“We avoided discussion of myths vs facts,” Rogers explained, because research shows that students remember myths and confuse them with facts. Pulling from the failures of the anti-drug D.A.R.E. Program, the gambling materials tell kids what gambling is without showing them how to do it.
“We’re not teaching them how to gamble,” Rogers said. Small tests between sections indicate whether kids understand what they’ve been taught.
What are the prospects of more states picking this up?
“There’s a lot of interest in states wanting to replicate what Virginia is doing,” Rogers said; Massachusetts and New Jersey are considering legislation now. At the same time, the lack of federal leadership impedes state efforts, because there’s no national plan to address problem gambling that states can simply adopt. Governments also can be slow to react to threats that don’t seem to pose imminent dangers.
“The school systems haven’t caught up with the health system, and the health system hasn’t caught up with the trends in the gambling industry,” Doura-Schawohl explained, noting that it took about 30 years to get action on the health risks associated with tobacco, alcohol and opioids. The fact that states receive revenue from legalized gambling also dampens enthusiasm for tough regulation; gambling proceeds provide a fresh source of state funds.
Not everyone who studies gambling addiction believes that mandatory, school-based lessons focusing on prohibition are the best approach to preventing problem gambling. Timothy Fong, a psychiatrist and co-director of UCLA’s Gambling Studies Program, and who is passionate about studying all-things-gambling, told me that “addiction and loneliness feed off each other.”
The young people who get swept up into addictive behaviors are looking for quick ways to obtain financial and social success; they can’t resist the promise of “easy” money coming to them from their own devices. “They think, ‘I need money fast in order to feel good about myself”,” Fong said. “What’s missing in their lives is developing kindness, empathy, gratitude, compassion and strengthening civics and pride in themselves and their communities.”
Of course, young people need a grounding in financial literary and probability, but it would be more effective to address false expectations and fantasies about striking it rich through betting, he added. Kids need connection with other humans more than immersion in anti-gambling curriculum, especially adult mentors who can counteract the messaging of social media and misinformation.
“There is no magic bullet,” Rogers said, acknowledging that tackling the problem will require more than one 90-minute session on the perils of gambling. Kids need tools on how to succeed and better ways of minimizing stress. “This is just one piece,” she added.
Jonathan Cohen, author of Losing Big: America’s Reckless Bet On Spots Gambling, told me that school principals have begun calling him, asking for guidance on how to handle their emerging problems, like middle school kids talking openly about gambling and bragging about their wins. Cohen believes parents and schools need to talk to kids about gambling, at the very least to challenge the dominant narrative propagated by social media influencers and celebrities on TV: that wagering is glamorous and fun and no harm can come from it.
