A new study has found that mobile phones have deepened the impact of gambling in Ireland, contributing to secret and hidden activity online.
The social study, Playing Social Roulette: The Impact of Gambling on Individuals and Society in Ireland, was carried out by University College Dublin.
Researchers spoke to 22 gamblers, all at different stages of recovery for a problem with gambling.
Family members were also interviewed, as well as researchers and analysts working for organisations that deal with gambling.
Four main types of gambling were identified in the report: social gambling, problem gambling, compulsive or pathological gambling and progressional gambling.
The report found that problem gamblers often started gambling as teenagers.
Addiction service providers reported ages from nine years and up as common starting points for gambling.
They found initial gambling might involve betting for small amounts of money in card games or an occasional bet on a horse race.
The study recommends that a national gambling strategy is put in place.
It also said the implementation of legislation concerning gambling is urgently needed.
It recommends that a social fund included in the Gambling Control Bill 2014 should provide significantly for public education about gambling.
The study also found that although services which support gamblers exist, further investment in focused services is needed.
It said the development of addiction services to address gambling addition in Ireland is urgent and critical.
The report was published by Tánaiste Joan Burton, who said she is "very concerned about the social impact of gambling, given that we have a gambling culture in Ireland."
The Minister for Social Protection added that "one of the most profound impacts of problem gambling is on families who have to cope with the devastation and stress, compounded by having to deal with serious financial problems."
