{"id":646,"date":"2020-12-04T19:31:51","date_gmt":"2020-12-04T19:31:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/noveltimes\/?p=646"},"modified":"2020-12-13T23:28:49","modified_gmt":"2020-12-13T23:28:49","slug":"casino-closures-change-face-of-addiction-as-ontario-prepares-to-legalize-online-gambling","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/noveltimes\/2020\/12\/04\/casino-closures-change-face-of-addiction-as-ontario-prepares-to-legalize-online-gambling\/","title":{"rendered":"Casino closures change face of addiction as Ontario prepares to legalize online gambling"},"content":{"rendered":"\n[et_pb_section fb_built=&#8221;1&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; min_height=&#8221;117px&#8221; custom_margin=&#8221;||-14px|||&#8221;][et_pb_row _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; custom_padding=&#8221;0px|||||&#8221;][et_pb_column type=&#8221;4_4&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_text _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;]<p style=\"text-align: center\"><em>Online poker and sports betting have surged in popularity during the pandemic. (Photo by\u00a0Adrian Sampson, Creative Commons License\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/2.0\/?ref=ccsearch&amp;atype=rich\">CC BY 2.0<\/a>)<\/em><\/p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_column type=&#8221;4_4&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_text _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;]<p>OTTAWA &#8211;\u00a0<span style=\"font-weight: 400\">When Paula Fraser learned her father was an alcoholic, she joined a program for family members of loved ones struggling with addiction.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cI went through their program,\u201d she says of Rideauwood Family and Addiction Services in Ottawa. \u201cBy the end of it I knew I wanted to work in the field.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Fraser quit her job as a lab tech and built a nearly 23-year career at Rideauwood out of helping people who struggle with the same dependency she watched take hold of her father.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Now 62, Fraser is delivering counseling over video chat as the pandemic changes both the nature of her work and the pressures of addiction. She says she has been receiving more calls from people struggling with online gambling who had never tried it before the pandemic.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"><\/span><\/p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=&#8221;1_2,1_2&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; custom_margin=&#8221;-36px|auto||auto||&#8221; custom_padding=&#8221;||0px|||&#8221;][et_pb_column type=&#8221;1_2&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_text _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; custom_margin=&#8221;-23px|-154px||||&#8221; custom_padding=&#8221;|0px|23px|||&#8221;]<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cI\u2019ve had a couple people who never ever did online gambling, and since the casinos were closed, they started doing online gambling. That\u2019s something I noticed in COVID,\u201d she says.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Since the Ontario government ordered the province\u2019s casinos closed during the first wave of COVID-19 lockdowns, fewer problem gamblers are calling helplines for support, but a larger share of calls are being made by young people who have embraced emerging forms of online gambling as Ontario prepares to legislate greater access.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Legacy gambling\u2014the kind that rewards its patrons with bright lights, big buttons and flashing screens\u2014has suffered from casino closures and capacity limits just as online gambling has bloomed. The American Gambling Association<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.americangaming.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/Q3-CGRT-Report-PDF.pdf\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400\">reported<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> third quarter \u201ciGaming\u201d growth of more than 200 per cent over 2019, mostly due to increased demand for online poker and sports betting. The Canadian Gambling Association does not publish similar statistics because online gambling is currently a \u201cgrey market\u201d activity in Canada, meaning it is illegal for private gambling companies to operate in the country, but Canadians can legally use foreign gambling websites.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cWe\u2019ve seen a dramatic increase in online gaming participation,\u201d says Paul Burns, President and CEO of the Canadian Gambling Association. \u201cMany of the bigger online sites in the world are publicly traded companies, so we\u2019ve seen reports from them.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">U.S. researchers have found<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/psyarxiv.com\/fvnmb\"> <span style=\"font-weight: 400\">evidence<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"> that casino closures are leading many problem gamblers to \u201csubstitute\u201d slots with online alternatives.<\/span><\/p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=&#8221;1_2&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_image src=&#8221;https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/noveltimes\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/AndrewsFeaturePhoto1-scaled.jpg&#8221; title_text=&#8221;AndrewsFeaturePhoto1&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; custom_margin=&#8221;|||1px||&#8221; custom_padding=&#8221;|||105px||&#8221;][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; custom_padding=&#8221;|||107px||&#8221;]<p style=\"text-align: center\"><em>Fraser pictured outside her home in Ottawa, Ont. (Photo provided by Paula Fraser)<\/em><\/p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_column type=&#8221;4_4&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_text _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;]<p><span>Similar Canadian data has yet to be published. Instead,<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/jgi.camh.net\/index.php\/jgi\/article\/view\/4072\/4525\"> <span>research<\/span><\/a><span> in Canada has focused on the volume of calls made to problem gambling helplines.<\/span><\/p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_column _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; type=&#8221;4_4&#8243;][et_pb_code _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; hover_enabled=&#8221;0&#8243; sticky_enabled=&#8221;0&#8243;]<div class=\"flourish-embed flourish-chart\" data-src=\"visualisation\/4480271\"><script src=\"https:\/\/public.flourish.studio\/resources\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/div>[\/et_pb_code][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; custom_margin=&#8221;-14px|auto|-38px|auto||&#8221;][et_pb_column type=&#8221;4_4&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_text _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;]<p><span>Nigel Turner, a gambling researcher at the Canadian Association for Mental Health, says there has been a<\/span> <span>large overall decrease in the number of calls to the Ontario Problem Gambling Helpline. The helpline received just over 200 calls in April of this year, about 100 fewer calls than it received in March and 200 fewer than April of last year.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cThe drop this year was much greater, much more substantial,\u201d says Turner. \u201cIt\u2019s the lowest number from the past two and a half years.\u201d<\/span><\/p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_column _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; type=&#8221;4_4&#8243;][et_pb_code _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; hover_enabled=&#8221;0&#8243; sticky_enabled=&#8221;0&#8243;]<div class=\"flourish-embed flourish-chart\" data-src=\"visualisation\/4468687\"><script src=\"https:\/\/public.flourish.studio\/resources\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/div>[\/et_pb_code][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_column type=&#8221;4_4&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_text _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;]<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Calls to the helpline may be down overall, but Turner notes a shift in who is calling and what they are calling for. The number of young people calling for help has increased. Twenty-three percent of women who called the helpline during the pandemic were younger than 25.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Matt Young, manager of youth services at Rideauwood, says young people require a unique therapeutic approach. They may have a distrust of adult figures and a different perception of what counts as gambling.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Callers are also increasingly likely to report problems with online card games and sports betting.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cIn October, it was actually sports betting that had skyrocketed,\u201d says Turner. \u201cThat\u2019s probably a shift towards online gambling.\u201d<\/span><\/p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=&#8221;1_2,1_2&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_column type=&#8221;1_2&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_text _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;]<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Young recognizes the inherent pitfall in treating an online addiction with online therapy.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cTo engage with it, our counseling requires them to access technology, which has been potentially the very issue that brought them to counselling,\u201d he says. \u201cThe positive is that it\u2019s also an opportunity to practice boundaries in real time.\u201d<\/span><\/p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=&#8221;1_2&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_text _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; custom_margin=&#8221;8px|||||&#8221; custom_padding=&#8221;||0px|||&#8221;]<blockquote>\n<p><span>Twenty-three percent of women who called the helpline during the pandemic were younger than 25.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_column type=&#8221;4_4&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_text _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;]<p><span>Although Turner says there is little research on the topic, there is some evidence that online gambling may be more addictive. But he also believes that \u201csecondary reinforcement\u201d could explain why many gamblers seem hesitant to embrace online slots, which is the gambling sector most strongly affected by COVID-19.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cWhen you\u2019re live, thousands of other people around, you hear all the bells and whistles of every machine in the neighbourhood,\u201d says Turner. \u201cAnd that gives you a secondary reinforcement that makes you think winning is possible because everybody else is winning. Online you don\u2019t have that. You don\u2019t have the other players to make you excited about games.\u201d<\/span><\/p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_column type=&#8221;4_4&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_image src=&#8221;https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/noveltimes\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/AndrewsFeaturePhoto3.jpg&#8221; title_text=&#8221;AndrewsFeaturePhoto3&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; custom_margin=&#8221;||14px|||&#8221;][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;]<p style=\"text-align: center\"><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The Rideau-Carleton Raceway and Casino has been closed since the first wave of COVID-19 lockdowns in Ontario. (Photo by Ben Andrews)<\/span><\/em><\/p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_column type=&#8221;4_4&#8243; _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221;][et_pb_text _builder_version=&#8221;4.7.4&#8243; _module_preset=&#8221;default&#8221; custom_margin=&#8221;0px|||||&#8221;]<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The Ford government is set to legalize private online gambling in Ontario, which would establish a competitive market and allow the government to regulate the industry. Ontario\u2019s proposed licensing framework would allow the province to tax a portion of the nearly $500 million Burns says Ontarians spend on grey market online gambling each year.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">With the growth of online gambling accelerating during the pandemic, Turner says the government must act carefully.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cAnytime you increase the availability of an addictive behaviour, gambling or whatever, it\u2019s a potential problem,\u201d says Turner. \u201cIf they\u2019re going online anyway, they may be better off if they have regulated gambling from Ontario, which will point them to help resources and offer advice of when to quit.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Fraser says many of her clients felt relieved when casinos closed. Many of those who haven\u2019t transitioned to online gambling fear relapse when casinos eventually reopen.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cThey\u2019re worried that they\u2019ll just go back where they were before,\u201d she says. \u201cAnd they\u2019ll get back into that vicious cycle of gambling, blowing their money, feeling shame and guilt, feeling horrible, and then going back for more. It\u2019s a total cycle of addiction.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">As governments and billion-dollar industries negotiate gambling\u2019s post-pandemic future, Fraser watches the familiar burden of addiction through the unfamiliar filter of a screen.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Online work is new and challenging for Fraser, but the reasons she quit an unfulfilling job over two decades ago to become an addiction counselor remain.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cYou get to be part of someone healing and growing and working towards a better life,\u201d she says. \u201cI just feel very honored to do that.\u201d<\/span><\/p>[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When Paula Fraser learned her father was an alcoholic, she joined a program for family members of loved ones struggling with addiction.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":649,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-646","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","et-has-post-format-content","et_post_format-et-post-format-standard"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/noveltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/646","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/noveltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/noveltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/noveltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/noveltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=646"}],"version-history":[{"count":23,"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/noveltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/646\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":700,"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/noveltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/646\/revisions\/700"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/noveltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/649"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/noveltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=646"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/noveltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=646"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cusjc.ca\/noveltimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=646"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}