An Exploratory Study through a Life Course Perspective: Gambling among Older Chinese People in a Canadian Context

Individuals with a migratory background can offer valuable insight to improve the treatment and prevention of gambling harms

Migration is a risk factor for gambling-related harms. Little research has been conducted on gambling and gambling harms among migrant groups in Finland, but there are indications that gambling participation is high among migrants also in this context. Russian speakers constitute the largest migrant group in Finland. This study focuses on the experiences and views of Russian speakers in Finland on the Finnish gambling system and its relationship to gambling harms. The study is based on the results of qualitative data collected on gambling experiences among Russian-speaking residents of Finland. The data consist of an online survey directed at individuals who gamble (N = 26) and interviews conducted among family members of those gambling (N = 3). Russian speakers in Finland view gambling as highly normalised in the Finnish society. This normalisation reinforced by availability, accessibility, and state involvement. Russian speakers also have perspective on how to better prevent and treat gambling harms in Finland. Involving migrants with experience of different gambling systems can provide critical insight on established practices in gambling systems.

A scoping review of the individual, socio-cultural, environmental and commercial determinants of gambling for older adults: implications for public health research and harm prevention

Gambling is a global public health issue that can cause harm to individuals, families, and communities. Older adults are vulnerable to gambling harm due to life-stage experiences. This study aimed to examine current research relating to individual, socio-cultural, environmental, and commercial determinants of gambling among older adults. A scoping review was conducted (PubMed, PsycInfo, SocIndex, CINAHL Complete, Web of Science, Social Science and Sociology databases available in ProQuest, Google Scholar, citation searching), with peer reviewed studies included that were published between 1 December 1999 and 28 September 2022. Included studies were published in English in peer-reviewed journals that examined the determinants of gambling in adults aged 55 and over. Records were excluded if they were experimental studies, prevalence studies or had a population wider than the required age group. Methodological quality was assessed using JBI critical appraisal tools. Data was extracted using a determinants of health framework and common themes were identified. Forty-four were included. Most literature examined individual and socio-cultural determinants including reasons for gambling, risk management strategies, and social motivations for gambling. Few studies investigated environmental or commercial determinants, and those that did focused on accessibility of venues or promotions as pathways to gambling. Further research is needed to understand the impact of gambling environments and industry, and effective public health responses for older adults.

“My Last Husband and Marriage:” The Impact of Inheritance Disputes on Chinese Immigrants’ Widowhood in the United States

This study explores the unique experiences of the emotional processing of the widowhood of individuals of the Chinese seniors, and immigrant background in the United States. By interviewing eight Chinese immigrant widows living in Phoenix, the United States, this study focuses on the comparison of social relations and lifestyles before and after their spousal loss, as well as the unique forces of their Chinese backgrounds and the transnational remarriages in their bereavement process, and then widow status. The narrative accounts of the participants therein illustrate that transnational marriage and blended families generate a series of practical challenges, including unexpected severed friendships and inheritance disputes between stepmother and stepchildren. The consequences are reflected in the increase of self-loathing and low self-esteem, the refusal to remarry, the rising anger at the betrayal of friends, as well as the rapid formation of a high level of independence and self-determination in such circumstances. These findings increase knowledge of widowhood of Chinese women with immigrant background, therein enrich ethno-cultural diversity in the widowhood studies.This study concludes with the implications of providing bilingual legal aid and counseling to Chinese-origin, US-based, and widows.