Abstract:

The purpose of this study is to determine the habits of high school and college students related to watching sports media and playing betting games. The sample of the universe is made up of a total of 554 students, randomly selected form general, Anatolian and vocational high schools and 521 students Abant Izzet Baysal University and Sakarya University in Bolu and Sakarya provinces. 42% of the high school students participating in the survey expressed that they had never played betting games whereas 38% played them sometimes and 11% played regularly. This result is striking in a country in which minors fewer than 18 are not allowed to play betting games by law. 80.4% of the university students are following the sports media. The college students who watch the sports media mostly prefer the sports news and programs on TV. 33% of the participants expressed that they sometimes played betting games whereas 9.2% played them regularly. Male college students play betting games more commonly. University and high school students with lower socio-economic parental income play these games to get some extra money.

Keywords: