We know the problem-gambler gets into trouble. But how does his (it’s usually a man) behavior affect everyone around him? Research is beginning to show that pathological gambling contributes to chaos and dysfunction in families, affecting spouses and partners, kids, parents, siblings, employers, and co-workers.

Pathological Gambling Runs in Families
10% of family members of a problem-gambler also have gambling problems themselves. These relatives also had an increased rate of:

• alcoholism and drug use
• depression
• anxiety
• antisocial personality

So some of the problems in these families come from the mental illness and addiction that they suffer from.

Problem Gamblers Had Poor Childhoods
One study showed that 40% of gamblers reported childhoods of neglect. Only 17-30% had really good childhoods. Their families also had:

• lower commitment to the family
• less support
• fewer intellectual activities
• higher expressed anger

So How Does the Problem-Gambler Affect His Family?

The Spouse or Partner
Gamblers have a higher divorce rate: problem gamblers at 40% and pathological gamblers at 54%. Not surprisingly, financial problems (huge debts, second mortgages, and illegal loans) and psychological stress (anger, resentment, depression, isolation, and loss of trust) contribute to the higher divorce rate. Spouses had more physical problems, like severe headaches and stomach-aches. Sex was markedly decreased. 86% of spouses thought about leaving. 48% considered having an affair, while 23% did so.

Physical abuse often occurs. Some horrendous statistics: a woman whose partner has problem-gambling is 10 times more likely to be abused. If the partner has a gambling problem and drinks, abuse is 50 times more likely. The National Gambling Impact Study reports that when a casino opens in a community, domestic violence often goes up. When casinos opened in Mississippi, domestic violence shelters had a 100% - 300% increase in business.

The Kids
Kids of problem gamblers were more likely to:

• smoke
• have alcohol and drug use
• have educational difficulties
• be depressed and show suicidal behavior (68%)
• report they come from a broken home
• be gamblers themselves (4 times higher rate)
• be abused by their gambling parent
• feel angry all the time (44%)

Overall, some pretty horrible effects.

If you gamble, gamble responsibly.
If you have a problem gambling, visit Gamblers Anonymous.
If your family member has a problem gambling, visit Gam-Anon.

The original study appeared in the August 2007 issue of CNS Spectrum. Thanks to uncleboatshoes for the photo from Flickr.

Daily Blog Tips had this project where bloggers would submit links to articles that talk about “Tips and Tricks” about whatever.   The project has ended (I wish I had submitted some of my poker tips for no-limit hold’em, eg. here and here),and now it’s time to vote on the best entries.  Here are my top three choices: 

1. This should win the project just for the pic of the fat-assed groundhog:  Here’s How To Avoid The Dreaded Fat-Ass Disease When You Sit And Play Poker All Day by Sparky

2. For those who have to work for a living: Top 10 Most Creative Relaxation Ideas by Sparky

3. A must read for bloggers: 27 Tips For Building A Kick-ass Blog by Ahmed

 Thx DBT for the Project - It was fun

I’m not a lawyer, nor a poker player, and don’t even have much interest in these topics.  So I figured I would sooner win the World Series of Poker than enjoy Lawyer’s Poker: 52 Lessons that Lawyers Can Learn from Card Players (see Suber’s review).  But surprise, surprise.  It’s one of my favorite books this year!!

So I wanted to talk with the author, Steve Lubet, a Law Professor and Director of the Bartlit Center on Trial Strategy at Northwestern.  Turns out he’s a bright, funny guy, and accomplished both in law and outside the field.  Not a guy I’d want on the other team in the courtroom!!  Not a first-time author… he’s previously written Murder in Tombstone: The Forgotten Trial of Wyatt Earp, and his textbook Modern Trial Advocacy has been used at over 90 American law schools as wellas in Canada, Israel, and China.  Lubet has written humorous commentaries for NPR’s Morning Edition, and his opeds (both serious and humorous) have appeared in The New York Times, Chicago Tribune, Philadelphia Inquirer, Los Angeles Times, Washington Post, as well as Slate and Salon.

PokerMoments:  What inspired you to write Lawyer’s Poker?  Was your goal to teach lawyers, or to show similarities between practicing law and playing poker?

Steve Lubet:  I became interested in the idea when I read Andey Bellin’s book, Poker Nation, which combined memoir with poker theory.  I’m always looking for new ways to teach lawyers, and it struck me that poker could provide some good analogies, so I bought a bunch of other poker books and began to research.  Almost immediately, I learned that the great advantage in poker is the constant repetition of a relatively limited number of situations.  In other words, the game is almost like a living social science experiment - high-stakes decision making based on incomplete information.  Lawyers do the same thing, so it made sense to look at common poker strategies and map them onto law practice.

PM:  I found the number of examples in Lawyer’s Poker amazing, and thought they were thought provoking.  How long did it take to think of all the correlations and then write the book?  Any new books in the works? (more…)