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A quick card game at lunch,
in the rec-room, at home… is this just innocent fun… or
is there a darker side to the poker craze.
“I had never seen teenagers come in for gambling addiction,
prior to a couple years ago,” says Psychologist Stephen Mathis,
Psy.D.
For kids of all ages, the attraction is the same.
“Oh money of course, I’ve always been attracted to
money,” laughs 13-year-old Becky Bailer.
“If I win I’m going to be happy, and I’m going
to be really rich,” adds 9-year-old Conner Turpin.
On top of that, experts say, television has turn poker players
into celebrities…
“That has certainly added to the mystique if you will and
the allure to it,” says Dr. Mathis, “And the sense
that some of these folks have become sort of superheroes if you
will, much like rock stars.”
For many kids, he says, poker, like Pokemon before it… is just
a harmless fad.
But because it’s played for money, it can be more
addictive than other games.
“Any activity in life that has this what I would classify
as this pseudo adrenaline rush, kind of ‘whoo-hoo’,
kind of potential to it, has the potential to become addictive,” says
Dr. Mathis.
He says if parents allow their kids to play poker, they should
keep a close eye on it.
“Most of the responsible parents I know who have kids who
like to gamble, will host the gambling parities at their home,” says
Dr. Mathis, “They’ll know the kids who are coming to
their home, they’ll have certain monetary limits.”
And, he says, if a child becomes fascinated with gambling… talks
about it constantly… watches it on t-v, parents need to
step in.
Jennifer Turpin, Conner’s Mother, Jennifer Turpin says
she understands the game’s allure, “Just like with
video games where you’re like ‘enough’s enough’,
because it become like this brain-dead fascination with a game.”
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