The Gambling Debate

The Gambling Debate

Author: Richard McGowan

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA

Published: 2007-11-30

Total Pages: 189

ISBN-13: 1573567426

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The great majority of Americans—more than 80%—say they approve of gambling, even if they themselves don't gamble. Still, deep divisions persist in our attitudes toward the gambling industry. Is it profoundly destructive, preying on human weakness and stripping its victims of their sustenance and dignity? Or is it a vehicle of the American dream—an engine of personal enrichment, enormous public revenue, and economic development? The industry's explosive growth has sharpened the debate, radically altering the gambling landscape and dramatically raising the stakes involved. Author Richard A. McGowan, a respected authority on the public-policy aspects of gambling and other sin industries, reveals the new dynamics of gambling and frames the age-old ethical and practical questions it poses. Whether benefit or bane, gambling today permeates American culture in unprecedented ways. Its newest venues—Native American tribal casinos and the Internet—are drawing in new gamblers in vast numbers and generating spectacular profits. Social, legal, and political controversies inevitably have followed. How should public policymakers approach expanded gambling? As regulator of the gambling industry, government has always been the gatekeeper. Its role and responsibilities remain central to the gambling debate, even while it stands to reap huge windfalls from the very industry it is regulating. Meanwhile, Internet gambling, more or less regulated at home, has found willing government sponsors abroad—removing an ever-larger segment of the industry from U.S. government jurisdiction and recasting the gambling debate. Using this book, citizens can: Learn the ethical and rhetorical framework of the gambling debate. The terms of the arguments advanced by advocates and opponents help explain why the gambling industry has been tolerated or encouraged by public policymakers. Weigh the risks and rewards of government-sanctioned gambling through three actual case studies, from Missouri, Massachusetts, and the Chinese island of Macao—which in 2006 surpassed Las Vegas as the gambling capital of the world. Each situation highlights particular problems and opportunities, and each is presented with discussion questions. Take an informed position: Should sports gambling be legalized? Should U.S. restrictions on Internet gambling be loosened? Should government get out of the gambling business altogether? Find out more about the many facets of the gambling debate by using the study resources provided.


The Video Game Debate 2

The Video Game Debate 2

Author: Rachel Kowert

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2020-11-29

Total Pages: 160

ISBN-13: 1000224287

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This student-friendly book provides an accessible overview of the primary debates about the effects of video games. It expands on the original The Video Game Debate to address the new technologies that have emerged within the field of game studies over the last few years. Debates about the negative effects of video game play have been evident since their introduction in the 1970s, but the advent of online and mobile gaming has revived these concerns, reinvigorating old debates and generating brand new ones. The Video Game Debate 2 draws from the latest research findings from the top scholars of digital games research to address these concerns. The book explores key developments such as virtual and augmented reality, the use of micro-transactions, the integration of loot boxes, and the growth of mobile gaming and games for change (serious games). Furthermore, several new chapters explore contemporary debates around e-sports, gamification, sex and gender discrimination in games, and the use of games in therapy. This book offers students and scholars of games studies and digital media, as well as policymakers, the essential information they need to participate in the debate.


The Debate About Playing Video Games

The Debate About Playing Video Games

Author: Rachel Seigel

Publisher: North Star Editions, Inc.

Published: 2018-01-01

Total Pages: 51

ISBN-13: 1635176689

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Provides a thorough overview of the major pros and cons of playing video games. Readable text, interesting sidebars, and illuminating infographics invite readers to jump in and join the debate.


Gambling in America

Gambling in America

Author: Earl L. Grinols

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 2004-01-12

Total Pages: 248

ISBN-13: 1139450239

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Gambling in America carefully breaks ground by developing analytical tools to assess the benefits and costs of the economic and social changes introduced by casino gambling in monetary terms, linking them to individual households' utility and well-being. Since casinos are associated with unintended and often negative economic consequences, these factors are incorporated into the discussion. The book also shows how amenity benefits - for casinos, the benefit to consumers of closer proximity - enter the evaluation. Other topics include agent incentives and public decision making, conceptual clarifications about economic development, cost-benefit analysis, and net export multiplier models. Professor Grinols finds that, in considering all relevant factors, the social costs of casino gambling outweigh their social benefits.


Pathological Gambling

Pathological Gambling

Author: National Research Council

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 1999-09-03

Total Pages: 353

ISBN-13: 0309065712

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As states have moved from merely tolerating gambling to running their own games, as communities have increasingly turned to gambling for an economic boost, important questions arise. Has the new age of gambling increased the proportion of pathological or problem gamblers in the U.S. population? Where is the threshold between "social betting" and pathology? Is there a real threat to our families, communities, and the larger society? Pathological Gambling explores America's experience of gambling, examining: The diverse and frequently controversial issues surrounding the definition of pathological gambling. Its co-occurrence with disorders such as alcoholism, drug abuse, and depression. Its social characteristics and economic consequences, both good and bad, for communities. The role of video gaming, Internet gambling, and other technologies in the development of gambling problems. Treatment approaches and their effectiveness, from Gambler's Anonymous to cognitive therapy to pharmacology. This book provides the most up-to-date information available on the prevalence of pathological and problem gambling in the United States, including a look at populations that may have a particular vulnerability to gambling: women, adolescents, and minority populations. Its describes the effects of problem gambling on families, friendships, employment, finances, and propensity to crime. How do pathological gamblers perceive and misperceive randomness and chance? What are the causal pathways to pathological gambling? What do genetics, brain imaging, and other studies tell us about the biology of gambling? Is there a bit of sensation-seeking in all of us? Who needs treatment? What do we know about the effectiveness of different policies for dealing with pathological gambling? The book reviews the available facts and frames the intriguing questions yet to be answered. Pathological Gambling will be the odds-on favorite for anyone interested in gambling in America: policymakers, public officials, economics and social researchers, treatment professionals, and concerned gamblers and their families.


Youth Gambling

Youth Gambling

Author: Jeffrey L. Derevensky

Publisher: Walter de Gruyter

Published: 2011-10-27

Total Pages: 284

ISBN-13: 3110255693

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Youth gambling represents a potentially serious public policy and health issue. Nevertheless, the rise in youth gambling issues and problems in the global context is not matched with a parallel increase in research on adolescent gambling. As such, there is an urgent need to conduct more studies on adolescent gambling behaviour. Recently significant advances in the knowledge of the risk factors associated with adolescent problems has emerged. This book addresses issues related to prevalence, assessment, prevention and treatment of youth gambling problems as well as concerns related to technological changes associated with youth problem gambling.


Casinonomics

Casinonomics

Author: Douglas M. Walker

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2013-05-15

Total Pages: 329

ISBN-13: 1461471230

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Casinonomics provides a comprehensive analysis of the economic and social impacts of the casino industry. Examining the latest cutting-edge research, with a mix of theory and empirical evidence, Casinonomics informs the reader on the most important facets at the forefront of the public policy debate over this controversial industry. While the casino industry has continued to expand across the United States, and around the world, critics argue that casinos bring negative social impacts that offset any economic benefits. Casinonomics examines the evidence on the frequently claimed benefits and costs stemming from expansions in the casino industry, including the impact on economic growth, consumer welfare, and government tax revenues, as well as gambling disorders, crime rates, and the impact on other businesses. Readers will come away with a better-informed opinion on the merits of these arguments for and against public policies that would expand casino gambling.


Harm Reduction for Gambling

Harm Reduction for Gambling

Author: Henrietta Bowden-Jones

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2019-12-06

Total Pages: 275

ISBN-13: 0429955847

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This edited volume aims to facilitate the evolution of the new public health approach towards gambling. Bringing together the work of international experts, it gives a current overview of the field, highlighting the need for a coordinated framework of prevention and harm reduction measures to replace current "player protection" measures. Chapters begin by exploring the impact of problem gambling, looking at its effects on several levels, ranging from the individual to the family and society. Subsequently an overview of prevention and harm reduction models is presented, bringing the reader to an in-depth understanding of what a public health approach to gambling would entail. Later chapters focus on potential challenges to monitoring and evaluation, inviting the reader to envisage possible barriers towards implementation and ways of overcoming these. The book concludes with recommendations on how to take a harm reduction approach, from a political and human rights perspective. This work gives a rare synopsis of the present-day issues when considering the implementation of a harm reduction strategy for gambling. Recent work by key professionals is presented in order to encourage further developments in this ever-changing domain. Such issues will be relevant to all those with an interest in the field of problem gambling, from clinicians, students and healthcare professionals, to politicians.


Evidence-Based Treatments for Problem Gambling

Evidence-Based Treatments for Problem Gambling

Author: Cameron McIntosh

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2017-08-21

Total Pages: 109

ISBN-13: 3319624857

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This international survey addresses gaps in the knowledge base on problem gambling, emphasizing evidence-based best practices for working with this diverse and notably resistant client population. A detailed introduction offers current findings on behavioral, affective, and neurological manifestations of disordered gambling, with prevalent types of resultant psychological, financial, and social harm. The book’s conceptual discussion examines clinical and sub-clinical presentations as well as the complex interplay of psychological and social factors that create barriers to seeking help. And on the practical side, up-to-date chapters detail widely-used and newer treatment options for compulsive gambling with the best chances of reducing treatment non-compliance and post-treatment relapses, including: · Psychoeducation. · Motivational interviewing. · Cognitive behavioral therapy. · Metacognitive and mindfulness approaches. · Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. · Dialectical Behavior Therapy. · Schema therapy. · Pharmacology. · Relapse Prevention. Evidence-Based Treatments for Problem Gambling is a ready source of insights, data, and strategies for counselors working in problem gambling treatment centers, and for psychologists and counselors operating in public or private practice who see individuals with problem gambling as a primary or comorbid presentation. Researchers, lecturers, and treatment clinic managers will find this presentation both informative and immediately useful.


Gambling with Armageddon

Gambling with Armageddon

Author: Martin J. Sherwin

Publisher: Vintage

Published: 2020-10-13

Total Pages: 624

ISBN-13: 0525659315

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From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of American Prometheus comes the first effort to set the Cuban Missile Crisis, with its potential for nuclear holocaust, in a wider historical narrative of the Cold War—how such a crisis arose, and why at the very last possible moment it didn't happen. In this groundbreaking look at the Cuban Missile Crisis, Martin Sherwin not only gives us a riveting sometimes hour-by-hour explanation of the crisis itself, but also explores the origins, scope, and consequences of the evolving place of nuclear weapons in the post-World War II world. Mining new sources and materials, and going far beyond the scope of earlier works on this critical face-off between the United States and the Soviet Union—triggered when Khrushchev began installing missiles in Cuba at Castro's behest—Sherwin shows how this volatile event was an integral part of the wider Cold War and was a consequence of nuclear arms. Gambling with Armageddon looks in particular at the original debate in the Truman Administration about using the Atomic Bomb; the way in which President Eisenhower relied on the threat of massive retaliation to project U.S. power in the early Cold War era; and how President Kennedy, though unprepared to deal with the Bay of Pigs debacle, came of age during the Cuban Missile Crisis. Here too is a clarifying picture of what was going on in Khrushchev's Soviet Union. Martin Sherwin has spent his career in the study of nuclear weapons and how they have shaped our world. Gambling with Armegeddon is an outstanding capstone to his work thus far.