Socio-Economic, Motivational, and Media-Related Correlates of Problematic Online Sports Betting Among Youth in Jimma Town, Ethiopia

Abstract

Online sports betting has become easier to access through digital platforms, raising concerns about its financial and social consequences for young people. This study examined the associations between financial literacy, exposure to gambling advertising, motivational factors, and perceived community and regulatory influences and problematic online sports betting among youth in Jimma Town, Ethiopia. A cross-sectional survey was conducted with 295 young people aged 18–30 years, a sample size determined with Cochran's formula, who were recruited through convenience sampling at betting locations. Data were analysed with descriptive statistics, Pearson correlations, and multiple linear regression in SPSS version 26. The regression model explained 55.2% of the variance in problematic gambling scores (R² = .552). Motivational factors (B = 0.542, p< .001) and media advertising (B = 0.320, p< .001) were positively associated with problematic gambling, whereas financial literacy was negatively associated with it (B = −0.135, p< .001). Community perception and regulation had a negative but non-significant coefficient (B = −0.083, p = .065). The findings are consistent with recent international and Ethiopian evidence on gambling advertising, financial literacy, and youth betting. They describe associations rather than causal effects and come from a non-probability sample. The study contributes locally situated evidence on youth financial well-being and gambling-related harm and suggests that financial education should be combined with advertising oversight and prevention approaches that address why young people bet.