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Gambling in S pain: update on experience, research and policy
Author(s) -
JiménezMurcia Susana,
FernándezAranda Fernando,
Granero Roser,
Menchón Jose Manuel
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
addiction
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.424
H-Index - 193
eISSN - 1360-0443
pISSN - 0965-2140
DOI - 10.1111/add.12232
Subject(s) - legislation , european union , government (linguistics) , medline , systematic review , medicine , political science , psychology , public relations , business , law , economic policy , linguistics , philosophy
Aims To describe the current situation of gambling in S pain, sketching its history and discussing the regulations and legislation currently in force within the framework of the E uropean U nion ( EU ), and to review the epidemiology of gambling in S pain, the self‐help groups and professional treatments available, and their potential effectiveness. Methods A systematic computerized search was performed in three databases ( EMBASE , PubMed and PsychINFO , including articles and chapters) and the reference lists from previous reviews to obtain some of the most relevant studies published up to now on the topic of pathologic gambling in S pain. Results Similar to other EU countries, S pain has a high prevalence of pathologic gambling, focused on specific culturally bounded types of gambling. Expenditure in online gaming has risen significantly in the last few years, prompting the Spanish government to draft new legislation to regulate gaming. Conclusions The gaming industry is expected to be one of the fastest growing sectors in S pain in the coming years owing to the rise of new technologies and the development of online gaming.