Assessing the impact of interactive gambling and new technologies Dr. Sally Gainsbury Centre for Gambling Education and Research, Southern Cross University 10 th European Conference on Gambling Studies and Policy Issues 11 September, 2014, Helsinki, Finland
Understanding Internet gambling through research Or, how research can be used to inform policy and practice
Internet gambling in the 1990s
2000s Technology & products evolve Cheap, fast broadband Internet Better graphics and games Increased consumer confidence New games
2014 Internet gambling becomes mainstream Liberalization Mobile Increased consumer confidence and trust
Millions Advertising increases awareness 1.6 1.4 1.2 1 0.8 0.6 0.4 0.2 0 Number of televised gambling advertisements (UK) 2006 2008 2010 2012
Internet gambling has become mainstream
Major concerns still exist 1. Participation in gambling will increase 2. Land-based gambling will decrease 3. Youth will gamble online 4. Problem gambling will increase
The Australian experience 2001 Interactive Gambling Act: Prohibition Wagering & lotteries permitted 2008 Advertising liberalized
The Australian experience Increase in interactive gambling yield Increase in international operators
Australian Interactive Gambling Study Commissioned by Gambling Research Australia Conducted by Centre for Gambling Education & Research, Southern Cross University Hing, Gainsbury, Blaszczynski, Wood, Lubman, & Russell
Australian Interactive Gambling Study 1. National telephone prevalence survey (N = 15,006) 2. Online survey (N = 4,594) 3. Interviews with interactive gamblers (N = 81) 4. Data from help-seeking agencies To determine who, what, when, why and how people are gambling using interactive technology in Australia
Source: National telephone prevalence survey, Productivity Commission Does Internet gambling increase gambling participation? Prevalence 1999 2011 Gambling participation Interactive gambling 82% 64% 22% reduction in Australians gambling 0.6% 8% 13 times more people gambling online
Participation in gambling activities 1999 vs. 2011 70 60 50 % 40 30 20 10 0 LotteryScratch tickets Race betting EGMs Sports betting 2011 1999 Keno Casino games Poker Bingo Betting on skill games Source: National telephone prevalence survey, Productivity Commission
Will Internet gambling reduce landbased gambling? Internet gamblers are highly involved gamblers, on all forms & modes Mostly offline Half online, half offline 11% 22% Over 2/3rds of Internet gamblers mostly or always gamble online Mostly online 48% Only online 20% Source: Online survey 0% 20% 40% 60%
Internet gamblers offline 50% started gambling online in or after Majority prefer interactive gambling (55%) or prefer both modes equally (31%) Source: Online survey
Will more young people gamble online?
Internet gamblers are younger than land-based gamblers Mean age of interactive gamblers: 37 years 42 years 25 39 years higher rates of Internet gambling 20-24 years higher rates of land-based gambling Internet gamblers are young-middle age adults
Problematic Internet gambling among youth Age not predictive of problem gambling severity Younger interactive gamblers higher problem severity Treatment seeking Internet gamblers 18-39 years Young Internet gamblers may be at greater risk for harms
Prevalence of adult problem gambling Problem gambler Moderate risk Low risk 1 Australia 2011 4 8 Interactive gambling not predictive of PG severity No problem 52 Non-gambler 36 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 % Problem Gambling Severity Index Source: National telephone prevalence survey
Does Internet gambling cause problems? No problem Low risk Moderate risk Problem gambler Interactive gamblers 3 x higher PG rates 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 Land-based Internet Not replicated in online survey
What mode of gambling contributed to your problems? Interactive Gamblers Non-Interactive Gamblers Land-based 58% Land-based 85% Computer 26% Mobile 12% Over half had problems before gambling online Source: National telephone prevalence survey N=153 problem & moderate-risk gamblers
What gambling activity contributed to your problems? Interactive Gamblers Non-Interactive Gamblers Electronic gaming machines 43% Casino table games 15% Sports betting 14% Electronic gaming machines 50% Keno 15% Casino games 12% Source: National telephone prevalence survey N=153 problem & moderate-risk gamblers
Does Internet gambling cause problems? Problem gambling severity predicted by greater gambling involvement
Are the concerns about Internet gambling valid? Participation in gambling will increase? Internet gambling participation has increased Land-based gambling will decrease? Internet gamblers also gamble offline, but may reduce over time
Are the concerns about Internet gambling valid? Youth will gamble online? Younger generation may prefer Internet gambling Problem gambling will increase? But unique problems may develop
Conclusions Interactive gambling is a new mode of access Changing the impact of gambling? How research can assist policy development
Acknowledgments Collaborators: Nerilee Hing, Alex Russell, Alex Blaszczynski, Dan Lubman, Robert Wood Research commissioned by Gambling Research Australia The views expressed in this presentation are solely those of the author. The information, views and references material in this presentation are provided solely on the basis that the audience will be responsible for making their own assessment of the information provided
Thank you, questions? Dr Sally Gainsbury Senior Lecturer Centre for Gambling Education & Research, Southern Cross University Email: sally.gainsbury@scu.edu.au Website: http://works.bepress.com/sally_gainsbury/ @DrSalGainsbury
Further details Hing, N., Gainsbury, S., Blaszczynski, A., Wood, R., Lubman, D., Russell, A. (2014). Interactive Gambling. Report commissioned by Gambling Research Australia. Centre for Gambling Education & Research, Southern Cross University. Available at: http://www.gamblingresearch.org.au/home/interactive+gambling+pdf Hing, N., Cherney, L., Blaszczynski, A., Gainsbury, S. M., & Lubman, D. I. (In Press). Do advertising and promotions for online gambling increase gambling consumption? An exploratory study. International Gambling Studies, DOI: 10.1080/14459795.2014.903989 Gainsbury, S, Russell, A., Hing, N., Wood, R., Lubman, D. & Blaszczynski, A. (In Press). The prevalence and determinants of problem gambling in Australia: Assessing the impact of interactive gambling and new technologies. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors. Published online May 2014 DOI: 10.1037/a0036207 Hing, N., Cherney, L., Gainsbury, S., Lubman, D., Wood, R., & Blaszczynski, A. (In Press). Maintaining and losing control during Internet gambling: A qualitative study of gamblers experiences. New Media and Society. Published online January 2014 DOI: 10.1177/1461444814521140 Gainsbury, S, Russell, A., Hing, N., Wood, R., Lubman, D. & Blaszczynski, A. (In Press). How the Internet is changing gambling: Findings from an Australian prevalence survey. Journal of Gambling Studies. Published online August 2013 DOI: 10.1007/s10899-013-9404-7