Children with parents who struggle with gambling may face emotional distress, financial instability, and social challenges. Even when the gambling stops, the consequences for the family—particularly for the children—can persist for years. Despite the severity of these impacts, there is very little research on how children’s lives are affected, and support and measures specifically targeting these children are almost non-existent.
This research project explores how children are affected when a parent has a gambling problem and what kinds of support can help both the children and their families.
The project aims to:
- Generate novel insights into how children are impacted by parental gambling problems.
- Develop tools and methods that health, education, and welfare services can use to support affected children and families.
- Enhance children’s understanding of their own health and life situation.
- Promote positive parenting and strengthen collaboration between services, parents, and children.
The project combines quantitative data and qualitative interviews and uses a collaborative approach, involving children and adults with lived experience as co-researchers. It also includes close cooperation with national and international research communities.
A key outcome of the project will be a set of age-appropriate informational materials and conversation tools for use in health care, schools, social services, and by families themselves.These resources will be designed with children’s needs at the center. The goal is to make the research useful for practitioners and affected families—and to give a voice to a group of children whose voices have largely been unheard.