Adolescent Gambling: A Narrative Review of Behavior and Its Predictors

This narrative review summarizes current knowledge on adolescent gambling for the period 1990–2010, assesses adolescent gambling behavior and person and environment predictors, and suggests directions for future research. The review includes 99 studies that identified their subjects as adolescents, children, youth, and students, and discusses adolescent gambling behavior, male and female adolescent gambling, and person and environment variables relating to adolescent gambling. Results reveal that most past research was conducted in Australia, North America, and Europe under the hypothesis of behavior as a function of person and environment variables. Future research should examine the mediated effects of person and environment variables, gambling cessation, gambling in other countries, and internet gambling. Intervention and prevention of adolescent gambling need parental involvement with parents not gambling themselves.