Parental correlates of adolescent gambling behaviour: a study on 12-14 years old students in Italy

Erica Viola^1*Emina Mehanovic²Marco Martorana^3,4Mariaelisa Renna²Alberto Sciutto³Giulia Giraudi²Maria Ginechesi⁵Claudia Vullo⁵Serena Vadrucci⁶Chiara Andrà³Adalgisa Ceccano⁵Pietro Casella⁵Fabrizio Faggiano^3,7Federica Vigna-Taglianti²GAPUnplugged Coordination Group⁸

• ¹Department of Psychology, eCampus University, Novedrate, Italy
• ²Department of Translational Medicine, University of Piemonte Orientale, Novara, Italy
• ³Department of Sustainable Development and Ecological Transition, University of Piemonte Orientale, Vercelli, Italy
• ⁴Department of Statistics, Computer Science, and Applications “Giuseppe Parenti” (DiSIA), University of Florence, Firenze, Italy
• ⁵Department of Mental Health, Addiction Unit, ASL Roma1, Roma, Italy
• ⁶Department of Prevention, Hygiene and Public Health Unit, ASL Città di Torino, Torino, Italy
• ⁷Epidemiology Unit, ASL Vercelli, Vercelli, Italy
• ⁸Department of Translational Medicine, University of Eastern Piedmont, Novara, Piedmont, Italy

Objective. This study aims to elucidate the role of parental factors on adolescents' gambling in a sample of Italian students, and to identify the mediating factors of the relationship between parental gambling and adolescents' gambling.Methods. This is a secondary study based on data collected in the baseline survey of the experimental controlled trial "GAPUnplugged". The analytical sample included 1848 students 12-14 years old who participated in the study in Piedmont and Lazio Regions in Italy. Multilevel mixed-effect regression models were used to estimate the associations between correlates and the probability of adolescents' gambling. Mediation analysis was conducted to test the mediating effect of personal factors on the relationship between parental and adolescents' gambling.Results. Overall, 55.7% of students reported gambling in the last 12 months. In the multivariate regression model, gambling with parents and parental permissiveness to gamble were the strongest correlates of adolescents' gambling. Parental gambling, parental permissiveness to use substances and perception of friends' gambling were also significantly associated with adolescents' gambling.Performance beliefs, attitudes toward gambling, and sensation-seeking emerged as potential mediators of the relationship between parental gambling and adolescents' gambling.Conclusions. Parental factors appear to be important correlates of gambling behaviour among adolescents. These results provide insights into the complex dynamics influencing adolescent gambling behaviour and emphasise the importance of targeted interventions and parental guidance to promote healthier decision-making and mitigate adolescent gambling problems.