Peter viewed gambling as a normal entertainment for men as a result of observing father gambling on horseraces. Since graduation from university, Peter joined the finance industry. He was used to the concept of “using money to make big money”.

Hubert received primary education in a village in China. There were not many job opportunities when he migrated to HK at the age of 18. After several changes, he found a stable job in a hospital.

Frank came to gambling counselling centre last year, after divorce due to his gambling.

Alfred was passionate at watching soccer matches, especially the English Premier League. He was a fan of Chelsea Football Club. He observed his friends getting more excited when betting on the matches. He therefore started betting too.

When Ken looked back on how he got in touch with gambling in his teenage, he was only gambling on cards with a small amount of money. He perceived it as entertainment only. Later, he had more and more friends betting on horseraces, and he always heard about his friends’ winning experiences. He recalled that there were one or two celebrations with friends who won money from gambling in a week. Everyone in the gathering was excited for the one who won! At that time, an impression about gambling formed: winning is an easy job! Hence, he expected himself to win as his friends, and imagined himself to be the one treating everybody a celebration meal in the future.

Sam’s family had a habit of horseracing betting, which gave him an opportunity to get in touch with horseracing betting since young. He once won $30 by betting $5 at 12 years old, this experience gave him a sense of easy-winning in gambling. After he got married, his family expense increased much due to child care. He then thought of gambling, which was an easy way to “earn”. Since then, he started gambling seriously.

May was a patient with chronic illness. Her doctor recommended her to do a surgery but she felt the financial pressure in her family. She hoped to win more money in the shortest time. In her understanding, it was easier to win a large sum of money in casinos than from soccer and horseracing betting. Moreover, the glamour in casinos made her feel excited. Hence, she decided to gamble on Baccarat at casinos in Macau in order to resolve her financial difficulty.

Mr. Hui witnessed his father’s gambling activity with his friends since young. He felt the happiness in gambling, and he could win some money in it. Therefore, a perception on gambling formed: gambling could bring him money and fun. Mr. Hui then started gambling since Secondary 1 by betting $10 on horseraces. His betting amount increased to a few hundred dollars per bet while studying university. Eventually, he became indebted when he started working.

Valerie’s family loved playing mahjong a lot, which provided ample opportunities for her to get involved in this gambling activity since young. She then developed a strong interest in mahjong and thought she got the sure-win tactics throughout the process.

Uncle Chi had been suffered from gambling problem for more than 30 years, which also seized his sweet family life. He currently lived alone. Although he experienced the damages brought by gambling, he still had hope in winning at Baccarat. When he was upset, he used gambling to uplift his mood and borrowed money to chase.