A teenager will have many opportunities to start gambling. When you explain to your child how gambling works it can help them to understand the consequences of it. When you show your child that you can be responsible at gambling it can help them to fully develop a realistic expectation about any chances of winning. When you encourage them to have other hobbies or interests, it can help your teenage to find a healthier way to have fun.
The how, where and when teenagers gamble
You may even think that it is too early for your teen to start gambling, but the fact is that most teens have already been gaming. Most children start at around 10 years old and many have gambled by time they turned 15.
The most common forms of gambling for children are scratch off lottery tickets and card games. These could seem harmless, but some children will move from playing these to more serious forms of gambling as they age. The internet can expose teens to gambling as well, even before they turn 18 and allowed to gamble at a casino, at the TAB, etc. There are so many online gambling sites that teens can access.
Another thing is that children can gamble without using money on Facebook and smartphone apps and most of those games that are rated okay for children, will have gambling themes and content to them. Tablets and smartphones allow teens to gamble at any time they want.
Why Teens see gambling as fun
Gambling like experiences and gambling is something that teens will see as normal and the ads from casinos can send out the message that gambling is fun and that it is an easy and quick way to get rich. Teens may even think that it is a way to socialize because online gambling will use messaging and chat to encourage people to play with friends, getting others to place bets and share gambling stories.
Online gambling has been designed so that a person would win a bunch during the practice mode. This can cause a teenage to believe that this winning streak will continue when they start playing with real money. However, most problem gamblers believe that they had a big win during the start of their gambling history.
Gambling is a game of chance, but there are some games that can look like a regular app or video game which involve skill. This could be fun for a teen, but it could lead younger players to think that gambling is a skill, and this leads to false or unrealistic beliefs about the odds of winning an gambling.
Preventing Teenage Gambling
Children in upper graders in elementary school are often ready to learn about gambling, which include how likely a person is to win the in the long run. It can be helpful to explain how winning works that they can easily understand.