SynthesisJournal of gambling studies2023
Prevalence of Problem Gambling: A Meta-analysis of Recent Empirical Research (2016-2022).
Synthesis in Journal of gambling studies, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 52 papers, 7 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
52 citing papers in PubMed, 7 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 110 citations in OpenAlex.
- Mindfulness-based interventions for gambling disorder: A systematic review.Journal of behavioral addictions · 2026Pooled it
- Gambling in women: A systematic review of interventions and prevention approaches.Journal of behavioral addictions · 2026Pooled it
- Executive Function in Gambling Disorder: A Meta-analysis on Neuropsychological Evidence.Journal of gambling studies · 2025Pooled it
- Emotional Regulation in Substance-Related and Addictive Disorders Treatment: A Systematic Review.Journal of gambling studies · 2025Pooled it
- Financial Literacy and Economic Attitudes as Protective Factors Against Pathological Gambling? A Systematic Review.Journal of gambling studies · 2025Pooled it
- The influence of age on gambling problems worldwide: A systematic review and meta-analysis of risk among younger, middle-aged, and older adults.Journal of behavioral addictions · 2024Pooled it
- Prevalence of schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders in problem gambling: A systematic review and meta-analysis.European psychiatry : the journal of the Association of European Psychiatrists · 2024Pooled it
- Balancing harm prevention and liberty preservation when implementing financial risk assessments for gambling in the United Kingdom: Insights from open banking data.Addiction (Abingdon, England) · 2026Article
- Validation of the Gambling Problem Recognition Scale.Journal of gambling studies · 2026Article
- Occurrence and trajectories of psychiatric disorders in adults with gambling disorder: a longitudinal register-based study of the Finnish population.Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology · 2026Article
- Association between tobacco use, including heated tobacco products, and problem gambling: A cross-sectional study.Addictive behaviors reports · 2026Article
- Phenotypes associated with problematic online gaming and gambling: A clustering approach among young adults.Addictive behaviors reports · 2026Article
- Stressful Life Events, Masculinity and Gambling Participation: An Age-Stratified Analysis of Australian Men.Journal of gambling studies · 2026Article
- Treating Behavioral Addictions With Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality: Scoping Review.Interactive journal of medical research · 2026Review
- Associations Between Coping Strategies and Gambling Disorders in University Students: An Exploratory Neural Network Study.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Spatio-temporal differences in EEG dynamics during decision-making between online poker players with moderate-risk and high-risk gambling activity.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Clinical Characteristics and Symptom Severity in Patients with Gambling Disorder in Japan.Journal of gambling studies · 2026Article
- Incidence and predictors of problem gambling in first-episode psychosis: A prospective multicentre cohort study.European psychiatry : the journal of the Association of European Psychiatrists · 2026Observational
- Off-label and investigational drugs in the treatment of gambling disorder: a critical review.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2026Review
- Mechanisms and durability of residential treatment for co-occurring gambling and substance use disorders: a mixed-methods eight-year follow-up study.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Gambling is widely considered a socially acceptable form of recreation. However, for a small minority of individuals, it can become both addictive and problematic with severe adverse consequences. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis is to provide an overview of prevalence studies published between 2016 and the first quarter of 2022 and an updated estimate of problem gambling in the general adult population. A systematic review and a meta-analysis were carried out using academic databases, Internet, and governmental websites. Following this search and utilizing exclusion criteria, 23 studies on adult gambling prevalence were identified, distinguishing between moderate risk/at risk gambling and problem/pathological gambling. This study found a prevalence of moderate risk/at risk gambling to be 2.43% and of problem/pathological gambling to be 1.29% in the adult population. As difficult as it may be to compare studies due to different methodological procedures, cutoffs, and time frames, the present meta-analysis highlights the variations of prevalence across different countries, giving due consideration to the differences between levels of risk and severity. This work intends to provide a starting point for policymakers and academics to fill the gaps on gambling research-more specifically in some countries where the lack of research in this field is evident-and to study the effectiveness of policies implemented to mitigate gambling harm.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.