hrvatski

Competencies for youth problem gambling psychosocial interventions–mental health professionals' perspective

Studies have shown that mental health service providers’ perceptions of problems and knowledge of resources are among the largest determinants of service provision and referral (Temcheff, Derevensky, St-Pierre, Gupta, Martin, 2014). Within a very liberal gambling market, youth gambling in Croatia is increasing, with high prevalence of young people who manifest severe gambling related psychosocial consequences (Ricijas, Dodig Hundric, Huic, Kranzelic, 2016). Therefore, competencies to provide adequate interventions in the area of both prevention and treatment are essential for mental health professionals. The aim of this study is to explore how often do mental health professionals encounter with adolescents’ gambling related problems, how confident they feel about their competencies to provide adequate interventions and what are the differences with regards to their sector of employment. This presentation refers to an ongoing study (January to March 2018) in which youth mental health professionals from different public sector participate: (1) educational system, (2) social welfare, (3) justice, (4) health and (5) non-governmental system. All of these professionals are providing different interventions for youth and their risk/problem behaviour, therefore their perspective is crucial for the development of comprehensive and efficient interventions. Results with be interpreted in terms of assessing professionals’ needs for further training and guidelines for improving interventions on all levels of intervention spectrum.

gambling, mental health professionals, competencies, youth

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