” that would reduce the likelihood a teen would engage in the behaviours daily. These included going offline at bedtime, plans to further their education with post secondary studies, and having an adult available to help them.

The likelihood of teens gaming daily dropped from 39 percent to 19 percent for those who have all the risk factors and just one protective factor, such as an adult to help, researchers said.

“The more of the three protective factors they had, the less likely they were to be gaming daily,” the researchers wrote in the report.

Other factors identified by researchers as helpful in reducing gaming and gambling activities include feeling connected and engaged with family, school, and community, parents who were aware of what the teens were doing online, and having close in-person friendships.