responsiblegambling.vic.gov.au
July 2018
Gambling and problem gambling in Victoria
RESEARCH REPORT
Our vision: A Victoria free from gambling-related harm
© Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation, July 2018
This publication is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia licence. The licence does not apply to any images, photographs, branding or logos.
This report has been peer reviewed by two independent researchers. For further information on the foundation’s review process of research reports, please see responsiblegambling.vic.gov.au.
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DisclaimerThe opinions, findings and proposals contained in this report represent the views of the authors and do not necessarily represent the attitudes or opinions of the Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation or the State of Victoria. No warranty is given as to the accuracy of the information. The Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation specifically excludes any liability for any error or inaccuracy in, or omissions from, this document and any loss or damage that you or any other person may suffer.
To cite this reportHowe, P, Vargas-Saenz, A, Hulbert, C, Boldero, J, 2018, Gambling and problem gambling in Victoria, Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation, Melbourne
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Gambling and problem gambling in Victoria
Final report prepared by: A/Prof. Piers Howe Ms. Adriana Vargas-Saenz A/Prof. Carol Hulbert A/Prof. Jennifer Boldero Melbourne School of Psychological Sciences University of Melbourne
July, 2018
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Acknowledgements
TheresearchersgratefullyacknowledgethesupportoftheVictorianResponsible
GamblingFoundation(VRGF)whofundedthisworkviatheGrantsforGambling
ResearchProgram(Round7).WewouldalsoliketothankAssociateProfessorRichard
Bell,anHonoraryPrincipalFellowintheMelbourneSchoolofPsychologicalSciencesat
theUniversityofMelbourneforhelpfuldiscussions.Theviewsexpressedinthisreport
areentirelythoseoftheauthorsanddonotnecessarilyreflecttheviewsofA/ProfBell,
theVRGFortheDepartmentofJustice.
Finally,wewouldliketothankthepeoplewhogavetheirtimetoparticipateinour
survey.Withouttheirhelp,thisstudywouldnothavebeenpossible.
Howe,P.D.L.,Vargas‐Saenz,A.,Hulbert,C.A.&Boldero,J.M.(2018).Finalreporton
gamblingandproblemgamblinginVictoria.Melbourne,Australia:Responsible
GamblingFoundation.
TheprojectwasapprovedbytheHumanResearchEthicsCommitteeoftheUniversityof
Melbourne(HRECNo.1545085).
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A tribute to A/Prof Jennifer M. Boldero
A/ProfJenniferBolderodiedunexpectedlyonSeptember23,2017.Jenniferwasaleader
inthefieldofappliedsocialpsychologyandhadadiverserangeofinterestsincluding
thedevelopmentofproblemgambling,people’sattitudestowardsandpreparednessfor
naturaldisasters,individuals’responsestoAIDS/HIV,individuals’compliancewith
healthscreening,responsestoterrorism,psychologicaldisorders,andpoliticaldecision‐
making.Jenniferissorelymissedbyhercolleagues,students,friendsandfamily.
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Table of contents
Acknowledgements..............................................................................................................2
AtributetoA/ProfJenniferM.Boldero........................................................................3
Tableofcontents..........................................................................................................4
Tables...............................................................................................................................6
Figures.............................................................................................................................6
Executivesummary.....................................................................................................7
Purposeofreport..................................................................................................................7
Methodology...........................................................................................................................7
Majorfindings........................................................................................................................7
Chapter1–Introduction........................................................................................10
Background...........................................................................................................................10
Researchquestions............................................................................................................10
Projectscope........................................................................................................................11
Procedure..............................................................................................................................11
Structureofthereport......................................................................................................12
Chapter2–Literaturereview...............................................................................13
Introduction..........................................................................................................................13
TheprevalenceofgamblingandgamblingproblemsinVictoria......................13
FactorsthatpredictgamblingfrequencyandPGSIscore....................................14
Perceptionsofothers..................................................................................................................14
Advertising,promotionalmaterial,anddiscussinggambling...................................15
Demographicfactors...................................................................................................................15
Psychologicalfactors..................................................................................................................16
Researchissues....................................................................................................................17
Conclusions...........................................................................................................................18
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Chapter3–Pilotstudy............................................................................................19
Introduction..........................................................................................................................19
Method....................................................................................................................................19
Participants.....................................................................................................................................19
Procedure........................................................................................................................................19
Results.....................................................................................................................................20
Conclusions...........................................................................................................................20
Chapter4–SurveyofarepresentativesampleofVictorianadults........21
Introduction..........................................................................................................................21
Participants...........................................................................................................................21
Measures................................................................................................................................22
Demographiccharacteristics...................................................................................................22
Gamblingfrequency....................................................................................................................22
Approvalofgambling.................................................................................................................22
Advertisements,promotionalmaterials,andgambling‐relateddiscussions......23
Psychologicalfactorsanderroneousgamblingcognitions.........................................23
Results.....................................................................................................................................25
TheprevalenceofgamblingandproblemgamblinginVictoria...............................25
Thefactorsthatpredictgamblingandproblemgambling.........................................31
Chapter5–Discussionandconclusions...........................................................43
Introduction..........................................................................................................................43
TheprevalenceofgamblingandproblemgamblinginVictoria........................43
Thefactorsthatpredictgamblingfrequency...........................................................45
ThefactorsthatpredictPGSIscore..............................................................................47
Implicationsforpolicyandinterventions.................................................................48
Problemgamblingismoreprevalentthanpreviouslyreported..............................48
Problemgamblingismainlypredictedbyjustfivefactors........................................49
Gamblingfrequency....................................................................................................................49
Limitations............................................................................................................................50
Conclusionsandrecommendationsforfutureresearch......................................51
References...................................................................................................................53
AppendixA..................................................................................................................57
AppendixB..................................................................................................................58
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Tables
Table1:Prevalenceofgambling.............................................................................................................26
Table2:Correlationanalysisforgamblingparticipationrates..................................................32
Table3:Regressionanalysistopredictgamblingparticipationrates....................................34
Table4:Standardisedregressioncoefficientsforgamblingparticipationrates................35
Table5:CorrelationanalysisforPGSIscore......................................................................................40
Table6:StepwiseregressiontopredictPGSIscore........................................................................41
Figures
Figure1:Gamblingbyage..........................................................................................................................27
Figure2:Gamblingbygender..................................................................................................................28
Figure3:Gambling,2016vs2010..........................................................................................................29
Figure4:PGSIbyageandseverity.........................................................................................................30
Figure5:Perceivedparticipationingambling..................................................................................37
Figure6:Approvalofgambling...............................................................................................................38
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Executive summary
Purpose of report
Thisreportpresentsthefindingsofastudythatexaminedtheprevalenceofgambling
andproblemgamblinginVictoria,howthesevarywithageandgenderandhowthese
haveevolvedfrom2010to2016.Thereportalsoinvestigateswhichfactorspredictan
individual’sgamblingfrequencyforeachof12gamblingactivitiesandwhichfactors
predictanindividual’sPGSIscore.Basedonthesefindings,suggestionsaremadeasto
howgambling‐relatedharmcouldbereduced.
Methodology
In June and July 2016, a representative sample of 3361 adult Victorians, aged 18 to 88 years,
were recruited by an online survey company, The Online Research Unit. Participants
completed an online survey in which they indicated their age, their gender, their country of
birth, the language spoken at home, their relationship status, where they lived, how often they
participated in each of 12 different types of gambling, to what degree they perceived others to
participate and approve of these 12 types of gambling, how often they saw gambling
advertisements, and how often they discussed gambling, both online and offline. They
additionally completed questionnaires to assess whether they were depressed, suffered from
low esteem, had high positive urgency, overestimated their chances of winning, believed
themselves to be lucky and had problems with gambling. The 12 different types of gambling
investigated in our survey were: Lottery tickets, Instant scratch tickets, Raffle or fund-raising
tickets, Betting on animal races, Sports betting, Gaming tables at casinos, Poker machines at
casinos, Poker machines at other venues, Card or board games, Games of skill, Arcade or
video gaming, and Internet gambling.
Major findings
GamblingishighlyprevalentinVictoria,moresothanpreviouslyacknowledged:
Approximately95%ofadultVictorianshadgambledinthepreviousyear
ApproximatelyhalfofadultVictorianshaveparticipatedmorethansixtimesin
atleastonegamblingactivityinthepreviousyear
Self‐reportedgamblingfrequencyvariesasafunctionofage,butdifferentlyfor
differenttypesofgamblingactivity:
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GamblingparticipationratesincreasedwithageforLotterytickets,Raffleor
fund‐raisingticketsandPokermachinesatothervenues
Foradults25yearsandolder,gamblingparticipationdecreasedwithagefor
Sportsbetting,Gamingtablesatcasinos,Pokermachinesatcasinos,Cardorboard
games,Gamesofskill,ArcadeorvideogamingandInternetgambling
ForInstantscratchcards,participationratespeakedatthe25‐34yearoldage
category,butotherwisewereapproximatelyconstant
ForBettingonanimalraces,participationratespeakedatthe45‐54yearoldage
category,butotherwisewereapproximatelyconstant
Formostactivities,malesgambledmorethanfemales:
MalesgambledmorethanfemalesforLotterytickets,Bettingonanimalraces,
Sportsbetting,Gamingtablesatcasinos,Pokermachinesatcasinos,Cardorboard
games,Gamesofskill,Arcadeorvideogames,andInternetgambling
FemalesgambledmorethanmalesforRaffleorfund‐raisingtickets
GamblingrateswereapproximatelythesameformalesandfemalesforInstant
scratchticketsandPokermachinesatothervenues
Gamblingprevalencegenerallyincreasedfrom2010to2016:
Gamblingwasmoreprevalentin2016thanin2010forLottery tickets, Instant
scratch tickets, Raffle or fund-raising tickets, Sports betting, Card or board games,
Games of skill, Arcade or video gaming, and Internet gambling
Gambling was approximately the same in 2016 compared to 2010 for the following
activities: Betting on animal races, Gaming tables at casinos, Poker machines at
casinos, Poker machines at other venues
For no gambling activity was the frequency of gambling less in 2016 compared to
2010
Theprevalenceofhigh‐riskproblemgamblingisgreaterthanpreviouslythought:
Theprevalenceofhigh‐riskproblemgamblingvarieswithageandpeaksforthe
25‐34yearoldagegroupforwhichtheprevalencerateis23%
Averagedacrossallagegroups,theprevalencerateis11%
Thisisalittlehigherthanwhatwefoundin2010(8%)andmuchhigherthan
reportedbyHare(2015),whoreportedaprevalencerateof.8%
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Predictorsofgamblingfrequencydependonthetypeofgambling,butthemost
reliablepredictorswere:
Thefrequencyofgamblingbyfamilyandpeers
Self‐reportedapprovalofgambling
Perceivedapprovalofgamblingbypeersandpeopleingeneral
Receivingpromotionalmaterials
Discussinggamblingoffline
Age
Gender
Overestimatingchancesofwinning
PGSI
Individualsoverestimatehowmuchothersgambleandapproveofgambling:
Individualsoverestimatetheextenttowhichothersgamble,withthe
overestimatebeingthemostextremeforthe“peopleingeneral”category
Similarly,theyoverestimatethedegreetowhich“peopleingeneral”approveof
gambling
Thetopfivepredictorsofanindividual’sPGSIscorewere:
Theirpositiveurgencyscore
Theirfrequencyofplayingpokermachinesatpubs,hotelsorsportingclubs
Theirfrequencyofdiscussingonlinebettingongamingtablesatcasinos
Theirfrequencyofgamblingontheinternet
Thedegreetowhichtheyoverestimatethechancesofwinning
Togetherthesefivefactorsaccountedfor91%oftheexplainablevariance
Basedonthesefindings,anumberofsuggestionsweremadetoreducegambling‐related
harm.
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Chapter 1 – Introduction
Background
ThisstudywasfundedbytheGrantsforGamblingResearchProgram(Round7)ofthe
VictorianResponsibleGamblingFoundation(VRGF).Thisgrantsystemwasestablished
in2006bytheVictorianDepartmentofJusticeandRegulationwiththeaimof
encouragingresearchersfromavarietyofdisciplinestoundertakeappliedgambling
research.
Thisprojectwasdesignedtocontributetothethemeof‘changinggambling
environments’establishedbytheVRGF’s2015‐18ResearchAgenda.Bothasmallpilot
studyandalarge‐scalestudywereconducted,bothofwhichfocusedsolelyonVictoria.
Forthelarge‐scalestudy,asampleof3361individualsweresurveyedtodeterminethe
prevalenceofgamblingandproblemgamblinginVictoria.Asubsetoftheseresultswas
alsocomparedtothoseofour2010surveythatalsofocusedsolelyontheVictorian
population.Asthe2010surveyconsideredonly18to24yearolds,thecomparisons
betweenthetwosurveyswereconfinedtothatagegroup.Finally,weinvestigated
whichfactorspredictanindividual’sgamblingfrequencyforeachof12gambling
activitiesandtheindividual’sproblemgamblingseverityindex(PGSI)score.Ourwork
providesinsightintohowgamblinginVictoriacontinuestoevolveandindicateswhich
practicalinterventionsaremostlikelytoreducegambling‐relatedharm.
Research questions
Theaimofthisresearchprojectwastoanswerthefollowingthreeresearchquestions:
WhatwastheprevalenceofgamblingandproblemgamblinginVictoriain2016
andhowdoesthiscompareto2010?
Whichfactorspredictanindividual’sgamblingfrequencyforeachof12
gamblingactivitiesandwhichfactorpredictanindividual’sPGSIscore?
Howcangambling‐relatedharmbereduced?
Inansweringthefirstquestion,weconsideredhowageandgenderaffectparticipation
ratesforeachof12typesofgambling.Wechosetostudytheseparticulargambling
activitiesastheyweretheonesthatwestudiedin2010,therebyallowingustocompare
our2016datatoour2010data.
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HavingobtainedaclearunderstandingofthestateofgamblinginVictoriain2016,we
thenaskedwhichfactorspredictanindividual’sgamblingfrequencyforeachofthese12
gamblingactivitiesandtheindividual’sPGSIscore.Wewereinterestedinbothissues
because,asdiscussedinourliteraturereview,gambling‐relatedharmdoesn’tjuststem
fromproblemgambling.Infact,themajorityofgambling‐relatedharmoriginatesfrom
peopleatlowormoderateriskofproblemgambling,soitwouldbebeneficialtoreduce
gamblingparticipationratesfornon‐problemgamblers.Usingtheinformationwehad
obtaininourresearch,wethenmadepracticalrecommendationsforreducing
gambling‐relatedharm.
Project scope
Inthisproject,weconfinedourattentiontoadultgamblersagedfrom18to88inthe
stateofVictoria.Further,welimitourfocusto12specificformsofgambling.These
gamblingactivitieswere:
Lotterytickets
Instantscratchtickets
Raffleorfund‐raisingtickets
Bettingonanimalraces
Sportsbetting
Gamingtablesatcasinos
Pokermachinesatcasinos
Pokermachinesatothervenues
Cardsorboardgames
Gamesofskill
Arcadeorvideogaming
Internetgambling
Procedure
Wefirstundertookasystematicreviewofthegamblingresearchliteraturetofirst
determinewhatisknownabouttheprevalenceofgamblingandproblemgamblingin
Victoria.Wesurveyedtheliteraturetodeterminewhichfactorswerelikelytopredictan
individual’sgamblingfrequencyandPGSIscore.Basedonthisliteraturereview,we
decidedtoassessthefollowingfactorsinoursurvey:age,gender,countryofbirth,
languagespokenathome,relationshipstatus,whereourparticipantslived,howoften
theyparticipatedineachofthe12differenttypesofgambling,towhatdegreethey
approvedofeachofthe12differenttypesofgambling,towhatdegreetheyperceived
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otherstoparticipateandapproveofthese12typesofgambling,howoftentheysaw
gamblingadvertisements,howoftentheirreceivedpromotionalmaterialforgambling,
andhowoftentheydiscussedeachofthe12typesofgambling,bothonlineandoffline.
Additionally,weincludedpsychologicalmeasurestoassessthedegreetowhichthey
weredepressed,sufferedfromlowesteem,hadhighpositiveurgency,overestimated
theirchancesofwinning,believedthemselvestobeluckyandhadproblemswith
gambling.
Twostudieswereundertaken.Thefirst,apilotstudy,wasconductedusing53first‐year
Universitystudents.Thisstudywasperformedtodeterminewhetherthesurveywasan
appropriatelengthandtouncoveranydifficultiesorpotentialmisunderstandingswith
thesurveyitems.Accordingly,theparticipantsdiscussedthequestionswiththe
researchassistantaftertheyhadcompletedthestudy.Thesecondstudywasconducted
withalargesampleofVictorians.Toaccessthissample,whodonotnecessarilyhave
accesstoalandline,thesurveywasconductedonline.Participantswererecruitedbya
surveycompany,TheOnlineResearchUnit(ORU),whoguaranteedthattheparticipants
wererepresentativeofthegeneralpopulationintermsofthedistributionsoftheirages,
gendersandlocations.Finally,toensurethatwecouldreliablycomparethecurrent
project’sdatatothatobtainedinourpreviousstudy,thesurveywasconductedinthe
samemonthsastheprevioussurvey(JuneandJuly)sincesomeformsofgamblingshow
seasonalvariations.
Structure of the report
Thisreporthasfivechapters.Thisintroductorychapterhasprovidedthebackgroundto
theproject,includingitsaims,scopeandgeneralprocedure.Chapter2reviewsthe
Australianandinternationalliteratureexaminingtheprevalenceofgamblingand
problemgambling.Italsoexaminedthefactorsbelievedtopredictgamblingfrequency
andPGSIscore.Chapter3presentstheresultsfromthepilotstudyandChapter4
presentstheresultsfromourlarge‐scalesurveyofVictorianadults.Finally,Chapter5
discussestheresultsofthelarge‐scalesurveyandconcludesthereport.
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Chapter 2 – Literature review
Introduction
Aspartofthisresearchproject,wereviewedboththeAustralianandtheinternational
literatureongambling.Wefirstexaminedtheprevalenceofgamblingandgambling
problemsinVictoria.Wethenreviewedthefactorsthatpredictgamblingfrequencyand
PGSIscore.Inparticular,wefocusedonperceptionsofhowfrequentlyothersgamble
andapproveofgambling,theeffectsofadvertisements,promotionalmaterials,and
gamblingdiscussions,variousdemographicfactorsandvariouspsychologicalfactors.
Finally,wediscussedsomeissuesthatneedtobeconsideredwhenresearching
gambling.
The prevalence of gambling and gambling problems in Victoria
Apriori,onemightexpectthatanincreaseintheavailabilityofgamblingopportunities
wouldleadtogreaterparticipationingambling.Indeed,thisappearstobethecasein
Italy,wheretheliberalizationofgamblinghasledtoasignificantincreaseintheamount
ofmoneyspentongamblingactivities(Bastianietal.,2013).However,increasesinthe
availabilityofgamblinginVictoriahavebeenreportednottohaveledtomore
Victoriansgamblingortoanincreaseinproblemgambling(Abbottetal.,2016;VRGF,
2016).Indeed,participationingamblingbyVictoriansisthoughttohavedecreased
between2008and2012(Abbottetal.,2016)anditiscurrentlyestimatedthat30%of
thepopulationdonotgambleatall(VRGF,2016).Ithasbeenreported,however,that
therehasbeenachangeintherelativepopularityofthedifferenttypesofgambling
activities.Inparticular,hotelsandpubshavenowbecomethemostcommonlocationfor
gamblinginVictoria(Hare,2015).Giventhatgamblingratesareapparentlyeither
decreasingorstayingapproximatelyconstant,wewouldexpecttheprevalenceof
gamblinginour2016surveytobeeitherthesameorlessthanthatreportedbythe
VRGF(2016),asthatreportwasbasedonasurveyconductedin2014(Hare,2015).
Turningourattentiontoproblemgambling,wenotethatourpreviousstudyfound8%
ofVictorianstobeproblemgamblers(Boldero&Bell,2012a).Abbottetal.(2016)
reportasomewhatlowerprevalenceestimateof2.2%forproblemgamblers,
standardisedtocompensateforthemethodologicaldifferencesintheirsurvey.
Strangely,Hare(2015)reportedthatonly.8%ofindividualsinVictoriaareproblem
gamblers.
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Gamblingproblemsleadtosocial,financialand/orpsychologicalharmtotheindividual,
theirfamilyandfriendsalongwithsociety(Delfabbro,2012;Ferris&Wynne,2001;
Neal,Delfabbro&O’Neil,2005;Scholes‐Balog&Dowling,2017).However,those
classifiedasproblemgamblersarenotaloneinexperiencingharmfromgambling;those
classifiedasnotreachingthecriteriaforproblemgamblingalsoexperienceharm.For
example,Browneetal.(2016)foundthatlow‐risk,moderate‐risk,andproblem
gamblingaccountedfor50%,34%,and15%ofthetotalgambling‐relatedharm
experiencedbyVictorians.Forthisreason,thisreportwillfocusnotjustonthe
prevalenceofproblemgambling,butalsoonoverallgamblingparticipationrates.
Factors that predict gambling frequency and PGSI score
ThereareanumberoffactorsthatlikelypredictgamblingfrequencyandPGSIscore.We
willnowconsiderthesefactorsinturnandinthiswayjustifythecompositionofour
survey.
Perceptions of others
Itisknownthatanindividual’sgamblingfrequencyandtheprobabilitythattheyhave
gamblingproblemsarecorrelatedwithnotjustthedegreetowhichtheypersonally
approveofgambling(Bastianietal.,2013)butalsowiththedegreetowhichthey
believeothersgambleandapproveofgambling.Specifically,iftheybelievethatother
peoplegamblefrequentlyandapproveofgambling,theyaremorelikelytogambleand
aremorelikelytohavegamblingproblems(Boldero&Bell,2012b;Boldero,Bell&
Moore,2010;Delfabbro&Thrupp,2003;Fortuneetal.,2013;Larrimer&Neighbors,
2003;Moore&Ohtsuka,1999;Neighbors,etal.,2007;Pittetal.,2017).Despitethis
bodyofresearch,itisuncleartowhatextenttheperceptionsofhowfrequentlyothers
gambleandapproveofgamblingaffectsgamblingfrequencyandproblemgambling
relativetootherpotentialfactors.Inparticular,theseeffectsmightberelativelyminor
comparedtotheeffectscausedbyotherfactorsthatarealsoknowntoinfluence
gamblinghabits.Asecondconcernisthatitisnotclearwhoseopinionsandactions
matters.Forexample,itcouldbethatindividualsareonlyinfluencedbywhattheir
familyandpeersdoandbelieve.Alternatively,itmightbethattheyarealsoinfluenced
bywhatpeoplenotassociatedwiththemdoandbelieve.Asthepreviousliteraturehas
notsystematicallyinvestigatedeitheroftheseissues,addressingtheseissueswasoneof
theaimsofthecurrentstudy.
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Advertising, promotional material, and discussing gambling
MonaghanandDerevensky(2008)arguedthatgamblingisoftenportrayedinaccurately
inthemedia.Inparticular,theeffectsofproblemgamblingarerarelyportrayedandfew
portrayalsofresponsiblegamblingareshown.(Foradiscussionofwhatmight
constituteresponsiblegambling,pleaseseeHing,Russell,andHronis(2016)).Likewise,
Derevensky,Sklar,Gupta,andMesserlian(2010)reportedthatgamblingadvertisements
portraygamblinginaninaccuratelypositivemanner,associatingitwithfun,excitement,
highsuccess,wealth,relieffromfinancialproblems,andescapefromreality.Deans,
Thomas,Derevenksy,andDaube(2017)reportedthattheirparticipantsfeltthatthe
sheervolumeofsportsbettingadvertisementsnormalisedsportsbettingandwas
effectiveatencouragingthemtobetonsports(seealsoLindsayetal.,2013).Indeed,the
volumeofsportsgamblingadvertisementsissuchthatevenchildrencanrecallthe
namesofsportsbettingbrands(Bestmanetal.,2015;Thomasetal.,2016).Additionally,
therearetypicallyveryfewvisibleoraudiblemessagesthataimtocounter‐framethe
overwhelminglypro‐gamblingmessage(Thomas,Lewis,Duong,McLeod,2012).Lee,
Lemanski,andJun(2008)foundexposuretogamblinginthemedialedtopositive
attitudestowardgamblingwhich,inturn,ledtostrongergamblingintentions.Likewise,
Pitt,ThomasandBestman(2016)reportthatmarketingmessagesareeffectiveatgiving
theimpressionthatgamblingisanintegralpartofthesportingexperience.
Unsurprisingly,exposuretogamblingadvertisementswasfoundtoaffectgambling
behaviourof16to19year‐olds(Friedetal.,2010)andisrelatedtothefrequencyof
gamblingofadolescentsandyoungadults(Clemens,Hanewinkel&Morgenstern,2017;
Felsheretal.,2004).Gamblingprovidersalsomakeextensiveuseofsocialmedia
(Gainsburyetal.,2015)andsocialmediacampaignsagainstgamblingaredrownedout
bypro‐gamblingcampaigns(Thomas,Lewis&Westberg,2015).Insummary,basedon
thisliterature,onewouldexpectthatadvertisements,receivingpromotionalmaterial
anddiscussinggamblingshouldincreasebothgamblingfrequencyandproblem
gambling.Consequently,weincludedthesefactorsinoursurvey.
Demographic factors
Gamblingparticipationandproblemgamblingincreasewithage,reachesarelatively
highlevelwhenindividualsareintheir20sand30s,andthendecreaseacrossthe
lifespan(Delfabbro,Lahn&Grabosky,2005;Delfabbro,Winefield&Anderson,2009;
Welteetal.,2011).Genderisalsoknowntoinfluencegambling,withmalesbeingmore
likelythanfemalestogamble(Abbottetal.,2016;Boldero&Bell,2012b;Bolderoetal.,
2010;Delfabbroetal.,2005,2009;Fried,Teichman&Rahav,2010;Goldsteinetal.,
2009;Jacksonetal.,2008;Martinsetal.,2008).Additionally,malesreportmore
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gamblingproblemsthanfemales(Chiu&Storm,2010;Clark&Walker,2009;
Derevenskyetal.,2010;Dickson,Derevensky&Gupta,2008;Friedetal.,2010;King,
Abrams&Wilkinson,2010;Moldeetal.,2009;Parkeretal.,2008;Turneretal.,2008)
andaremorelikelytobeproblemgamblers(Huang&Boyer,2007;Leeetal.,2011;
Molde,etal.,2009;Scholes‐Balogetal.,2014).Finally,studiesthathavedifferentiated
betweenskill‐based(e.g.poker,cardgames)orchance‐based(e.g.,bingo,lotto)
activitieshavefoundthatmalespreferskill‐basedoneswhereasfemalesprefer
chanced‐basedones(Gausset&Jansbøl,2009),thoughAasved(2003)foundthatmales
andfemalesareequallylikelytoplaypokermachinesinbothcasinosandothervenues.
Femalesaremorelikelytoparticipateinscratchtickets,bingo,phone/SMScompetitions
andinraffles/sweeps(Hingetal.,2014).IndividualswhowerenotborninAustralia,
individualswhospeakalanguageotherthanEnglishathome,andindividualswholive
inmetropolitanversusruralareasaremorelikelytobeproblemgamblers(Abbottetal.,
2016).Finally,giventhestrainthatproblemgamblingplacesonrelationships(Ferris&
Wynne,2001),weexpectedproblemgamblerswouldbelesslikelytobeina
relationship.Consequently,inoursurveyweincludedthedemographicfactorsofage,
gender,countryofbirth,languagespokenathome,relationshipstatusandlocationof
residence.
Psychological factors
Morefrequentgamblingisrelatedtodepression(Chiu&Storm,2010;Desai&Potenza,
2008;Griffiths,1995)and,comparedtothosewhoarenotproblemgamblers,problem
gamblersreporthigherlevelsofdepression(Moldeetal.,2009butseeScholes‐Baloget
al,2015).Similarly,self‐esteemtendstobelowerinindividualswhoareproblem
gamblersthanthosewhoarenotproblemgamblers(Potenzaetal.,2011).Indeed,itis
thoughtthatlowlevelsofesteemresultinincreasedgambling(Rockloff&Dyer,2006).
Sensationseekingandimpulsivityareassociatedwithmorefrequentgambling
(McDaniel&Zuckerman,2003)andgamblingproblems(Chiu&Storm,2010;Dussault
etal.,2011).CydersandSmith(2008a)foundthatthetendencytoactrashlywhenina
positivemood(i.e.,positiveurgency)wasassociatedwithlongitudinalincreasesin
students’gamblingbehaviourduringthefreshmanyearwhereasthetendencytoact
rashlywhenupset(i.e.,negativeurgency)wasnot.
Youngpeoplewhoareproblemgamblersbelievethattheyare“luckier”thannon‐
problemgamblers(Chiu&Storm,2010)andstudents’morefrequentgamblingis
associatedwithhavingmoreinaccurateorerroneousgamblingcognitions(Moodie,
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2008),suchasbelievingthatthatonecaninfluencegamblingoutcomes.Steenbergh,
Meyers,MayandWhelan(2002)foundthatoverestimatingone’schancesofwinningat
gambling,afactortheylabelledluck/perseverance,andhavingillusionsofcontrolover
gamblingoutcomesdifferentiatedcollegestudentsandcommunitymemberswho
gamblefromthosewhodonot,butnotbetweenpathologicalandproblemgamblers
(i.e.,thosewhogamblecompulsivelyandthosewhoexperienceproblemsasaresultof
theirgambling;Blaszczynski&Nower,2002).
Takentogether,theresultsofthesestudiessuggestthatpeoplearemorelikelyto
gambleiftheyhavehigherlevelsofdepression,lowerlevelsofesteem,havehigher
levelsofpositiveurgency,over‐estimatetheirchancesofwinningandhaveinaccurate
orerroneousgamblingcognitions.Consequently,weincludedallthesefactorsinour
survey.
Research issues
Someresearchershavespeculatedthatparticipatinginspecificgamblingactivities(e.g.,
scratchcards,ElectronicGamingMachines[EMGs],andinternetgambling)aremore
problematicthanparticipatinginotheractivities(Binde,2011;Griffiths,2002;Griffiths,
2008;ProductivityCommission,2009).Forexample,Olasonetal.(2011)foundthatthe
prevalenceofproblemgamblingtendedtobemuchhigheramonginternetgamblers
thannon‐internetgamblers.Thegamblingactivitiesthataremorelikelytoleadto
problemgamblingseemtodifferbetweencountries(Welte,Barnes,Tidwell&Hoffman,
2009).Forexample,inBritainandNewZealandscratchcardandEGMgamblingare
morelikelytoleadtoproblemgambling(Clarke&Rossen,2000;Griffiths,1995a;Wood
&Griffiths,1998)whereasintheUnitedStatesitisbettingoncardgames,sportsevents,
andgamesofskillthatappeartobemorelikelytoleadtoproblemgambling(Engwall,
Hunter&Steinberg,2004;Welte,Barnes,Tidwell&Hoffman,2007;Winters,Stinchfield
&Fulkerson,1993).Itis,therefore,necessarytodistinguishbetweenthedifferent
gamblingactivitieswhenconsideringgamblingfrequencyandproblemgambling.
Onedifficultywefacedisthatindividualsparticipateinmorethanoneactivityand
patternsofgamblingparticipationarerelativelycomplex.Weaddressedthisissueby
firstconsideringeachactivityalone,inisolationfromtheothers.Thisallowedusto
determinewhichfactorspredictparticipationineachgamblingactivity.Wethen
combineddatafrommultiplegamblingactivitiestopredictPGSIscore.
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Conclusions
Ourreviewoftheliteraturesuggeststhatgamblingfrequencyandproblemgamblingare
bothlikelytobeassociatedwiththedegreetowhichanindividual’sfamilyandpeers,as
wellaspeopleingeneral,areperceivedtobothparticipateingamblingandtoapprove
ofgambling.Further,itislikelythatseeingadvertisementsandreceivingpromotional
materialsforgamblingactivities,alongwithdiscussingtheseactivitiesonlineand
offline,willinfluencegamblingfrequencyandPGSIscore.However,alongsidethese
socialandbehaviouralfactors,otherfactorsarealsolikelytoberelevant.Thesefactors
includedemographiccharacteristicssuchasage,gender,countryofbirth,language
spokenathome,relationshipstatusandlocation.Inaddition,psychologicalfactors,such
asdepressionandlowesteem,alongwiththetendencytobehaverashlywheninagood
mood(positiveurgency),alongwithdistortedgamblingcognitionssuchas
overestimatingthechancesofwinningandbelievingthatonecaninfluenceone’s
chances,arelikelytoinfluencegamblingbehaviours.Ourstudywasdesignedto
investigatetherelativecontributionsofalltheseseparatefactorstobothgambling
frequencyandPGSIscore.Sincethesefactorshadpreviouslybeenstudiedinisolation,
wehadlittleideaoftheirrelativeimportance.Onlybystudyingthemalltogether,could
thisbeassessed.
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Chapter 3 – Pilot study
Introduction
Ourresearchstrategywastofirstcarryoutapilotstudy,usingasmallsampleof
universitystudents.Thepurposeofthispilotstudywastodetermineiftherewereany
problemsormisunderstandingswithanyofoursurveyitemsandifoursurveywasan
appropriatelength.Oursurveycompany,theOnlineResearchUnit(ORU),hadinformed
usthatifoursurveyweretotakelongerthan20minutes,itwouldlikelyhavean
unacceptablyhighdrop‐outrate.Wewerethereforekeentoensurethatoursurveytook
themajorityofparticipantslessthan20minutestocompletewhilesimultaneously
ensuringthatallitsitemswerereadilycomprehensible.
Method
Participants
Fifty‐threeundergraduatestudentswererecruited,butonedroppedoutbefore
completingthesurvey,soisnotincludedinouranalysis.Oftheremainingparticipants,
21weremales(40%)andallwereagedbetween18and29years(meanage19.52
years,SD=2.53).Participantswepaid$12tocompensatethemfortheirtime.
Procedure
TheparticipantswerepresentedwithoursurveyusingtheQualtricsonlinesurvey
platform.ThesurveyquestionsarelistedinAppendixBandarediscussedinmoredetail
inthenextchapter.Inbrief,theyassessedtheperceptionsofhowoftenothersgamble
andapproveofgambling,theextenttowhichparticipantshadseenadvertisementsor
hadreceivedpromotionalmaterialforeachofthe12formsofgambling,theextentto
whichparticipantsdiscussedthesegamblingactivitiesonlineandofflineinthepast
year,theextenttowhichparticipantshadengagedinthesegamblingactivitiesinthe
pastyear,variouspsychologicalfactors,variousdemographiccharacteristics,and
gamblingproblems.Oncetheparticipantshadcompletedthesurvey,theythen
discussedthequestionswiththeresearchassistant.Thesediscussionsweredesignedto
uncoveranydifficultiesorpotentialmisunderstandingswiththesurveyitems.The
surveydataitselfwasnotanalysed
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Results
Ofthe52studentswhocompletedourpilotstudy,onlythree(6%)indicatedany
difficultieswiththesurveyquestions.Thesestudentscommented:
“IfindthatitissometimeshardtoprovideanaccurateresponseforwhatIperceivethe
generalpeoplethinkofgamblinganditissometimesdifficultformetorecallactivities
thatIhaveengagedwith6to12monthsago.”
“ThequestionsabouthowoftenIthoughtthegeneralpublicgambledetc.wereabit
difficultasIfoundithardtoconsiderwhatwasmeantbythegeneralpublic,andI
supposeIdon'tknowthatmuchaboutgamblinghabitsofAustraliaoverall.Thequestion
thataskedmetoanswerquestionsasagambler:Iwasunsureifitmeanttoanswer
themaswhatIperceivedofmostgamblers(Iansweredlikethis),orthatIshould
answerthemasifhowIwouldviewthemifIpersonallygambled.”
“Ifoundthewordingofthequestionsaboutrespondingtostatementsasthoughyou
wereagambleralittleconfusing.”
Accordingly,giventhat94%ofthestudentsamplehadnodifficultieswithquestions,we
didnotchangeanyoftheitemsforthemainstudy.Further,almostall(92%)
individualscompletedthesurveyinunder20minutes,withamediantimeof11.4
minutes.
Conclusions
Theresultsofthispilotstudyindicatedthatoursurveyquestionswerecomprehensible
andwereappropriateforuseinourlargerfieldstudy.Further,mostparticipants
completeditinunder20minutes,soitsatisfiedtherequirementsofourrecruitment
company,theORU.
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Chapter 4 – Survey of a representative sample of
Victorian adults
Introduction
ThischapterpresentstheresultsofasurveyofarepresentativesampleofVictorian
adultsthatwasdesignedtoaddressourresearchquestions.Westartbydetailingour
methodology.Wethendiscusstheprevalenceofgamblingandgambling‐related
problems.Specifically,wediscusshowitvariesasafunctionofageandgender,aswell
ashowithasevolvedfrom2010to2016.Weconcludebydiscussingwhichfactors
predictgamblingandgambling‐relatedproblems.
Participants
OurparticipantswererecruitedbyTheOnlineResearchUnit(ORU).TheORUisan
AustralianresearchcompanyandiscertifiedbytheInternationalOrganizationfor
Standardization(ISO20252andISO26362).TheORUmaintainsapanelofindividuals
whohaveagreedtoparticipateinsurveyssenttothem.Participationiscompletely
voluntaryandparticipantscanwithdrawatanytimewithoutcostorpenalty.Amixof
incentivesincludingvouchersandcharitabledonationsofsmallvalueisprovidedto
participantsviatheORU.
OftheindividualscontactedbytheORUinJuneorJuly2016,3361agreedtoparticipate.
Whenrecruitingparticipants,theORUattemptedtomatchoursampleforage,sexand
location(Melbournevsregional)tothegeneralVictorianpopulationasdeterminedby
thedemographicdatasuppliedbythe2011AustralianBureauofStatistics(ABS)survey.
(Thedatafromthe2016ABSsurveyhadnotyetbeenreleased.)AppendixAcompares
thedemographicsofoursampletothedemographicsobtainedinthe2011ABSsurvey.
Onethousandsixhundredandeightparticipants(48%)weremaleand1743(52%)
werefemale.Participantsrangedinagefrom18to88years(meanage=46.7,SD=
16.7).Twothousandthreehundredandseventy‐five(71%)livedinthemetropolitan
areaofMelbourne,and986(29%)livedinnon‐metropolitanVictoria,reflectingthe
Victorianbiastowardthemetropolitanarea.Themajorityofparticipantsreportedthat
theywereborninAustralia(77%)andwereinarelationship(62%).Finally,94%
reportedthatthelanguagetheyspokeathomewasEnglish.
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Measures
Demographic characteristics
Participantswereaskedtoprovideinformationabouttheirage,sex,countryofbirth,
relationshipstatus,themainlanguagetheyspokeathomeandthepostcodeoftheir
residence.
Gambling frequency
Participantswereaskedtoindicatewhethertheyhadparticipatedin12commonly‐
availablegamblingactivitiesduringthepastyear,specifically:Lottery tickets, Instant
scratch tickets, Raffle or fund-raising tickets, Betting on animal races, Sports betting, Gaming
tables at casinos, Poker machines at casinos, Poker machines at other venues, Card or board
games, Games of skill, Arcade or video gaming, and Internet gambling.These12gambling
activitieswerechosenastheyhavebeenassessedinourpreviousstudy(Boldero&Bell,
2012b).Theseactivitieswerenotspecificallydefinedbutexamplesofeachwere
provided(e.g.,poolanddartsinthecaseofgamesofskill).
Ifparticipantsindicatedthattheyhadparticipatedinanyoftheseactivities,theywere
thenaskedtoindicatewhethertheyhadparticipatedmoreorlessthansixtimes.We
wereconcernedthattheresponsesofparticipantsmightbebiasedbythefrequency
optionspresentedtothem.Consequently,weusedthesamefrequencyoptionsaswe
hadusedinourpreviousstudy(Boldero&Bell,2012b),tofacilitatecomparisons
betweenthesetwostudies.
Inaddition,participantswereaskedtoindicatewhethertheybelievedthattheirfamily,
peers,andpeopleingeneralhadparticipatedineachofthe12activitiesinthepastyear,
andiftheybelievedtheyhad,whethertheybelievedthiswasmoreorlessthansix
times.Weaskedthemtoanswerthisquestionasiftheywereagambler.Wephrased
thesequestionsinthismannerasthiswasthemannerinwhichBolderoandBell
(2012b)phrasedtheirquestions,therebyallowingustocompareourresultstotheirs.
Approval of gambling
Participantswereaskedtoindicatetheextenttowhichtheyapprove,on5‐pointLikert
scalesfromstronglydisapprove(1)tostronglyapprove(5),ofeachofthe12gambling
activitiessurveyed.Theyalsoindicatedtheextentstowhichtheybelievedthattheir
family,theirpeers,andgeneralpopulationseparatelyapproveofgamblingonthese12
gamblingactivities.
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Advertisements, promotional materials, and gambling‐related discussions
Participantswereaskedtoindicatewhethertheyhadseenadvertisementsforeachof
the12gamblingactivitiesofinterestandwhethertheyhadreceivedanypromotional
material(e.g.,a‘flyer’inthemail)inthepastyear.Iftheyindicatedthattheyhadseen
advertisementsorreceivedpromotionalmaterial,theywereaskedwhetherornotthis
occurredmoreorlessthansixtimesinthepastyear.Participantswerealsoasked
whethertheyhaddiscussedanyofthe12gamblingactivitieseitheronline(e.g.,via
Facebook,Twitter,orInstagram)oroffline(e.g.,inpersonwithanotherindividualoron
thetelephone)inthepastyear.Iftheyhad,theywereaskedtoestimateforeach
gamblingactivitywhetherthisoccurredmoreorlessthansixtimes.
Psychological factors and erroneous gambling cognitions
Inoursurveyweneededtoassessvariouspsychologicalfactorsanderroneous
gamblingcognitions.Toavoidthesurveybecomingoverlylong,weusedtheshorter
versionsofthesescalesthatwedevelopedinourpreviousstudy(Boldero&Bell,
2012b).Accordingly,eachscalecontainedonlyfouritemsexceptforthePGSIscale
whereweusedthestandard9items(Ferris&Wynne,2001).
Depression
Participantswereaskedtoindicatetheextenttowhichtheyagreed,on5‐pointLikert
scalesfromrarelyornoneofthetime(1)toalwaysormostofthetime(5),thattheyfelt
lonely,thattheyfeltsad,thattheyfeltdepressedandthattheycouldnotshakeoffthe
bluesevenwiththehelpoffamilyandfriends.Thesefouritemswereobtainedfromthe
CenterforEpidemiologicStudiesDepressionScale(Radloff,1977).Thescaleassessed
bytheseitemshadadequateinternalconsistency,Cronbach’sα=.92.
Low esteem
ThesurveyusedfouritemsfromRockloffandDyer’s(2006)lowesteemscale,
developedusingresponsesfromafocusgroupofGamblersAnonymousmembers.
Participantsindicatedtheextenttowhichtheyagreed,on5‐pointLikertscalesfrom
rarelyornoneofthetime(1)toalwaysormostofthetime(5),thattheyareoften
incompetent,thattheyfeelcompletelyworthless,thattheyaremiserabletobearound
andthattheyrarelyliveuptotheirownvaluesandstandards.Thescaleassessedby
thesefouritemshadadequateinternalconsistency,Cronbach’sα=.88.
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Positive urgency
WeusedfouritemsfromCydersandassociates’(Cyders&Smith,2008b;Cyders,Smith,
Spillane,Fischer,Annus&Peterson,2007)scaletoassesspositiveurgency.Participants
wereaskedtoindicatetheextenttowhichtheyagreed,on5‐pointLikertscalesrarelyor
noneofthetime(1)toalwaysormostofthetime(5),thatwhentheyareinagoodmood
theygetintosituationsthatcouldcausethemproblems,thatwhentheyareveryhappy
theycannotseemtostopthemselvesfromdoingthingsthathavebadconsequences,
thatwhentheyareoverjoyedtheyfeelliketheycannotstopthemselvesfromgoing
overboard,andthattheytendtolosecontrolwhentheyareinagreatmood.Thescale
assessedbythesefouritemshadadequateinternalconsistency,Cronbach’sα=.91.
Overestimating the chance of winning (OCW)
WeusedthefouritemsfromBreenandZuckerman’s(1999)GamblingAttitudesand
BeliefsSurveytoassessthedegreetowhichourparticipantsoverestimatedthechance
ofwinningatgambling.Participantswereaskedtoindicate,regardlessofwhetherthey
gambledornot,theextenttowhichtheyagreedthat,on5‐pointLikertscalesfrom
stronglydisagree(1)tostronglyagree(5)sometimesthattheyjust‘know’theyaregoing
tohavegoodluck,thatiftheyhavelosttheirbetsrecentlytheirluckisboundtochange,
thatsometimestheythinktheyhavethepowerto‘will’theirnumberstocomeupin
gamblinggames,andthatiftheyconcentratehardenoughtheyareabletoinfluence
whethertheywinwhentheyplaythepokies.Thescaleassessedbythesefouritemshad
adequateinternalconsistency,Cronbach’sα=.88.
Luck/perseverance
ThisfactorwasassessedusingthefouritemsfromSteenberghetal.’s(2002)measureto
assessluck/perseverance.Theseitemsaskedparticipantstoindicatetheextentto
whichtheyagreed,on5‐pointLikertscalesfromstronglydisagree(1)tostronglyagree
(5),regardlessofwhetherornottheygambled,thatshouldtheygamblethereare
certainthingsthattheycandowhengamblingthatwouldincreasetheirchancesof
winning,thatitdoesnotmatterwherethemoneytogamblecomesfrombecausethey
willwinandpayitback,thatiftheycontinuetogambleitwilleventuallypayoffand
theywillmakemoney,andthattheyshouldkeepthesamebetevenwhenithasnotwon
becauseitisboundtowin.Thescaleassessedbythesefouritemshadadequateinternal
consistency,Cronbach’sα=.94.
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Gambling problems
Gamblingproblemswereassessedusingthe9‐itemPGSIscale(Ferris&Wynne,2001).
The9‐itemversionofthisscalehasbeenusedinanumberofgeneralpopulation
surveysinAustralianjurisdictions,includingVictoriatoassessproblemgambling
(Abbotetal.,2016;DepartmentofJustice,2009;Hare,2015).Itwasdesignedtoassess
theprevalenceofgamblingproblemsinthecommunityratherthaninclinicalsamples,
isinternallyconsistent,andhasconcurrentvaliditywithotherproblemgambling
measures(Jacksonetal.,2010).Participantsratedeachitemona4‐pointLikertscale:
never(1),sometimes(2),mostofthetime(3)oralmostalways(4).Afifthcategory,don’t
know,wasalsoincluded.Thescalehadadequateinternalconsistency,Cronbach’sα=
.96.
Results
OuranalysiswasconductedusingIBMSPSSversion22(IBMCorp,2013).Themedian
responsetimeforthissurveywas12.9minutes,whichwassimilartothemedian
responsetimeforthepilotsurvey,whichwas11.4minutes.Thisindicatesthatthe
surveywasnotoverlylongandtaxingfortheparticipants,whichotherwisemighthave
affectedbothparticipationratesandthequalityofthedata.
The prevalence of gambling and problem gambling in Victoria
Table1showstheprevalenceofgamblinginVictoriaasafunctionofage.Wecansee
thatthevastmajorityofVictorianshaveparticipatedinatleastoneformofgamblingin
thepreceding12months.Furthermore,abouthalfcouldbedescribedasregular
gamblersinthattheyhaveparticipatedinatleastonegamblingactivitymorethansix
timesinthepreceding12months.Theseresultsshowthatgamblingiscommonin
Victoria.
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Table1:Prevalenceofgambling
PercentageofVictoriansself‐reportingparticipatinginatleastonegamblingactivityandparticipatinginat
leastonegamblingactivitymorethansixtimesinthepastyear.
Agegroup
18‐
24years
25‐
34years
35‐
44years
45‐
54years
55‐
64years
65
yearsor
older
Atleastone
activity 95 88 94 96 98 99
Oneactivity
morethansix
times 36 47 48 58 61 54
Figure1extendsthisanalysisbyshowinghowgamblingparticipationratesvariedasa
functionofageforeachofthe12gamblingactivitiesthatwestudied.Chi‐squaretests
revealedthatthereweresignificantvariationswithageforalltheactivities.Itincreased
withageforLotteryticketsand,toalesserextent,forRaffleorfund‐raisingticketsand
Pokermachinesatothervenues.Forallothergamblingactivities,itfirstincreasedthen
decreasedwithage.
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Figure1:Gamblingbyage.
ClusteredbargraphsforthepercentageofVictoriansself‐reportingparticipatinginthe12surveyedgamblingactivitiesinthepreviousyearasafunctionofagegroup.Clusters
markedwithasterisksindicateastatisticallysignificantchi‐squareassociationbetweentheindividualgamblingactivityandparticipants’agegroup.N18‐24=388,N25‐34=593,N35‐44=
565,N45‐54=567,N55‐64=643,N65+=605.*p<.05;**p<.01;***p<.001.
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Figure2showshowgamblingvariedasafunctionofgender.Consistentwithprevious
reports(Hare,2015),formostactivitiesmalesgambledmorethanfemales.Onlyfor
InstantscratchticketsandPokermachinesatothervenuesdidmalesandfemalesgamble
atcomparablerates.Additionally,femalesgambledmorethanmalesforRaffleorfund‐
raisingtickets.
Figure2:Gamblingbygender
Clustered bar graphs for the percentage of males and females self-reporting participating in the 12 surveyed gambling activities
as a function of participation frequency in the last year. Clusters marked with asterisks indicate a statistically significant chi-
square association between the individual gambling activity and participants’ gender. Nmales = 1618, Nfemales = 1743. *p < .05;
**p < .01; ***p < .001.
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Figure3showshowgamblingparticipationratesin2016comparedtothosein2010,foreachof
the12gamblingactivities.ForBettingonanimalraces,Gamingtablesatcasinos,Pokermachinesat
casinosandPokermachinesatothervenuestherewasnosignificantdifferencebetween2010and
2016participationrates.Fortheothereightgamblingactivities,chi‐squaretestsrevealedthat
participationratesweresignificantlygreaterin2016thanin2010.
Figure3:Gambling,2016vs2010
Clusteredbargraphsforthepercentageofyoungadults(18‐24yearsold)self‐reportingparticipatinginthe12
surveyedgamblingactivitiesasafunctionofyear(2010and2016)andparticipationfrequency.Clustersmarkedwith
asterisksindicateastatisticallysignificantchi‐squareassociationbetweenyearandtheindividualgamblingactivity.
N2010=1000,N2016=388.The2010datawasobtainedfrom“Chance‐andSkill‐BasedDimensionsUnderlyingYoung
Australians'GamblingActivitiesandTheirRelationshipswithGamblingProblemsandOtherFactors,”byJ.Bolderoand
R.Bell,2012,InternationalGamblingStudies,12,p.152.*p<.05;**p<.01;***p<.001.
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Finally,Figure4showshowproblemgamblingvariedasafunctionofage.Achi‐squaretest
revealedthatproblemgamblingdidvarywithage(X2(15,n=3348)=196.9,p=<.001).Inspecting
thegraphsshowsthatitwasgreatestfor25‐34yearolds.Figure4alsocomparestheprevalence
ofproblemgamblingin2016to2010.Itshouldbenotedthatthis2010study(whichwas
differentfromthe2010studydiscussedabove,seefigurecaptionforreference)utilised
undergraduatestudents,whereasthecurrentstudyutilisedarepresentativesampleofVictorians.
Furthermore,noneoftheagecategoriesutilisedinthecurrentstudyaredirectlyequivalentto
thatutilisedbythis2010study.However,sincethemeanageforthe2010studywas21yearsold,
themostcomparableagecategoryforthecurrentstudywouldbe18‐24yearsold.Basedonthis
comparison,ourdatasuggestthatthereislikelytohavebeenagreaterfractionofhigh‐risk
gamblersin2016thanin2010
Figure4:PGSIbyageandseverity
ClusteredbargraphforthepercentageofVictorian’sineachPGSIgamblersub‐type(non‐gambler,low‐risk,moderate‐
risk,high‐risk)asafunctionofagegroupandyear(2010and2016).Asterisksindicateastatisticallysignificantchi‐
squareassociationbetweenPGSIgamblertypeandparticipants’agegroup,excluding2010surveydata.PGSI=Problem
gamblingseverityindex.Samplesize,peryear:N2010=370,N2016=3361.Samplesize,agegroup(2016dataonly):N18‐24
=388,N25‐34=593,N35‐44=565,N45‐54=567,N55‐64=643,N65+=605.The2010datafrom“Anevaluationofthefactor
structureoftheProblemGamblingSeverityIndex,”byJ.BolderoandR.Bell,2012,InternationalGamblingStudies,12,p.
97.
Insummary,ourresultsshowthatgamblingishighlyprevalentinVictoria,withtheoverwhelming
majorityofpeoplehavinggambledatleastonceinthepreviousyear.Approximately,halfofthese
peoplecouldbeclassifiedasregulargamblers,participatinginatleastonegamblingactivitymore
thansixtimesperyear.Fromourdataitisclearthatsomeformsofgambling(e.g.lotterytickets)
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aremorepopularthanotherformsofgambling.Furthermore,anumberofgamblingactivities,
suchaslotterytickets,becomemorepopularwithage.Asexpected,wefoundthat,ingeneral,men
gambledmorethanwomen,exceptforInstantscratchticketsandPokermachinesatothervenues
forwhichtheygambledatcomparablerates,andforRaffleorfundraisingticketsforwhichwomen
gambledmorethanmen.Formostgamblingactivities,participationrateshaveincreasedfrom
2010to2016.TheexceptionsareBettingonanimalraces,Gamblingtablesatcasinos,Poker
machinesatcasinosandPokermachinesatothervenues.Forthesegamblingactivities,
participationrateshavestayedconstant.Finally,ourdatasuggestthattherateofhigh‐risk
problemgamblingmayhaveslightlyincreasedfrom2010to2016,thoughthisresultmustbe
interpretedwithcautionasthedemographicsofthesamplesweredifferentinthetwostudies.
The factors that predict gambling and problem gambling
Toinvestigatewhichfactorsareassociatedwithgamblingparticipationratesweconsideredeach
ofthe12gamblingactivitiesinturnandperformedacorrelationanalysis.Theresultsofthis
analysisareshowninTable2.Wefoundthat13ofourvariablesweresignificantlycorrelatedwith
participationratesforallgamblingactivities,9variablesweresignificantlycorrelatedwith
participationratesformostofthegamblingactivitiesandonevariablewassignificantlycorrelated
withparticipationratesforhalfthegamblingactivities.Theseveryhighratesofcorrelationare
notsurprisingasthesevariableswerespecificallychosenbecausepreviousstudieshadshown
thattheywerecorrelatedwithgamblingparticipationrates,asreviewedinChapter2.
Whilethisanalysisdemonstratedthatourdataisbroadlyconsistentwiththepreviousliterature,
wecangobeyondthisanalysisbyperformingalinearregression.Aregressionanalysisallowsus
todeterminewhichvariablesareactuallyneededtopredictgamblingparticipationrates.Just
becauseavariableiscorrelatedwithgamblingparticipationratesdoesnotnecessarilymeanthat
alinearregressionwillfindittobeausefulpredictor.Itcouldbethatthereareotherbetter
predictorsandwhentheseareconsidered,ithasnoadditionalpredictivevalue.
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Table2:Correlationanalysisforgamblingparticipationrates
Spearmanrankordercoefficients(rs)betweenVictorians’self‐reportedparticipationin12gamblingactivitiesandallvariablesofinterest.
Variables
Self-reported participation in gambling activity
Lottery tickets Instant
scratch tickets
Raffle or fund-raising
tickets Betting on
animal races Sports betting
Gaming tables at casinos
Poker machines at
casinos
Poker machines at other venues
Cards or board games Games of skill
Arcade or video gaming
Internet gambling
rs rs rs rs rs rs rs rs rs rs rs rs Participation in gambling
Family members .46** .51** .54** .46** .40** .48** .52** .52** .60** .58** .58** .49** Peers .43** .35** .47** .41** .35** .38** .37** .39** .43** .39** .38** .38** People in general .23** .14** .25** .13** .04* .06** .10** .14** .14** .11** .12** .10**
Approval of gambling Self-reported .49** .34** .35** .49** .48** .33** .38** .49** .29** .24** .26** .46** Family members .36** .29** .30** .33** .31** .22** .27** .32** .25** .21** .20** .29** Peers .26** .20** .28** .25** .24** .18** .18** .23** .23** .17** .17** .26**
People in general .15** .06** .21** .03 .02 -.01 .04* .11** .13** .05** .09** .09**
Exposure to advertisement Seeing ads .24** .19** .35** .25** .08** .21** .20** .16** .30** .35** .42** .18** RPM .18** .25** .31** .33** .38** .37** .33** .28** .37** .47** .50** .31**
Participating in discussions Online .10** .29** .19** .33** .41** .42** .34** .27** .47** .54** .57** .42** Offline .36** .42** .38** .48** .43** .44** .41** .42** .55** .58** .60** .41**
Demographic variables Age .28** -.06** .15** -.03 -.24** -.22** -.11** .07** -.22** -.23** -.24** -.17** Gendera -.09** .02 .03 -.16** -.25** -.14** -.02 -.03 -.09** -.12** -.10** -.17** COBa .00 .03 .07** .10** .04* .01 -.01 .09** -.05** .00 .01 .04* LSHa .04* .01 .09** .07** -.02 -.05** -.03 .07** -.07** -.03 -.04** -.01 Relationship statusa .14** .07** .15** .06** .03 .04* .04* .05** .01 .01 .01 .00 Locationa -.01 -.02 -.08** .02 .09** .11** .12** -.02 .10** .07** .08** .06**
Psychological factors Depression -.06** .09** -.02 .07** .15** .16** .13** .12** .18** .23** .24** .21**
Low esteem -.03 .09** .00 .07** .16** .17** .13** .12** .19** .25** .26** .22**
Positive urgency .02 .18** .05** .18** .28** .30** .24** .20** .31** .35** .35** .30** OCW .14** .25** .06** .23** .29** .31** .29** .24** .26** .29** .29** .26** Luck/Perseverance .04* .16** .07** .11** .18** .19** .16** .13** .17** .22** .21** .17**
PGSI score .20** .29** .13** .38** .46** .45** .41** .45** .34** .37** .36** .45**
Note. N = 3361. COB = Country of birth; LSH: Main language spoken at home; OCW = Overestimating chances of winning, PGSI = Problem gambling severity index, PRM = Receiving promotional material. COBa: 0 = Other, 1 = Australia. Gendera: 0 = male, 1 = female. Locationa: 0 = Rural, 1 = Metropolitan. LSHa: 0 = Other, 1 = English. Relationship statusa: 0 = Other, 1 = Married or living with a partner. *p < .05; **p < .01; ***p < .001
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Tobeclear,ifalinearregressionsfindsavariabletobesignificantpredictor,thisdoesnotprovea
causalrelationshipexistsbetweenthetwovariables.Ultimately,regressionanalysescannotprove
causationrelationships,forthesamereasonsthatcorrelationanalysescannotprovecausal
relationships(Aldrich,1995).However,justasthelackofasignificantcorrelationcanbetakenas
evidenceagainstasignificantcausalrelationshipbetweentwovariables,barringtype2errorsand
assuminganycausalrelationshipbetweenthetwovariableswouldbemonotonic,sothefinding
thatalinearregressionindicatesthataparticularvariableisnotasignificantpredictorofasecond
variablecanbetakenasevidenceforalackofanimmediatecausalrelationshipbetweenthetwo
variables.Linearregressionscansuggestwhatthecausalrelationshipsbetweenvariablesmight
be,butcannotbetakenasproofoftheserelationships.
Fortheregressionanalysis,weconsideredeachgamblingactivityinturn.Thedependentvariable
wastheself‐reportedgamblingfrequencyforthatgamblingactivity.Thepredictorswere:
perceivedparticipationingambling(familymembers,peersandpeopleingeneral),approvalof
gambling(self‐reported,familymembers,peersandpeopleingeneral),frequencyofseeingadds,
frequencyofreceivingpromotionalmaterial,frequencyofparticipatinginonlinediscussions,
frequencyofparticipatinginofflinediscussions,age,gender,countryofbirth,languagespokenat
home,relationshipstatus,location,depression,lowesteem,positiveurgency,overestimating
chancesofwinning,perceivedluck/perseverance,PGSIrating.AsshowninTable3,forall
gamblingactivities,theregressionfitwashighlysignificantwithp<.001andwitheachregression
explainingapproximately50%ofthevarianceinthedata.
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Table3:Regressionanalysistopredictgamblingparticipationrates
ModelsummarystatisticsforaseriesoflinearregressionanalysespredictingVictorians’self‐reportedparticipation
ratesineachof12gamblingactivities.
Gambling activity
Self-reported participation in gambling activity
R2 F dfReg, dfRes P
Lottery tickets .48 131.45 23, 3324 < .001
Instant scratch tickets .41 99.83 23, 3324 < .001
Raffle or fund-raising tickets .42 105.37 23, 3324 < .001
Betting on animal races .47 129.96 23, 3324 < .001
Sports betting .47 127.85 23, 3324 < .001
Gaming tables at casinos .45 116.06 23, 3324 < .001
Poker machines at casinos .42 106.54 23, 3324 < .001
Poker machines at other venues .49 141.43 23, 3324 < .001
Cards or board games .51 148.14 23, 3324 < .001
Games of skill .50 145.95 23, 3324 < .001
Arcade or video gaming .50 143.59 23, 3324 < .001
Internet gambling .45 116.07 23, 3324 < .001
Table4showsthestandardisedpredictorsfortheregressionsdescribedinTable3.Weseethat
self‐reportedgamblingfrequencyiswellpredictedbyboththeperceptionofthedegreetowhich
bothfamilyandpeersgamble(bothsignificantpredictorsforall12gamblingactivities),butthe
firstpredictorhasapproximatelydoublethepredictivepowerofthesecond.Othersignificant
predictorsinclude,self‐reportedapprovalofgambling(significantforall12gamblingactivities),
perceivedapprovalofgamblingbypeers(significantforsevengamblingactivities)andpeoplein
general(significantforeightgamblingactivities),receivingpromotionalmaterials(significant
forninegamblingactivities),frequencyofdiscussinggamblingoffline(significantforall12
gamblingactivities),age(significantforsevengamblingactivities),gender(significantforeight
gamblingactivities)andthepsychologicalfactorsofoverestimatingchancesofwinning
(significantforninegamblingactivities)andPGSIscore(significantforelevengambling
activities).
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Table4:StandardisedregressioncoefficientsforgamblingparticipationratesStandardisedregressioncoefficientsforthepredictorsofself‐reportedparticipationin12gamblingactivities.
Predictors
Self-reported participation in gambling activity
Lottery tickets
Instant scratch tickets
Raffle or fund-raising
tickets
Betting on animal races
Sports betting
Gaming tables at casinos
Poker machines at
casinos
Poker machines at
other venues
Cards or board games
Games of skill
Arcade or video
gaming Internet
gambling
Participation in gambling Family members .23*** .30*** .30*** .18*** .13*** .22*** .28*** .26*** .38*** .29*** .31*** .23*** Peers .17*** .10*** .16*** .12*** .11*** .14*** .13*** .12*** .10*** .07*** .07*** .11*** People in general .02 .03 .01 .00 -.01 .00 .02 .04** -.01 -.01 .00 .04*
Approval of gambling Self-reported .37*** .20*** .22*** .30*** .32*** .16*** .23*** .34*** .11*** .05* .07*** .35*** Family members -.02 .02 .00 -.02 -.03 -.03 -.03 -.07*** -.02 .01 -.03 -.07*** Peers -.09*** -.03 -.05* -.04* -.08*** -.06** -.07*** -.06*** -.02 -.03 -.02 -.02 People in general -.10*** -.08*** -.05* -.08*** -.05** -.06*** -.05** -.03 -.01 -.01 -.03 -.06***
Exposure to advertisement Seeing ads .01 .00 .08*** .04** -.02 .01 .00 -.03* .01 .02 .06*** .03* RPM .03 .03 .06*** .07*** .11*** .07*** .06*** .05** .03 .06*** .03* .03*
Participating in discussions Online -.01 .04* .02 .03 .05** .08*** .03 -.04* .02 .03 .05** .01 Offline .16*** .19*** .12*** .23*** .18*** .14*** .13*** .17*** .23*** .25*** .24*** .13***
Demographic variables Age .21*** .02 .11*** .03* -.03* -.04** .01 .12*** -.02 -.01 -.03* .02 Gendera -.07*** -.01 .00 -.08*** -.14*** -.06*** .01 .00 -.03** -.05*** -.03* -.06*** COBa .01 .00 .02 .02 .02 .02 -.01 .03* -.02 .00 .00 .01 LSHa -.03* -.01 .00 .00 -.02 -.03 -.01 .00 .00 .00 .00 .00 Relationship statusa .05*** .04** .07*** .02 .01 .03* .01 .01 .02 .02 .02 -.01 Locationa .00 -.01 -.04** .02 .03* .03* .05*** -.02 .02 .01 .02 .02
Psychological factors Depression -.06* .01 -.05** .02 -.04 .00 .02 .01 -.01 .01 .01 .01 Low esteem .01 -.05 .01 -.06* -.01 -.06* -.06* -.05 -.04 -.02 -.01 -.02 Positive urgency -.01 .00 .05* -.03 -.01 .03 -.02 .02 .04* .04* .04* .00 OCW .10*** .10*** .07*** .07*** .05** .07*** .08*** .05** .04* .03 .01 .01 Luck/ Perseverance -.05*** .00 .00 -.04** -.02 .01 -.01 -.05*** .01 .04** .01 -.02 PGSI .10*** .11*** .03 .13*** .17*** .18*** .19*** .24*** .10*** .15*** .08*** .19***
Note.N=3361.COB=Countryofbirth;LSH:Mainlanguagespokenathome;OCW=Overestimatingchancesofwinning,PGSI=Problemgamblingseverityindex,PRM=Receivingpromotionalmaterial.COBa:0=Other,1=Australia.Gendera:0=male,1=female.Locationa:0=Rural,1=Metropolitan.LSHa:0=Other,1=English.Relationshipstatusa:0=Other,1=Marriedorlivingwithapartner.*p<.05;**p<.01;***p<.001
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Sincebeliefsaboutthedegreetowhichothersgambleandapprovalofgamblingaresignificant
predictorsofgamblingfrequency,itisworthwhileconsideringhowaccuratethesebeliefsare.Iftheyare
notaccurate,thencorrectingthemcouldpotentiallyreducegambling.Figure5showsactualgambling
frequency(i.e.averageself‐reportedgamblingfrequency)versustheperceivedgamblingfrequencyof
family,peersandpeopleingeneral,foreachofthe12gamblingactivities.Ascanbeseen,individuals
systematicallyoverestimatethedegreetowhichothersgamble.Theydothisleastforfamilymembers,
thenforpeersandmostforpeopleingeneral.Figure6showsthedegreetowhichindividualsperceive
familymembers,peersandpeopleingeneraltoapproveofgambling.Thereisasystematicbiasfor
individualstobelievethatpeopleingeneralapproveofgamblingmorethantheydo.
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Figure5:Perceivedparticipationingambling
ClusteredbargraphsforthepercentageofVictoriansself‐reportingparticipatinginthe12surveyedgamblingactivitiesandtheperceivedparticipationoftheirfamilymembers,
peers,andpeopleingeneral.Clustersmarkedwithasterisksindicateastatisticallysignificantdifferenceonfrequencyratingsforgamblingactivitydependingontheperson(s)doing
thegambling(self,familymembers,peers,andpeopleingeneral)asindicatedbyanon‐parametricFriedmantest.N=3361.*p<.05;**p<.01;***p<.001.
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Figure6:Approvalofgambling
ClusteredbargraphsshowingthepercentageofVictorianswhoapproveofeachofthe12gamblingactivitiesandwhatpercentageoftheirfamilymembers,peers,andpeoplein
general,respectively,theybelieveapproveofeachofthe12gamblingactivities.Clustersmarkedwithasterisksindicateastatisticallysignificantdifferenceinapprovalratingsasa
functionofapprovalcategory(self,familymembers,peers,andpeopleingeneral),asindicatedbyanon‐parametricFriedmantest.N=3361.*p<.05;**p<.01;***p<.001.
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TurningourattentionnowtoPGSIscore,westartedbyperformingacorrelationanalysistodetermine
theassociationsbetweenourvariablesandPGSIscore.TheresultsareshowninTable5.Almostall
variableswerecorrelatedwithPGSIscore,whichwasexpectedaspreviousstudieshadindicatedthat
thesevariableswerecorrelatedeitherwithPGSIscoreor,atleast,withgamblingfrequency,whichitself
isknowntobecorrelatedwithPGSIscore.Theonlysurprisewasthatthevariables,Languagespokenat
homeandRelationshipstatuswerenotcorrelatedwithPGSIscore.
Asbefore,weperformedaregressionanalysis,todeterminewhichvariablesareneededtopredictPGSI
score.Whereas,inourpreviousregressionanalysis,weconsideredonlyoneformofgamblingatatime,
thiswouldnotbeanappropriatewayofpredictingPGSIscore,sincemultipleformsofgamblingcould
potentiallycontributetoanindividual’sPGSIscore.Consequently,weneededtotakeintoaccount
multipleformsofgamblingsimultaneously.Todothis,withoutbeingoverwhelmedbythesheernumber
ofpotentialpredictors,weperformedastepwiseregression.Westartedbyidentifyingthesingle
predictorofPGSIscorethatcouldexplainthegreatestamountofvarianceinPGSIscore.Then,wefound
thesecondpredictorwhich,whencombinedwiththefirstpredictor,explainedthegreatestamountof
varianceinPGSIscore.Inthenextstep,weaddedathirdpredictorandsoon,sothateachstepadded
anotherpredictor.Wecontinuedwiththisprocessuntiladdinganadditionalpredictordidnotexplain
anymorevariance.Doingthis,revealed33predictors,asshowninTable4,which,intotal,explained
59%ofthevarianceinPGSIscore.However,almostallthisvariancewasaccountedforbythetopfive
predictors,whichcombinedexplained51%ofthevarianceofthePGSIscore.Consequently,wecan
simplifythediscussionbyfocusingonthesepredictors,whichiswhatwedoinChapter5.
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Table5:CorrelationanalysisforPGSIscore
Spearman rank order coefficients (rs) between PGSI score and all variables of interest
Variables
PGSI score
Lottery tickets Instant
scratch tickets
Raffle or fund-raising
tickets Betting on
animal races Sports betting
Gaming tables at casinos
Poker machines at
casinos
Poker machines at other venues
Cards or board games Games of skill
Arcade or video gaming
Internet gambling
rs rs rs rs rs rs rs rs rs rs rs rs Participation in gambling
Self-reported .20** .29** .13** .38** .46** .45** .41** .45** .34** .37** .36** .45**
Family members .10** .16** .07** .20** .25** .26** .24** .24** .26** .29** .32** .30** Peers .07** .09** .04* .17** .21** .23** .21** .20** .18** .19** .18** .22** People in general -.11** -.09** -.08** -.05** -.03* -.02 -.04* -.05** -.02 -.02 -.02 -.03
Approval of gambling Self-reported .05** .05** -.05** .24** .26** .27** .27** .27** .15** .20** .20** .31** Family members -.02 -.01 -.09** .10** .14** .12** .10** .12** .08** .11** .11** .15** Peers -.03 -.01 -.05** .08** .12** .12** .10** .10** .07** .09** .09** .13**
People in general -.12** -.13** -.13** -.08** -.06** -.05** -.07** -.08** -.05** -.06** -.05** -.01
Exposure to advertisement Seeing ads .01 .09** .05** .06** .05** .16** .16** .15** .23** .22** .23** .10** RPM .25** .25** .15** .30** .31** .33** .33** .29** .29** .30** .30** .28**
Participating in discussions Online .36** .35** .30** .36** .37** .38** .37** .36** .34** .35** .34** .36** Offline .24** .25** .18** .30** .29** .34** .33** .32** .33** .33** .35** .30**
Demographic variables Psychological factors
Age Gendera COBa LSHa
Relationship statusa Locationa Depression Low esteem Positive urgency OCW
Luck/ Perseverance
PGSI score -.18** -.18** .05** -.01 -.03 .06** .33** .35** .46** .43** .25**
Note. N = 3361. COB = Country of birth; LSH: Main language spoken at home; OCW = Overestimating chances of winning, PGSI = Problem gambling severity index, PRM = Receiving promotional material. COBa: 0 = Other, 1 = Australia. Gendera: 0 = male, 1 = female. Locationa: 0 = Rural, 1 = Metropolitan. LSHa: 0 = Other, 1 = English. Relationship statusa: 0 = Other, 1 = Married or living with a partner. *p < .05; **p < .01; ***p < .001
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Table6:StepwiseregressiontopredictPGSIscore
SummarystatisticsforastepwiselinearregressiondesignedtopredictPGSIscore
Gambling activity PGSI score
R2 F dfReg, dfRes p
1. Psychological factor: Positive urgency .343 1743.58 1, 3346 < .001
2. Self-reported participation: Playing poker machines
at pubs, hotels, or sporting clubs .421 1214.19 1, 3345 < .001
3. Participation in online discussion about: Betting on
gaming tables at casinos .464 965.43 1, 3344 < .001
4. Self-reported participation: Gambling on the Internet .492 809.82 1, 3343 < .001
5. Psychological factor: Overestimating chances of
winning .512 702.56 1, 3342 < .001
6. Psychological factor: Low esteem .519 601.97 1, 3341 < .001
7. Perceived participation of family members: Betting
on arcade or video games .525 528.26 1, 3340 < .001
8. Perceived participation of people in general: Buying
lottery tickets such as Tattslotto, Powerball, or Keno .529 467.87 1, 3339 < .001
9. Participation in online discussion about: Playing
poker machines at casinos .532 421.27 1, 3338 < .001
10. Perceived participation of family members: Playing
poker machines at pubs, hotels, or sporting clubs .535 383.81 1, 3337 < .001
11. Self-reported participation: Betting on sports like
football, tennis, rugby, or cricket .538 353.05 1, 3336 < .001
12. Perceived participation of peers: Betting on cards or
board games with family or friends .540 325.98 1, 3335 < .001
13. Perceived approval of family members: Playing
poker machines at casinos .541 302.56 1, 3334 < .001
14. Self-reported approval: Gambling on the Internet .544 283.96 1, 3333 < .001
15. Psychological factor: Perceived luck / perseverance .546 266.67 1, 3332 < .001
16. Self-reported participation: Betting on games of skill
such a pool, bowling, or darts .547 251.33 1, 3331 < .001
17. Receiving promotional materials about: Playing
poker machines at casinos .548 237.70 1, 3330 < .001
18. Demographics: Main language spoken at home .549 225.51 1, 3329 < .001
19. Perceived participation of family members: Betting
on games of skill such a pool, bowling, or darts .550 214.36 1, 3328 < .001
20. Self-reported approval: Buying lottery tickets such as
Tattslotto, Powerball, or Keno .551 204.26 1, 3327 < .001
21. Self-reported approval: Betting on gaming tables at
casinos .552 195.36 1, 3326 < .001
22. Self-reported participation: Buying lottery tickets
such as Tattslotto, Powerball, or Keno .553 187.27 1, 3325 < .001
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23. Self-reported participation: Betting on arcade or
video games .554 179.73 1, 3324 < .001
24. Participation in offline discussion about: Betting on
arcade or video games .555 172.91 1, 3323 < .001
25. Participation in online discussion about: Betting on
cards or board games with family or friends .556 166.56 1, 3322 < .001
26. Self-reported approval: Buying instant scratch tickets
('scratchies') .557 160.64 1, 3321 < .001
27. Self-reported approval: Betting on games of skill
such as pool, bowling, or darts .558 155.27 1, 3320 < .001
28. Psychological factor: Depression .559 150.19 1, 3319 < .001
29. Self-reported participation: Buying raffle or
fundraising tickets .560 145.42 1, 3318 < .001
30. Participation in online discussion about: Betting on
games of skill such a pool, bowling, or darts .560 140.86 1, 3317 < .001
31. Perceived approval of people in general: Betting on
cards or boards games with family or friends .561 136.58 1, 3316 < .001
32. Perceived approval of people in general: Playing
poker machines at pubs, hotels, or sporting clubs .561 132.60 1, 3315 < .001
33. Self-reported participation: Playing poker machines
at casinos .562 128.81 1, 3314 < .001
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Chapter 5 – Discussion and conclusions
Introduction
Thepreviouschapterofthisreportsummarisedourmainresearchfindings.Indoingso,itaddressedthe
firsttwoofourthreeresearchquestions:
WhatwastheprevalenceofgamblingandproblemgamblinginVictoriain2016andhowdoesthis
compareto2010?
Whichfactorspredictanindividual’sgamblingfrequencyforeachof12gamblingactivitiesand
whichfactorpredictanindividual’sproblemgamblingseverityindex(PGSI)score?
Howcangambling‐relatedharmbereduced?
The prevalence of gambling and problem gambling in Victoria
Approximately,ninety‐fivepercentofoursampleindicatedthattheyhadparticipatedinatleastoneofthe
surveyed12gamblingactivitiesintheprevious12months.Thisisconsiderablyhigherthanthe70%
prevalenceratereportedbyHare(2015).Onemightthinkthatthisdiscrepancyoccurredbecausewe
surveyedactivitiesthatsomeindividualsmightnotconsidertobegambling(e.g.,buyinglottery,instant
scratch,andraffle/fund‐raisingtickets).However,thisreasondoesnotseemlikelyastheseactivities
werealsosurveyedbyHare(2015).Inourview,thedifferenceismorelikelyduetothewayour
participantsweresampledcomparedtohowparticipantsweresampledinHare(2015).Inparticular,
participantsinHare(2015)weresampledusingtelephoneinterviewswhereasourparticipants
respondedtoanonlinesurvey.Giventhestigmaassociatedwithgambling,itmightbethatthesurvey
participantsweremorelikelytoadmitinananonymousonlinesurveythattheygambledthanina
telephoneinterviewwheretheywouldhaveneededtomaketheadmissiontoahumanoperator.
Additionally,ourparticipantswereincentivisedtocompletethesurvey,whereastheparticipantsinHare
(2015)werenotandcouldshortentheinterviewbyclaimingnottogamble.Thismighthavetempted
peopletofalselyclaimthattheydonotgamble.Athirdreasonisthatthedemographicsoftheparticipants
inHare(2015)didnotmatchthoseofthepopulationingeneral.Inparticular,femaleswere
overrepresentedinHare(2015)becausefemalesaremorelikelytoanswerphonecallstoresidential
phonelines.Sincefemalesaregenerallylesslikelytogamblethanmales,Hare(2015)islikelytohave
underestimatedtheprevalenceofgambling.Finally,thereappearedtobenoattempttocontrolforagein
Hare(2015).Asthisfactorstronglyinfluencesratesofgambling,thiscouldalsoleadtoHare(2015)
underestimatingthetrueprevalencerate.Conversely,theORUensuredthatoursamplematchedthe
generalVictorianpopulationforthedemographicsofage,genderandlocation,soweweremorelikelyto
obtainanaccurateestimateofthetrueprevalencerate.Whateverthereasonforthediscrepancyinthe
findingsofourstudycomparedtothoseofHare(2015),ourdatashowthatapproximately95%ofthe
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populationhadgambledatleastonceinthepreceding12months.Additionally,weshowedthatabouthalf
thepopulationhadgambledonasingleactivitymorethansixtimesinthepreceding12months.This
showsthatgamblingiscommoninVictoria–morecommonthanpreviouslythought.
Wealsoexaminedhowgamblingfrequencyvariedasafunctionofage.Weexpectedgamblingfrequency
topeakinthe20sand30sandthentogenerallydecreasewithageinlinewithpreviousreports(Weltet
al.,2011).Indeed,apreviousstudyofVictoriansfoundthatgamblingparticipationratesgenerally
decreasedorremainconstantwithageforallgamblingactivitiesexceptforLotto,PowerballorthePools
forwhichparticipationrateswerefoundtoincreasewithage(Hare,2015).Whilewefoundthatgambling
didincreasewithageforLotteryticketswealsofoundthatitincreasedwithage,albeittoalesserextent,
forRaffleorfund‐raisingticketsandPokermachinesatothervenues.Forallothergamblingactivities,it
firstincreasedthendecreasedwithage.Ourresultsarethusbroadlyconsistentwiththosereportedby
Hare(2015),thoughdifferforRaffleorfund‐raisingticketsandPokermachinesatothervenues.This
differencemaybeduetothefactthatHare(2015)didnothaveexactlyequivalentcategories.Theclosest
equivalentcategoriessheusedwereBuyingticketsinrafflessweepsandothercompetitionsandGaming
machines.
Wealsoinvestigatedhowgamblingvariedasafunctionofgender.Weexpectedthat,ingeneral,males
wouldgamblemorefrequentlythanfemales,butthatthisdifferencewouldbereduced,orpossibly
eliminated,forchance‐basedgamblingactivitiessuchaslotterytickets,raffleticketsandscratchtickets
(Hare,2015).Consistentwithourexpectations,wefoundthatmalesdidgenerallygamblemorethan
females,thoughthisdifferencewasnotsignificantforInstantscratchticketsorPokermachinesatother
venues,andfemalesgambledmorethanmalesforRaffleorfund‐raisingtickets.Takentogetherwithour
previousfindings,theseresultsunderlinetheneedtocontrolforbothageandgenderwhenestimating
thegamblingprevalencerateinthegeneralpopulation.
Weinvestigatedhowgamblingfrequencyvariedfrom2010to2016.Previously,ithadbeenreportedthat
gamblingparticipationrateshaddecreasedfrom2008to2014(VRGF,2016).Basedonthistrendwe
expectedgamblingratestocontinuetodecreaseor,atleast,nottoincrease.Contrarytothisexpectation,
wefoundthatgamblingratesincreasedforeightofthe12gamblingactivitiesweconsidered.Forthe
remainingfourcategories,therewasnoevidenceofadecrease.Wenotethattheseresultsmustbe
interpretedwithcautionsincethesetwostudiesuseddifferentsamplingmethodologies.Whereasthe
currentstudyusedananonymousinternetsurvey,the2010datawasobtainedusingatelephonesurvey,
whoseparticipants’demographicsmaynothavematchedthoseofthepopulationingeneralintermsof
ageandgender,bothofwhichknowtoinfluencegamblingfrequency.Itis,therefore,possiblethat
BolderoandBell(2012b)mayhaveunderestimatedtheprevalenceofgamblingin2010.
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Finally,weconsideredhowtherateofproblemgamblingvariedasafunctionofage.Weexpectedhigh‐
riskproblemgamblingtovaryinthesamewayasgamblingfrequency,sopeakfortheagerangeof35‐44
yearsold(Hare,2015)oratleastforparticipantsintheir20’sand30’s(Welteetal.,2011)andthen
decreasewithage.MoreconsistentwithWelteetal.(2011)thanwithHare(2015),wefoundthathigh‐
riskproblemgamblingpeakedforthe25‐34yearoldagerange,andthendecreasedfromthatpoint.We
alsofoundsomeevidencethatproblemgamblingmayhaveincreasedsince2010but,asdiscussedabove,
thesamplingtechniquewasnotequivalentinthetwostudies,sothedataisnotdirectlycomparable.
Particularlycautionshouldbetakenwhenextrapolatingfromlaboratoryorstudent‐basedstudiestoreal
worldpopulationsasthegamblingcharacteristicsofthesetwogroupscanbequitedifferent(Gainsbury&
Blaszczynski,2011;Gainsbury,Russell&Blaszczynski,2014).
Whydoesproblemgamblingnotincreasewithageifgamblingfrequencygenerallyincreaseswithage?
Wethinktheanswertothisquestionisthataspeoplegetolder,theytendtoshifttogamblingactivities
thatarelesslikelytoresultingamblingproblems.Forexample,thegamblingactivitywhoseparticipation
ratesincreasesmostwithageisLotterytickets.Aswillbediscussedlater,thisactivityisnotstrongly
associatedwithproblemgambling,whichcouldexplainwhypartakingmoreinitdoesnottendtoleadto
gamblingproblems.
The factors that predict gambling frequency
Weinitiallyaddressedthisquestionbyperformingacorrelationanalysis,whoseresultsareshownin
Table2.Wefoundthatmostofthefactorsweconsideredwereassociatedwithmostformsofgambling.
Thiswasn’tsurprisingasthesefactorshadbeenselectedforinclusionspecificallybecauseprevious
studieshavefoundthemtobeassociatedwithgamblingfrequency.Assuch,ourresultswereconsistent
withtheliteraturereviewedinChapter2.
Wethenperformedaregressionanalysistodeterminewhichofthesefactorswereneededtopredict
participationratesforeachofthe12gamblingactivities,consideredindividually.Wefoundthatgambling
participationratescouldbewellpredictedbyalinearregression.Thecorrespondingstandardised
regressioncoefficientswerereportedinTable4.ComparingTable4toTable2,weseethatanumberof
factorsthatweresignificantlycorrelatedwithgamblingrateswerenotfoundbythisregressionanalysis
tobesignificantpredictorsofgamblingrates.Forexample,Participationingambling:PeopleinGeneral
wassignificantlycorrelatedwithgamblingparticipationratesforall12gamblingactivities,butwasa
significantpredictoronlyforinternetgambling.Thus,whenattemptingtopredictgamblingparticipation
rates,onedoesnotneedtotakeintoaccountthisfactor,atleastwhenusingalinearmodel.Similar
reasoningappliestothepsychologicalfactorsofDepression,Lowesteem,PositiveUrgencyand
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Luck/Perseverance.Eachwassignificantlycorrelatedwithgamblingfrequencyforalloralmostallofthe
12gamblingactivitiesthatweinvestigated.However,theyturnedouttobesignificantpredictorsforonly
afewoftheseactivities.
ConsistentwithLarrimer&Neighbors(2003),wefoundthatindividualsoverestimatedhowmuchothers
gambledandoverestimatedhowmuchtheyapprovedofgambling.Basedonpreviousresearch,we
expectedthatthefrequencywithwhichothersareperceivedtogamblewouldpredictanindividual’s
gamblingfrequency(Boldero&Bell,2010b;Boldero,Bell&Moore,2010).Wealsoexpectedthiseffectto
bestrongestforothersthataremostsimilartotheindividualinquestion.Thus,weexpectedan
individual’sgamblingfrequencytobemoststronglypredictedbythegamblingfrequencyoffamily
members,followedbytheperceivedgamblingfrequencyofpeersandleastpredictedbytheperceived
gamblingfrequencyofothers.Ourfindingswereinlinewiththeseexpectationsexceptthattheperceived
frequencyofpeopleingeneral(i.e.non‐familymembersandnon‐peers)significantlypredictedan
individual’sgamblingfrequencyonlyinthecaseofInternetgambling.Thisfindingisnewasprevious
workontheinfluenceofdescriptivenormsongamblingdidnotdistinguishbetweendifferentsocial
groups(e.g.family,peersandpeopleingeneral).
Wealsoexpectedtheperceivedapprovaloffamilymemberstopredictanindividual’sgamblingfrequency
(Boldero&Bell,2010b;Boldero,Bell&Moore,2010).Tooursurprise,thiswasoftennotthecase.While
anindividual’sself‐reportedapprovalofgamblingstronglypredictedtheirowngamblingfrequencyforall
12gamblingactivities,theapprovaloffamilymemberspredictedself‐reportedgamblingfrequencyonly
inthecaseofPokermachinesatothervenuesandInternetgambling.Theapprovalofpeerswasmore
important,significantlypredictingself‐reportedgamblingfrequencyforsevengamblingactivities,andthe
approvalofpeopleingeneralwasmoreimportantstill,significantlypredictingself‐reportedgambling
frequencyforeightgamblingactivities.
Beforeconductingthissurvey,weexpectedexposuretoadvertisementstostronglyinfluenceself‐
reportedgamblingfrequency,especiallyinthecaseofsportsbetting,whereadvertisementsare
particularlyprevalent(Deansetal.,2017;Lindsayetal.,2013).Tooursurprise,thefrequencyofgambling
advertisementspredictedself‐reportedgamblingfrequencyonlyinthecaseoffivegamblingactivities:
Raffleorfund‐raisingtickets,Bettingonanimalraces,Pokermachinesatothervenues,Arcadeorvideo
gamesandInternetgambling.Wesuspectthatthisoccurredbecauseparticipantsgenerallysawavery
largenumberofadvertisements,sotheseadvertisementsmayhavelackednoveltyand,consequently,fail
toattractattention.Forexample,inthecaseofsportsbetting,themajority(53%)ofparticipantsreported
seeingmorethansixsportsadvertisementsinthepreviousyear.Receivingpromotionalmaterialwasa
betterpredictorofself‐reportedgamblingfrequency,beingasignificantpredictorforninegambling
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activities.Presumably,thiswasbecauseitwasamuchrareroccurrence,somayhavehadagreater
noveltyvalue.Forexample,onlyaminority(10%)ofparticipantsreportedreceivingpromotional
materialrelatedtosportsbettingmorethan6timesinthepreviousyear.
Giventhatgamblingprovidersmakeextensiveuseofsocialmedia(Gainsburyetal.,2015),wehad
expectedthefrequenciesofbothonlineandofflinediscussionstopredictself‐reportedgambling
frequency.Whilethefrequencyofofflineconversationswasasignificantpredictorforself‐reported
gamblingfrequencyforall12gamblingactivities,thefrequencyofonlineconversationswasasignificant
predictorforonlyfivegamblingactivities:Instantscratchcards,Sportsbetting,Gamingtablesatcasinos,
PokermachinesatothervenuesandArcadeandvideogaming.
Wealsoexpectedbothageandgendertostronglypredictself‐reportedgamblingfrequency(Hare,2015).
Agewasasignificantpredictorforsevengamblingactivitiesandgenderwasasignificantpredictorfor
eightgamblingactivities.
Finally,welookedatsixpsychologicalfactors.Wefoundthatdepression,lowesteem,positiveurgency
andluck/perseverance,ingeneralwerenotreliablepredictorsofgamblingfrequency,beingsignificant
predictorsfortwo,three,fourandfourgamblingactivitiesrespectively.Overestimatingchancesof
winningwasamorereliablepredictor,beingsignificantforninegamblingactivities.Thestrongestand
mostreliablepredictorwasthePGSIscore,whichwasasignificantpredictorforelevengambling
activities.
The factors that predict PGSI score
Asbefore,westartedbyperformingacorrelationanalysis.Wefoundthatalmosteveryfactorwas
correlatedwithPGSIscore.ThemainsurpriseswerethatLanguagespokenathomeandRelationship
statuswerenotsignificantlycorrelatedwithPGSIscore.Abbottetal.(2016)reportedthattherewassome
evidencethatLanguagespokenathomecouldpredictgamblingproblems,butthisevidencedidnotquite
reachstatisticalsignificance.Ourresultswouldindicatethatthisisnot,infact,animportantpredictor.We
weresurprisedtofindthatRelationshipstatusdoesnotpredictPGSIscoregiventhefactthatproblem
gamblingisknowntodamagerelationships(Ferris&Wynne,2001).Wehavenogoodexplanationfor
this.
Asbefore,wethenperformedalinearregressiontodeterminewhichofthesefactorsaresignificant
predictors.Whereaspreviouslywehadconsideredeachgamblingactivityinturn,wenowneededto
considerthemallsimultaneously,sinceproblemgamblingcouldarisefromparticipationinmorethanone
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activity.Toavoidbeingoverwhelmedbythelargenumberofpredictors,weperformedastepwiselinear
regression,whichsimultaneouslyconsideredallpossiblevariables.Ateachstep,weaddedthevariable
thatwouldmaximallyincreasetheamountofvarianceourlinearregressioncouldexplain.Thisprocess
wasterminatedwhenaddinganadditionalvariablewouldnotincreasetheexplainedvariancebya
statisticallysignificantamount.Whilewefoundthat33variablesweresignificantpredictorsand,intotal,
couldexplain56%ofthevarianceinPGSIscore,wealsofoundthatthemajority(91%)oftheexplainable
variancecouldbeexplainedbyjustthefirstfivepredictors:Positiveurgency,Playingpokermachinesat
pubs,hotels,orsportsclubs,Bettingongamingtablesatcasinos,Gamblingontheinternet,and
Overestimatingchancesofwinning.
Implications for policy and interventions
Ourworkhasanumberofpracticalimplications.Wewillconsidertheseinturn.
Problem gambling is more prevalent than previously reported
Perhapsthemoststrikingfindingfromourstudyisthatforthe25‐34yearagegroup,theprevalenceof
problemgamblingis23%.Thisisfarhigherthanhaspreviouslybeenreported.Forexample,astudy
conductedforTheVictorianResponsibleGamblingFoundationestimatedthatonly.8%ofindividualsin
Victoriaareproblemgamblers(VRGF,2016)andanolderstudyreportedthattheprevalenceofproblem
gamblinginVictoriawas0.97%(McMillen&Wenzel,2006).Partofthereasonforthisdiscrepancyisthat
wewereabletomeasureproblemgamblingasafunctionofage,socouldfocusontheagegroupthat
exhibitsthemostproblemgambling(25‐34yearolds).Hadwepresenteddataaveragedovertheentire
population,theprevalenceofproblemgamblingwouldhavedroppedto11%.Whilethatprevalenceis
stillhigherthanthatreportedbytheVRGF(2016)andMcMillen&Wenzel(2006),itismuchmorein
keepingwiththe8%prevalenceratethatwefoundpreviously,alsousingaVictoriansample(Boldero&
Bell,2012).Similarly,Scholes‐Balogetal.(2016)reportedaprevalencerateof4.7%foronesurvey(age
range17to24yearsold)andaproblemgamblingprevalencerateof5.7%forasecondsurvey(agerange
19to26yearsold),withbothsurveysalsofocusingsolelyonVictorians.Abbottetal.(2016)reporta
somewhatlowerprevalenceestimateof2.2%forproblemgamblinginVictoria.Thomasetal.(2010)
reportedamuchhigherprevalencerateofproblemgambling,reportingthat20.9%oftheirsamplewere
problemgamblers.WhiletheirsamplewasalsoVictorian‐based,theymadeaconcertedefforttosample
minorities,andthismayhaveincreasedthefractionofproblemgamblers.Whileourprevalencerateis
higherthanthatreportedbymostofthepreviousstudies,thoughlowerthanthatreportedbyThomaset
al.(2010),someoftheremainingdifferencemaybeduetooursurveymethod.Oursurveywasconducted
asanonlinequestionnaire,whereasalmostallthepreviousstudieswereconductedviatelephone
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interviews.ThesoleexceptiontothiswasThomasetal.(2010)whereparticipantsalsocompletedan
anonymousquestionnaire.Giventhestigmaassociatedwithproblemgamblingandthepersonalnatureof
telephoneinterviews,individualsmayhavebeenmorereluctanttoacknowledgetheirgamblingproblems
inatelephoneinterviewasopposedtoinananonymousquestionnaire.Thiscouldexplainwhybothwe
andThomasetal.(2010)foundahigherrateofproblemgamblingthanpreviousstudies.Additionally,the
demographicsofoursurveywerechosentoberepresentativeofthegeneralVictorianpopulation,
whereasthoseintheprevioussurveyswerenot,thoughAbbottetal.(2016)attemptedtocompensatefor
thisbyreweightingtheirsample.Afinalfactormaybethetimingofoursurvey.Iftherateofproblem
gamblingisincreasing(VGRF,2016),thenonewouldexpectourstudytofindahigherrateofproblem
gamblingthanpreviousstudies.Regardlessoftheexactreasonforthedifferencebetweenourfindings
andpreviousfindings,itisclearthathigh‐riskproblemgamblingisfarmoreprevalentinVictoriathan
generallyacknowledged.
Problem gambling is mainly predicted by just five factors
Asdiscussedabove,91%oftheexplainablevarianceinthePGSIscorewasaccountedforbyjustfive
variables:Positiveurgency,Playingpokermachinesatpubs,hotels,orsportsclubs,Onlinediscussionsof
gamingtablesatcasinos,Gamblingontheinternet,andOverestimatingchancesofwinning.Thissuggests
thatinterventionsdesignedtoreduceproblemgamblingwoulddowelltoconcentrateonthesefactors.
Wepredictthatproblemgamblingwouldlikelybereducedifinterventionswereintroducedtoreduce
gamblingatpokermachinesatpubs,hotelsorsportsclubs,gamblingatgamingtablesatcasinosand
gamblingontheinternet.Furthermore,interventionsthatreducethedegreetowhichpeople
overestimatethechancesofwinningwouldalsohelp.Forexample,educatingpeopletoavoidcommon
gamblersfallaciesmightreduceproblemgambling.Finally,whentreatingproblemgamblers,counsellors
shouldconcentrateonreducingandbettercontrollingpositiveurgency.
Gambling frequency
Althoughinterventionstendtobedesignedtoaddressproblemgambling,mostgambling‐relatedharm
originatesfromlowandmoderateriskgambling(Browneetal.,2016).Forthisreason,itwouldbehighly
beneficialtoreduceoverallgamblingfrequency.Ourdatasuggestthatthedegreetowhichindividuals
gambleisinfluencedbytheirperceptionsofthedegreetowhichfamilymembersandpeersgambleand
thedegreetowhichpeersandpeopleingeneralapproveofgambling.Furthermore,ourdatashowsthat
individualssystematicallyoverestimatethedegreetowhichtheirpeersgambleandthedegreetowhich
peopleingeneralapproveofgambling.Correctingthesemisperceptionsshouldhelpreducegambling
frequency.Additionally,amajorpredictorofself‐reportedgamblingfrequencyisself‐reportedapproval
ofgambling.Thissuggeststhatinterventionsthatreducethedegreetowhichanindividualapprovesof
gamblingarelikelytobeeffectiveatreducinggamblingfrequency.
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Limitations
Ourstudyisnotwithoutlimitations.OurparticipantswererecruitedfromthoseenrolledintheORU’s
surveypanel.AlthoughwerequestedthattheORUprovideuswitharepresentativesampleofVictorians
andthedemographiccharacteristicsofage,gender,andplaceofresidence(i.e.,metropolitanvs.non‐
metropolitan)matchedthoseofVictorianresidents,wehavenoinformationaboutthenumberof
participantscontactedwhodidnotagreetoparticipate.Inaddition,becausewewantedtoincreasethe
chancethatcontactedindividualswouldagreetoparticipate,weusedarelativelyshortsurveyanddid
notincludesomefactorsthatcouldhavebeenassociatedwithgamblingfrequenciesandgambling
problems.Further,ourfrequencydataincludedonlytwotimeperiods(i.e.,morethansixtimesandless
thansixtimesinthepastyear)inadditiontonever.Itispossiblethatusingmorecategoriesforthe
frequenciesofbehaviour,forseeingadvertisementsandforreceivingpromotionalmaterialscouldhave
allowedamorenuanceddescriptionoftheextenttowhichotherpeopleareperceivedtogambleandthe
impactofadvertisementsandpromotionalmaterialsongamblingbehaviourandgamblingproblems.
Finally,oursamplewasrestrictedtothoseindividualswhohaveaccesstotheinternet.Assuch,wedid
notsurveythosewhodidnothavethisaccess.Itispossiblethatthegamblingbehavioursofindividuals
withinternetaccessdifferfromthosewholackthisaccess.
Insomepartsofouranalysis,weperformedcorrelations.Whilecorrelationscanshowwhichfactorsare
statisticallyassociated,theycanneverprovethatonefactoriscausingthevariationinanotherfactor
(Aldrich,1995).Consequently,whileacorrelationanalysiscanbesuggestiveofthecausalrelationships,it
cannotprovetheserelationships.Weadditionallyperformedlinearregressions.Forthesamereasons
thatcorrelationscannotprovecausality,findingthatonevariablepredictsanotherinalinearregression
issuggestivebutisnotproofthatthefirstvariableisacauseofthefluctuationsinthesecondvariable.
Similarly,findingthatonevariabledoesnotpredictanothervariableissuggestive,butnotproof,ofalack
ofacausalrelationship.Theapparentlackofpredictivepowercouldbetheresultofatype2errororbe
causedbyanon‐monotonicrelationshipbetweenthetwovariables.Additionally,itshouldbe
acknowledgedthatthevaluesofthestandardisedbetasintheregressionwillvarydependingonwhich
variablesareincludedinthesetofpredictorsintheregression.So,whilewecanclaimthatthelinear
regressionshaveconstructedplausiblemodelstoexplainthefluctuationsinthedependentvariables,itis
possiblethatotherlinearmodelscouldalsobeconstructedthatcouldexplainasimilaramountof
variance.Ourregressionanalysisis,therefore,bestdescribedassuggestive,butnotproof,astowhatthe
underlyingcausalrelationshipsare,sotheseresultsmustbeinterpretedwithcaution.
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Conclusions and recommendations for future research
About95%ofVictorianshavegambledatleastonceinthepreceding12months,withabout50%
gamblingmorethansixtimesinasinglegamblingactivity,duringthistimeperiod.Wefoundthat
gamblingfrequencygenerallyincreasedwithage,wasgenerallygreaterformalesthanforfemalesand
wasgenerallygreaterin2016thanin2010.Conversely,wefoundthatproblemgamblingwasmost
prevalentforpeopleaged25‐34yearsoldanddecreasedthereafter.Thereissomeevidencethatproblem
gamblingwasmorefrequentin2016thanin2010,butthisisnotconclusive.Perhapsourmostsurprising
findingwastherateofhigh‐riskproblemgambling.Averagedoverourentiresample,itwas11%.While
thisisonlyslightlygreaterthanwhatwefoundin2010,wherewefoundthatapproximately8%of
individualswerehigh‐riskproblemgamblers,thisismuchgreaterthanthatreportedbyHare(2015),
whoreportedonly0.8%ofindividualswerehigh‐riskproblemgamblers.Whilewediscussedvarious
potentialreasonsforthediscrepancybetweentherateofhigh‐riskproblemgamblingreportedbyusand
byHare(2015),thesereasonswerenecessarilyspeculativeinnature.Sinceitisimportanttoknowthe
trueprevalencerateofhigh‐riskproblemgamblinginVictoria,futureworkisneededtoaccountforthe
reporteddiscrepancies.
Turningourattentionnowtothefactorsthatpredictself‐reportedgamblingfrequency,wefoundthatfor
themostpartthesefactorswereasexpectedbasedonthereviewoftheliteraturereportedinChapter2.
Ingeneral,wefoundthatgamblingfrequencywaswellpredictedbytheperceivedgamblingfrequencyof
familymembersandpeers,theself‐reportedapprovalofgambling,theapprovalofpeersandpeoplein
general,thefrequencyofreceivingpromotionalmaterial,thefrequencyofdiscussinggamblingoffline,
age,gender,overestimatingchancesofwinningandPGSIscore.However,therewereanumberoffactors
thatweexpectedtoreliablypredictself‐reportedgamblingfrequencybuteitherdidnotdosoatallordid
soonlyforaminorityofgamblingactivities.Thesepredictorsincluded:theperceivedparticipationin
gamblingofpeopleingeneral,theapprovalofgamblingbyfamilymembers,thefrequencyofseeing
gamblingadvertisements,thefrequencyofdiscussinggamblingonline,countryofbirth,languagespoken
atahome,relationshipstatus,location,andthepsychologicalfactorsofdepression,lowesteem,positive
urgency,luck/perseverance.Thiswassurprisingsincepreviousstudieshadfoundthesefactorstobe
associatedwithself‐reportedgamblingfrequency.Weexpectthatthisdiscrepancyoccurredbecausemost
previousstudiesperformedwhatamountedtoacorrelationanalysis.Conversely,weutilizedalinear
regressionwhichallowedustodeterminetheproportionoftheexplainablevarianceeachfactorcould
uniquelyexplain,givenourotherpredictors.Thisnaturallyresultedinlowerestimatesforthestrengthsof
thevariousrelationships.Forexample,analysingourdatawefindthatdepressionissignificantly
correlatedwiththeself‐reportedfrequencyofsportsbetting(N=3661,Spearman’srho=.15,p<.01,
Table2).However,almostnoneofthisisuniquelyattributabletodepression,whichiswhywhenwe
performalinearregressionwefindthatthecomparablestandardisedbetais‐.04(Table4),whichisnot
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statisticallysignificant.Itwasforthisreasonthatwechosetoreportbothstandardisedbetasand
regressioncoefficients,sincethelattercanbemisleadingwhenviewedontheirown.
Toinvestigatewhichfactorspredictproblemgambling,weperformedastepwiselinearregression.This
revealed33variablesasbeingsignificantpredictors.However,themajority(91%)oftheexplainable
variancecouldbeexplainedbyjustthefirstfivepredictorswhichwere:Positiveurgency,Playingpoker
machinesatpubs,hotels,orsportsclubs,Bettingongamingtablesatcasinos,Gamblingontheinternet,and
Overestimatingchancesofwinning.Basedonthis,wewereabletosuggestpotentialinterventionsto
reduceproblemgambling.
Inconclusion,ourstudyhasachievedthefollowingoutcomes:
AcomprehensivereviewoftheinternationalandAustralianliteratureonthepredictorsofgambling
frequencyandgamblingproblems.
AnanalysisoftheprevalenceofgamblinginVictoriaasafunctionofbothageandgender.
Acomparisonoftheprevalenceofgamblingin2016versusin2010.
Ananalysisoftheprevalenceofproblemgamblingasafunctionofbothageandseverity.
Ananalysisofthepredictorsofbothgamblingfrequencyandproblemgambling.
An analysis of how often others are perceived to gamble and the degree to which others are
perceivedtoapproveofgambling.
Adiscussionoftheimplicationsofthisresearchforpolicyandinterventions.
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Molde,H.,Pallesen,S.,Bartone,P.,Hystad,S.&Johnsen,B.H.(2009).Prevalenceandcorrelatesofgamblingamong16to19‐yearoldadolescentsinNorway.ScandinavianJournalofPsychology,50(1),55‐64.
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570‐582.King,S.M.,Abrams,K.&Wilkinson,T.(2010).Personality,gender,andfamilyhistoryinthepredictionofcollege
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Appendix A
Inrecruitingparticipants,theORUattemptedtomatchoursampletotheVictorianpopulationingeneral
forage,sexandlocation,accordingtothedemographicdataobtainedfromthe2011AustralianBureauof
Statistics(ABS)survey.Thedatafromthe2016ABSsurveywasnotusedasithadnotbeenreleasedwhen
westartedtorunourstudy.Itwasnotpossibletoperfectlymatchonanysingledimension,giventhetime
constraints,thefinitesizeofthesubjectpanelandthefactthattheORUwastryingtomatch
simultaneouslyonthreedifferentdimensions(gender,ageandlocation).
Gender
ABS2011 Oursurvey
Male 49.4% 48.1%
Female 50.6% 51.8%
Location
ABS2011 Oursurvey
Melbourne 75.4% 70.7%
Regional 24.6% 29.3%
Age
ABS2011 Oursurvey
18‐24 12.43% 11.54%
25‐29 8.46% 8.63%
30‐34 9.28% 9.02%
35‐39 9.71% 8.39%
40‐44 9.75% 8.42%
45‐49 9.59% 8.75%
50‐54 8.72% 8.12%
55‐59 8.18% 8.75%
60‐64 6.35% 10.38%
65+ 17.53% 18.00%
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Appendix B
Thequestionnaireusedinboththepilotstudyandinthelarge‐scalesurveyofVictorianadults.
GamblingSurvey
Therearelocationrequirementsthatmustbemetinordertoparticipateinourstudy.Pleasetypeyour
postcodeontheboxbelow,thenclick"next".
Ifyoudonotmeetthecriteriathesurveywillterminateandyouwillberedirectedtothescreenoutpage.
PostCode:[Freeresponse]
Section1‐Demographics
Inthissectionwewouldliketofindoutaboutyouandyourhousehold.Weareinterestedincollectingthis
informationsowecanmakecomparisonsbetweendifferentgroupsofindividuals,differenthouseholds,
anddifferentgeographicalareas.
Whatisthestreetname,suburb,andpostcodeofyourproperty?(PleaseDONOTincludeyourstreet
numberorlotnumber)
Street:[Freeresponse]
Suburb:[Freeresponse]
Postcode:[Freeresponse]
Whatgenderdoyouidentifywith?[Choiceof“Male”,“Female”,“Other(pleasespecify)]
Pleasespecifyyourageinyears:[Freeresponse]
Wherewereyouborn?[Choiceof“Australia”,“Other(pleasespecify)”]
Whatisthemainlanguageyouspeakathome?[Choiceof“English”,“Other(pleasespecify)”]
Whatisyourmaritalstatus?[Choiceof“Married”,“Livingwithapartner(e.g.adefacto,or
boyfriend/girlfriend)”,“Single,thatis,nevermarried”,“Separated(stilllegallymarried)”,“Divorced”,
“Widowed”]
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Section2‐GamblingBehaviour(PGSI)
WewouldnowliketoaskyousomequestionsaboutYOURgamblingbehaviour.Thinkingaboutthe
last12months,pleaseanswerthefollowingquestions.
[Forthefollowingquestionsthechoiceswere“Never”,“Sometimes”,“Mostofthetime”,“Almostalways”,
“Don’tknow”]
Haveyoubetmorethanyoucouldreallyaffordtolose?
Haveyouneededtogamblewithlargeramountsofmoneytogetthesamefeelingofexcitement?
Whenyougambled,didyougobackanotherdaytotrytowinbackthemoneyyoulost?
Haveyouborrowedmoneyorsoldanythingtogetmoneytogamble?
Haveyoufeltthatyoumighthaveaproblemwithgambling?
Hasgamblingcausedyouanyhealthproblems,includingstressoranxiety?
Thisisacatchquestiontocheckthatyouarereadingthesurvey.Pleaseclick“Mostofthetime”toshow
thatyouhavereadthisquestion.
Havepeoplecriticizedyourbettingortoldyouthatyouhadagamblingproblem,regardlessofwhetheror
notyouthoughtitwastrue?
Hasyourgamblingcausedanyfinancialproblemsforyouoryourhousehold?
Haveyoufeltguiltyaboutthewayyougambleorwhathappenswhenyougamble?
Haveyouliedtofamilymembersorotherstohideyourgambling?
Haveyoubetorspentmoremoneythatyouwantedtoongambling?
Haveyouwantedtostopbettingmoneyorgambling,butdidnotthinkyoucould?
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Section3‐ApprovalofGambling
PleaseindicatetheextentYOUapproveofthefollowinggamblingactivities.
[Forthefollowingquestionsthechoiceswere“Stronglydisapprove”,“Moderatelydisapprove”,“Neither
approvenordisapprove”,“Moderatelyapprove”,“Stronglyapprove”]
BuyinglotteryticketssuchasTattslotto,Powerball,orKeno?
Buyinginstantscratchtickets(a'scratchie')?
Buyingraffleorfundraisingtickets?
Bettingonhorseraces,trotsordograces?
Bettingonsportslikefootball,tennis,rugbyorcricket?
Bettingongamingtablesatcasinos?
Playingpokermachinesatcasinos?
Playingpokermachinesatpubs,hotelsorsportingclubs?
Bettingoncardsorboardsgameswithfamilyorfriends?
Bettingongamesofskillsuchaspool,bowlingordarts?
Bettingonarcadeorvideogames?
GamblingontheInternet?
Section3‐ApprovalofGambling
PleaseindicatetheextentyouthinkthatYOURFAMILYapprovesofthefollowinggamblingactivities.
Samelistofquestionsandsamescaleasabove.
Section3‐ApprovalofGambling
PleaseindicatetheextentyouthinkthatYOURPEERSapproveofthefollowinggamblingactivities.
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Samelistofquestionsandsamescaleasabove.
Section3‐ApprovalofGambling
PleaseindicatetheextentyouthinkthatPEOPLEINGENERALapproveofthefollowinggambling
activities.
Samelistofquestionsandsamescaleasabove.
Section4‐ParticipationinGambling
PleaseindicatetheextenttowhichYOUhavedonethefollowingwithinthelast12months.
[Forthefollowingquestionsthechoiceswere“Morethan6times”,“Lessthan6times”,“Never”]
BoughtalotteryticketsuchasTattslotto,Powerball,orKeno?
Boughtaninstantscratchticket(a'scratchie')?
Boughtraffleorfundraisingtickets?
Betonhorseraces,trotsordograces?
Betonsportslikefootball,tennis,rugbyorcricket?
Betongamingtablesatacasino?
Playedpokermachinesatacasino?
Playedpokermachinesatapub,hotelorsportingclub?
Betoncardsorboardgameswithfamilyorfriends?
Betongamesofskillsuchapool,bowlingordarts?
Betonarcadeorvideogames?
GambledontheInternet?
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Section4‐ParticipationinGambling
PleaseindicatetheextentyouthinkYOURFAMILYhasdonethefollowingwithinthelast12months.
Samelistofquestionsandsamescaleasabove.
Section4‐ParticipationinGambling
PleaseindicatetheextentyouthinkYOURPEERShavedonethefollowingwithinthelast12months.
Samelistofquestionsandsamescaleasabove.
Section4‐ParticipationinGambling
PleaseindicatetheextentyouthinkPEOPLEINGENERALhavedonethefollowingwithinthelast12
months.
Samelistofquestionsandsamescaleasabove.
Section5‐ViewsAboutGambling
Whethertheygambleornot,peoplehaveviewsaboutgambling.PleaseratetheextenttowhichYOU
agreewiththefollowingstatements.
[Forthefollowingquestionsthechoiceswere“Stronglydisapprove”,“Moderatelydisapprove”,“Neither
approvenordisapprove”,“Moderatelyapprove”,“Stronglyapprove”]
SometimesIjustknowI'mgoingtohavegoodluck.
IfIhadlostmybetsrecently,myluckwouldbeboundtochange.
SometimesIthinkIhavethepowerto"will"mynumberstocomeupingamblinggames.
IfIconcentratehardenoughIwouldbeabletoinfluencewhetherIwinifIplaypokermachines.
Thisisacatchquestiontocheckthatyouarediligentlyreadingthesurvey.Pleasetick“Neitheragreenor
disagree”toshowyouhavereadthisquestion.
Section5‐ViewsAboutGambling
Regardlessofwhetheryoupersonallygamble,pleaseratetheextenttowhichYOUagreeordisagree
withthefollowingstatementsasifyouwereagambler.
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[Forthefollowingquestionsthechoiceswere“Stronglydisapprove”,“Moderatelydisapprove”,“Neither
approvenordisapprove”,“Moderatelyapprove”,“Stronglyapprove”]
WhereIgetmoneytogambledoesn'tmatterbecauseIwillwinandpayitback.
IfIcontinuetogamble,itwilleventuallypayoffandIwillmakemoney.
Ishouldkeepthesamebetevenwhenithasnotcomeuplatelybecauseitisboundtowin.
TherearecertainthingsthatIcandowhenIambetting‐forexample,tappingacertainnumberoftimes,
holdingaluckycoininmyhand,crossingmyfingers,etc.‐whichincreasethechancesthatIwin.
Section6‐PerceptionsofOne'sSelf
Peopleseetheirlivesindifferentways.PleaseratetheextenttowhichYOUagreethateachofthe
followingstatementsdescribeyou.
[Forthefollowingquestionsthechoiceswere“Rarelyornoneofthetime”,“Alittle”,“Sometimes”,“Often”,
“Alwaysormostofthetime”]
Ifeellonely.
WhenIaminagreatmoodItendtogetintosituationsthatcouldcausemeproblems.
Iammiserabletobearound.
WhenIamveryhappy,Ican'tseemtostopmyselffromdoingthingsthatcanhavebadconsequences.
Ifeeldepressed.
Whenoverjoyed,IfeelaslikeIcan'tstopmyselffromgoingoverboard.
Iamoftenincompetent.
ItendtolosecontrolwhenIaminagreatmood.
Ifeelcompletelyworthless.
Irarelyliveuptomyownvaluesorstandards.
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Ifeelsad.
IfeelthatIcouldnotshakeoffthebluesevenwiththehelpoffamilyandfriends.
Section7‐AdvertisementsandSocialMediaPleaseindicatehowofteninthelastyearYOUhave
seenadvertisementsforthefollowingtypesofgambling.
[Forthefollowingquestionsthechoiceswere“Morethan6times”,“Lessthan6times”,“Never”]
LotteryticketssuchasTattslotto,Powerball,orKeno?
Instantscratchtickets('scratchies')?
Raffleorfund‐raisingtickets?
Bettingonhorseraces,trotsordograces?
Bettingonsportslikefootball,tennis,rugbyorcricket?
Bettingongamingtablesatcasinos?
Pokermachinesatcasinos?
Pokermachinesatpubs,hotelsorsportingclubs?
Bettingoncardsorboardgameswithfamilyorfriends?
Bettingongamesofskillsuchapool,bowlingordarts?
Bettingonarcadeorvideogames?
GamblingontheInternet?
Section7‐AdvertisementsandSocialMedia
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PleaseindicatehowofteninthelastyearYOUhavereceivedpromotions(e.g.aflyerinthemail)for
thefollowingtypesofgambling.
Samelistofquestionsandsamescaleasabove
Section7‐AdvertisementsandSocialMedia
PleaseindicatehowofteninthelastyearYOUhavediscussedonline(e.g.viaemail,Facebook,Twitter,
Instagrametc.)thefollowingtypesofgambling.
Samelistofquestionsandsamescaleasabove.
Section7‐AdvertisementsandSocialMedia
PleaseindicatehowofteninthelastyearYOUhavediscussedoffline(e.g.,inperson,onthetelephone
etc.)thefollowingtypesofgambling.
Samelistofquestionsandsamescaleasabove.
Inrespondingtothissurvey,didyouexperienceanydifficultiesorfindanyofthequestionsconfusing?If
so,pleaseexplainbelow.[Freeresponse]
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