Problem gambling among secondary school adolescents in Enugu, Nigeria.

BACKGROUND

Adolescent problem gambling is a common behavioural issue and could be associated with internet addiction.

OBJECTIVES

To determine the pattern of problem gambling and factors that predict gambling among adolescents that attended secondary schools in southeast Nigeria.

METHODOLOGY: This is a cross-sectional study design. A three-stage sampling technique was used to select 796 secondary school adolescents from eight secondary schools in Enugu State, Nigeria.

RESULTS

The highest proportion of the respondents, 38.3% had problem gambling with negative consequences. There was a weak positive correlation between gambling severity index and internet addiction. (n=796, r=0.254, p<0.001). There is a very weak negative correlation between gambling severity index and age in years. (n=796, r= -0.034, p=0.331).The male respondents were 1.5 times more likely to have problem gambling when compared with the females, (AOR=1.5; (95%CI: 1.1-2.0). The respondents who have internet addiction were 3.5 times more likely to have problem gambling when compared with those who do not have an internet addiction, (AOR=3.5; 95%CI: 2.6-4.8).

CONCLUSION

The prevalence of gambling among adolescents is high. Adolescents who had problem gambling also had internet addiction. The male respondents were more likely to have problem gambling than their female folk.