From From Player to Entrepreneur: The Process of Becoming an "Agent" In the Online Gambling Business of the Youth

Abstract

The purpose of this research is to analyze the factors and the processes of becoming an "agent" to create recommendations which aim to prevent and solve problems of the entering into online gambling business of the youth by using Actor-network theory as a research tool.  The methodology of this research in data collecting is document study, interviews and focus group while triangulation and hermeneutics are applied as data validation. The findings illustrate that the factors of becoming an agent are related to the interaction between the pushing factors, as causes or internal motivation, and pulling factors which are external conditions that motivate, encourage or support. Moreover, there are three forms of the process of becoming an agent of the youth which are applying through online gambling websites, being swallowed up by online gambling websites, and closing the network. The recommendations to prevent the youth from entering the online gambling business are strengthening the ideological mechanisms to increase efficiency, raising costs to complicate the online gambling actors, and implementing financial measures to control the play and online gambling business of youth.