Study Shows Australians Who Bet on Sports At Most Risk of Addiction

We live in a constantly evolving world where human progress is measured in weeks and not in centuries. This applies to cars, planes, trains and even bicycles and roller blades. Yet nothing evolves quicker than technology. A new smartphone is virtually useless less than a year after purchase. The industries which are making the quickest leaps forward are broadband internet and wireless communications.

In most cases this rapid progress in the fields of science and technology is a good thing, pushing the human race forward towards a time when diseases, hunger and pain will be a thing of the past. Yet, Australian researchers recently discovered a negative side effect of such rapid progress – a fast increase in the number of compulsive gamblers mainly through means of mobile gambling and internet betting.

University of Sydney carried out a thorough research of the problem and found that the increased use of online sportsbooks in Australia is contributing to the rise of the problem gambling. Alex Blaszczynski, professor of psychology, commented: “with more and more people gaining access to higher internet speeds and wireless internet via their smartphones, you can gamble anytime and anywhere.”

Online gambling is fully legal under Australian gambling laws. The most advanced area is sports betting, and a long list of excellent online bookmakers exists on the Australian market. Moreover, their presence is solid on the international arena as well. They often focus on the country’s sporting events, but do cover an abundance of events around the globe.

Report, released by the University, shows a seventy percent increase in online sportsbooks’ clients from years 2008-2009 to 2010-2011. Clinical psychologist, Christopher Hunt, noted that additional reason for the increase was the growing number of gambling promotions via sports media. “It’s difficult to watch most kinds of sporting matches these days without being made aware of the prices that various outlets are giving for bets,” Hunt said.