Nowadays, it’s pretty OK to say that you have a hobby that resonates with your passion for sports and the desire to combine business with pleasure. Almost every Nigerian punter can proudly speak up about his hobby and experience in betting, and such stories are only gaining in popularity online. But have you ever heard that there are three types of gamblers? Have you ever tried to figure out which type you are? You might think you are the smart one, who’s using available predictions from acknowledged analytics or reading the best Telegram channels with betting tips. But this is not the type we’re going to discuss today. In this article, we will review three general types of gamblers, their characteristics, and their behavioral patterns. Shall we commence? Let’s go!
Type #1: The Social Gambler
Sports betting is a form of recreation, entertainment, and communication to some extent. You’re not isolated in your tiny world of bets and are aware of communities or topical platforms for discussions and suggestions. You are in total charge of your funds, and emotions won’t make you spend more than you planned. Moreover, you rigorously stick to the budgets that you have set for a certain period of time. Your hobby does not affect your decisions or the everyday lives of your family, friends, or colleagues. You’re an emotionally stable, mature person who does not think about gambling all day long.
If you can honestly say that everything said above applies to you, congratulations! You’re a social gambler. These people consider gambling to be a valid form of pastime and, what’s quite crucial, maintain total command over each aspect of sports betting, which are the time, money, and both emotional and physical energy used in the process.
Some uninformed and perhaps uneducated people will happily rush into action with the phrase “There’s no socially acceptable form of gambling” or “This “Social Gambler” thing is just an empty excuse for wasting money.” Well, if you’ve never heard of this before, you’ve probably also never met an emotional vampire. Lucky you. Just avoid them at any cost, and the quality of life will rise within the blink of an eye. Back to the subject, those people with their superficial judgment do not realize that a social gambler is the one who’s fully aware of his actions and is in control of the situation. After all, each form of entertainment has a price. If we consider sports betting to be a form of recreation, it’s acceptable to think of a lost stake as the cost of entertainment and emotions.
Type #2: The Professional Gambler
This type of bettors can be described with many loud adjectives, but instead we’ll try to take a different approach to explaining what they are made of. Just like social gamblers, professionals have entire control of what they are doing. Moreover, their final purpose is not only to have fun but to make some cash. And preferably “more money” and “less fun.” Emotions are just a side factor, a cherry on top, but stuffing their wallets and achieving some stated goals are definitely priority #1.
Usually, professionals prefer to act from the shadows without drawing too much attention. Secret techniques and expert opinions shouldn’t be made public, otherwise their field of application and their raison d’être will vanish. But if you privately approach them for advice, they won’t hesitate to share some good tips that will help you improve. Especially if you ask them in exchange for some bucks.
Professional gamblers are also responsible for statistical deviations. Without them, researchers could firmly state that all bettors waste their money and lose it in the course of a short period of time before finally giving up sports betting. But the pros, with their variable income, are the reason for the statistical error of 5%. As you may know, only 5% of all punters all over the world are above the red line. This also indicates that with a fair effort, anyone can achieve this sweet five percent threshold, but there’s a lot of hard work ahead.
Type #3: The Problem Gambler
It’s quite hard to give a comprehensive description of the problem gambler within one single article since it’s a fairly complex issue which has been studied by many well-known representatives in the fields of psychology and psychiatry. The main indicator of this type of gambler is a lack of control. The problem punters are under the complete power of the bets and sometimes are not aware of their actions. Not without reason, the second most important factor that speaks to the problem is a complete lack of understanding of the consequences, both financial and moral, and the consequences for themselves and their immediate environment.
The most generalized term used in this case is gambling addiction. The Nigerian government and local regulators actively try to push this issue back, and relatively recently, each bookmaker in the country was forced to join the initiative to prevent the formation of gambling addiction. The most important points would be a restriction on the advertising of gambling establishments, mandatory labeling about the age limit, and a warning about possible gambling addiction.
Final Thoughts
Grading and labeling people according to different characteristics is quite a fun activity, almost like reading horoscopes, but a little bit more shameful. We’ve mentioned three general types of bettors, but believe it or not, it’s the smallest gradation. More comprehensive studies distinguish a higher number of types, like antisocial, casual social, serious social, and escape gamblers, in addition to professional and compulsive gamblers. This is a very interesting and intriguing topic for discussion, and you can consider this article a sneak peak of the more extensive studies you can find. Hopefully, we’ve got your attention, and thus indirectly helped to spread awareness of gambling addiction. Informed means armed!
