An exploration of the lived experiences of Irish women, their journeys through gambling and the impacts of gambling marketing

Abstract

Gambling can lead to serious consequences such as addiction. Ferris and Wynne (2001: p 7) describe gambling addictions as a “gambling behaviour that creates negative consequences for the gambler, others in his or her social network, or for the community.” In addition, further impacts of a gambling addiction can be felt through job loss, relationship breakdown, depression, suicidal ideation (Komoto, 2014) and suicide (Gray et al., 2021). Alongside the person who experiences addictive gambling behaviours, gambling also impacts up to six others (Goodwin et al., 2017). Due to the harms incurred by both those who gamble and their wider social circles (Hing et al., 2022), gambling is now recognised as a global public health issue(Christopher, 2021).

Gambling addictions have been historically perceived as a male phenomenon (Mark and Lesieur, 1992; Crisp et al., 2004). In the early 90’s, Mark and Lesieur (1992: p 549) identified a substantial focus on men’s experiences of pathological gambling within academia, “to the exclusion of females.” Yet over three decades later, Kairouz and colleagues (2023: p 2) reiterate the perpetuation of this issue, stating that gambling research “continues to be based primarily on men’s experience of gambling”. Although academics have emphasised the importance of research that focuses on women’s experiences of gambling and gambling harm in recent years (Wardle and Laidler, 2023; Kairouz et al., 2023; Fillion et al., 2024) gaps within the literature remain.

This thesis emerges in a timely and relevant response to the prevalence of gambling addictions throughout the island of Ireland and the dearth of research dedicated to women across the region. The island of Ireland is comprised of two regions and is globally recognised as a jurisdictional landmass that has some of the highest rates of ‘problem’ gambling globally. Current gambling addiction estimates suggest a figure of 3% throughout Northern Ireland (NISRA, 2025) and a further 3.3% in the republic of Ireland (hereafter referred to as Ireland)(O’Ceallaigh et al., 2023). Despite the high prevalence of gambling addictions, this region has a lack of empirical research (Calado and Griffiths, 2016; Kerr et al., 2021; O’Ceallaigh et al.,2023) on the issues surrounding gambling addictions for citizens residing throughout the island of Ireland. Several areas which have been under-researched throughout the region are women who experience gambling addictions, the impacts of commercial determinants on their experiences with gambling and the exploration of responsible gambling discourses. This thesis takes the view that women’s experiences of gambling may not be extrapolated from that of their male counterparts, a perspective that has previously been emphasised by Wardle (2015). In addition, the thesis has positioned itself within the view that international findings may not be homogenous with the experiences of Irish women. As such, the thesis has been centred around the exploration of women with experiences of a gambling addiction throughout the island of Ireland.

To fully understand the concept of gambling addictions throughout the region, it’s important to reflect on the early 2000’s. Almost two decades ago, the Gambling Act 2005 was implemented throughout Great Britain in 2007. Upon implementation, the act was viewed as a source of liberalisation for the Great British gambling market by providing “new opportunities for the expansion of all types of gambling” (Light, 2007: p 635). The liberalised measures permitted numerous changes, including the increase of gambling advertising (Banks and Waters, 2023). At the time of its implementation, the act was envisioned to only impact citizens across Great Britain. However, this is not, nor ever has been the case. The island of Ireland is legislated separately through acts introduced in 1985, 2024 and 2022 (Department for Communities, 2021; Legislation.gov, 2022a; Irish Statute Book, 1956; Gambling Regulation Act, 2024), yet twenty years on from the implementation of the Gambling Act 2005, citizens throughout the island of Ireland are subject to an overspill of gambling marketing by having access to a shared media market, lotteries, sports broadcasts, gambling companies and other marketing approaches evident throughout Great Britain (Kitchin et al., 2024).

The thesis makes three separate contributions to knowledge. The first contribution is underpinned by a conceptual framework developed using constructivist grounded theory. This framework details the journeys Irish women go through when moving through an addiction and into recovery. The second contribution is centred in the thesis’ exploration of gambling marketing as a commercial determinant of health, in which the thesis has identified specific gambling marketing impact points on women’s journeys through gambling. The final contribution is rooted in the identification of the ineffective nature of responsible gambling discourses for Irish women and draws on the criticisms associated with gambling industry control of CSR narratives internationally (Marko et al., 2022; Rintoul, 2022; Livingstone,2024).

The frameworks developed within the thesis have drawn on a rich body of qualitative data, generated through a two-phase semi-structured interview approach. As such, the thesis offers an in-depth exploration of the lived experiences of Irish women when experiencing a gambling addiction and details their journey as they venture from social gambling to a gambling addiction and finally into recovery. The details of this journey are rooted in the lived experiences of Irish women who have experienced a gambling addiction, providing an invaluable understanding of the intricacies associated with gambling addictions for women. By detailing this journey, it provides a previously unforeseen insight into the way women experience a gambling addiction and the harm that is created for women at various points of their gambling journeys (Kairouz et al., 2023) and their exposures to gambling marketing. In doing so, this thesis demonstrates for the first time the specific impact points gambling marketing has and the distress associated with gambling marketing once in recovery. Furthermore, the thesis makes several contributions to the literature on women, gambling addictions, gambling marketing and the commercial determinants of health.

Date of Award	May 2025
Original language	English
Supervisor	Paul Kitchin (Supervisor) & Damian Gallagher (Supervisor)