The Columbia Encyclopedia describes gambling as “betting of money or, valuables on, and often participation in, games of chance (some involving degrees of skill)”

Compulsive, or pathological gambling is described “as a psychological disorder characterized by a persistent inability to resist the impulse to gamble. The disorder is progressive and typically results in difficulties in one’s personal, social, and work life; it may lead to bankruptcy or criminal activity to obtain money.”

Pathological gambling is a medical problem. Research suggests that pathological gambling has a neurobiological basis.

Gambling and problems with gambling have been documented as part of human behavior for millennia. A new form of gambling, Internet gambling, has recently emerged. basis.