Gaming Chart

Everyone falls somewhere on this chart right now and they may move up or down, depending on the choices they make. Examples:

Casual Social

Joe sometimes goes to the local casino with friends and will play the lottery occasionally. He always sets a money limit for himself and he will sometimes make a choice to play hockey, or read about his hobbies instead of gambling. He would not miss gambling if he decided never to play again.

Serious Social

Rita often gambles by herself, although she has gone with friends.  When Rita is lonely or feels bored, she plays her favorite slot machine and sometimes feels better. Rita doesn't have any other hobbies, so all of her "fun" money goes to the games she plays.

Harmful Involvement

Mike prefers not to tell people about how much money and time he spends playing cards because he knows he should not do it so much. Actually, he often loses track of the time and number of trips to the bank machine.  Mike doesn't like that playing takes up all his time, his friends don't even bother to call his when they go out anymore.  Mike just wants to win back the money he has lost and break even, but he can't seem to do it.

Pathological/Problem gambling

Amy can't seem to control her gambling anymore.  It used to be fun to go to Bingo, or to a casino but now she only plays because she doesn't know what else to do.  Every time she has a problem, she finds herself gambling, which only seems to cause more problems. Amy doesn't know how she got here, but she wants out!