A Balancing Act: How Affected Others Support Themselves and Those Who Gamble

Abstract

Gambling-related harm affects not only the individual who gambles, but also their families, friends, and the wider community, referred to as affected others (AOs). AOs experience substantial harms across financial, relational, and psychological domains, yet remain underrepresented in treatment settings. Emerging evidence indicates that AOs have dual needs: support to manage their own gambling-related harm and guidance on how to support the person who gambles. However, these needs are underexplored, particularly beyond intimate partners. To address these gaps, this study asked two research questions: (1) what strategies do AOs use to reduce gambling-related harm, and (2) do these strategies differ by relationship type. A secondary analysis of 44 in-depth, semi-structured interviews with partners, family members, friends, and colleagues was conducted using reflexive thematic analysis. Three themes described how AOs navigated gambling-related harm within this dual-needs framework: Holding it together (protecting wellbeing by talking to others, seeking professional support, setting boundaries, and creating distance); Pushing for change (trying to influence gambling behaviour by restricting access to shared finances, setting spending limits, and encouraging help-seeking); and Different needs, limited options (a desire for practical, skill-based supports alongside barriers to access). Across themes, partners tended to use more direct strategies such as ultimatums and financial controls, whereas non-partners more often adopted indirect, advisory or supportive roles. These relational differences suggest that interventions should be tailored to relationship type and explicitly build AO-focused support, so that available resources align with how AOs are actually managing gambling-related harm rather than treating AOs as a uniform group.