Why young people and young adults need extra protection from gambling
Young adults aged 18 to 23 currently hold 22% of all gambling accounts. This is despite the fact that they make up only 9.4% of the Dutch population. This is worrying, because this group is at additional risk of experiencing negative consequences from gambling. These may include financial consequences due to losing (large amounts of) money through gambling products. But young adults can also experience harm socially, emotionally or mentally. Examples include relationship problems, stress, losing a job or dropping out of school. The Betting and Gaming Act therefore states that this group must receive additional protection within the gambling offering.
And although gambling is prohibited for minors, 12- to 16-year-olds also gamble, both online and in person. For example, nearly 1 in 15 secondary school pupils gambled online for money in 2022. As young people get older, they are more likely to gamble online for money. Sixteen-year-olds gamble twice as much as 12-year-olds. We also know that when 16- and 17-year-olds gamble, 40% of them sometimes gamble at a physical location.
The first step: identifying, discussing and supporting
One way of reducing problem gambling among young adults is to enable professionals who work with young adults to recognise signs of problem gambling and, where necessary, refer them to appropriate support.
Teachers, care coordinators and other education professionals, among others, have a role to play in this. They see young people almost every day, which means they should be among the first to recognise the signs. They are also in close contact with young people, which often leads to a relationship of trust. As a result, teachers and other educational support staff are extremely valuable in identifying and discussing their suspicions of gambling-related problems. The new ‘Identifying and Supporting Gambling’ professional development training offered by the Helder op School prevention programme helps education professionals do this.
The professional development programme is scientifically based and consists of an e-learning course and an in-person session. In the e-learning course, education professionals learn more about gambling, its associated risks and signs of problems. During the in-person session, led by a prevention worker from an addiction-care organisation, they learn to recognise gambling problems and discuss them with pupils. The prevention worker also explains the role education professionals have in identifying problems and supporting pupils in accessing appropriate help—both within and outside the school. To this end, the school’s care structure is examined.
Towards an integrated approach
Effective prevention of problem gambling in education involves more than just identifying problems and providing support. An integrated approach is needed that also addresses school policies, the involvement of young people’s environment and education. This is in line with the pillars of the Healthy School and Helder op School approaches. The Helder op School prevention programme is working on this at the request of the Netherlands Gambling Authority. The ultimate aim is to make a complete package of effective and practical materials available to education professionals to help prevent gambling problems among young people and young adults.
About the development of the ‘Identifying and Supporting Gambling’ professional development training
As part of the Helder op School prevention programme, the Trimbos Institute is working, with funding from the Addiction Prevention Fund managed by the Netherlands Gambling Authority, to protect young adults from the negative consequences of gambling. The professional development training for education professionals is the first step.