The social debate about online gambling and minors in Spain

Abstract

The debate on the risks associated with online gambling and the protection of vulnerable users has extended beyond the academic field to other social and political contexts. In this article we study the perception that relevant social agents have on the probable evolution and the foreseeable impact, in the near future, of online gambling on minors. To do this, we conducted a study based on qualitative interviews with members of the main social agents connected to online gambling: families affected by problematic gambling, associations supporting problematic gamblers, health professionals, regulators, political parties, operating companies and advertising professionals. The results obtained allow identifying the positions and discourses of the various actors about their main concerns, what problems they think are coming, what aspects will improve and what changes they deem as necessary. The comparison between agents’ discourses allows us to conclude which are the main consensus and dissent among agents, as well as the main internal contradictions and dilemmas they face in the context of the current social debate.