GAMBLING & SPENDING

• 85% of US adults have gambled at least once in their lives, 80% in past year.
• Since 1975, the proportion of adults who "never gambled" dropped from 1 in 3 to 1 in 7.
• 48 States with some form of legalized gambling (Hawaii and Utah are the exceptions)
• 2002 U.S. legal gaming revenue was $68.7 billion.
• In 1999 the National Gambling Impact Study Commission estimated the annual cost to society of problem gambling was $5 billion.
• During fiscal year 2002, U.S. lottery sales totaled $42.4 billion; per capita sales were $168 (NASPL, 2003)
• It is estimated that in 1997 Americans collectively wagered more than $1/2 trillion (National Research Council, 1999)
• Consumers spend more on legal gaming in the U.S. than most other forms of entertainment combined (1998 Gross Annual Wager Report, 1999)
• Forty to 60 percent of cash wagered in casinos is withdrawn from ATMs, either from personal accounts or as cash advances from credit cards (NORC, 1999)

HARMFUL IMPACTS OF PROBLEM GAMBLING
It is important to recognize that most people can gamble without negative consequences. A small percentage, however, of persons who gamble suffer enormous social, economic, and psychological implications. Individuals, families and communities all suffer from problem gambling, and, while it would be impossible to describe all of the repercussions associated with problem gambling, the following issues help to illustrate why problem gambling can be so destructive.

Domestic Issues

Effects of Adult Problem Gambling on Children:

• "Children of compulsive gamblers are often prone to suffer abuse, as well as neglect, as a result of parental problem or pathological gambling" (NORC, 1999)
• Research consistently shows higher rates of pathological gambling in teens whose parents gamble too much (Gupta & Derevensky, 1997; Jacobs, 2000; Wallisch & Liu, 1996)
• Children of problem gamblers have been shown to have higher levels of use for tobacco, alcohol, drug use, and overeating than do their classroom peers (Gupta & Derevensky, 1997)
• Child endangerment and child abuse may increase (NRC, 1999)
• The NRC reported on two studies indicating between 10 and 17 percent of children of compulsive gamblers had been abused" (NRC, 1999)
• Child endangerment was exemplified in Oregon with the September 2001 report of an Oregon licensed day-care provider who left three children (1, 2 and 3 years old) in a van for over 11 hours while she gambled in a casino (Lawrence-Turner, 2001, September 15)

Domestic Violence

• According to the National Research Council (1999), studies indicate that between 25-50 percent of spouses of pathological gamblers have been abused
• Case studies of 10 casino communities revealed that the majority of those communities witnessed increases in domestic violence related to the opening of casinos (National Opinion Research Center, 1999)

Crime

• Several studies suggest that crime rates rise with increased availability of gambling to communities, but this issue is under intense debate
• Forty percent of clients enrolled in Oregon’s gambling treatment system reported committing crimes to finance their gambling (Moore, 2003)
• “As access to money becomes more limited, gamblers often resort to crime in order to pay debts, appease bookies, maintain appearances, and garner more money to gamble” (NRC, 1999)
• Studies of Gamblers Anonymous (GA) members report that approximately half of the participants had stolen to gamble and over one-third had been arrested (Thompson, Gazel, & Rickman, 1996)
• The vast majority of gambling-related crimes are non-violent; embezzlement, check forgery, stealing credit cards, fencing stolen goods, tax evasion, insurance fraud, employee theft and fraud are common gambling-related crimes

Suicide/Depression

• Ten percent of clients enrolled in Oregon’s gambling treatment system considered and formulated plans to commit suicide within six months of enrollment to treatment (Moore, 2003)
• A major depressive disorder is likely to occur in 76 percent of pathological gamblers (Unwin Davis, & Leeuw, 2000)

REFERENCES

1998 Gross Annual Wager Report. International Gaming and Business Wagering (IGBW) Trade Magazine. (1999, August). Retrieved 2/21/02, from http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/990803/ny_igwb_wa_1.html

Gupta, R., & Derevensky, J.L. (1997). Familial and social influences on juvenile gambling behavior. Journal of Gambling Studies, 13(3), 179-192.

Lawrence-Turner, J. (9/15/01). Toddlers left in van for 11 hours. Statesman Journal. Retrieved online 3/11/02, from http://news.statesmanjournal.com/article.cfm-i=30022

National Opinion Research Center (NORC). (1999). Gambling Impact and Behavior Study, Report to the National Gambling Impact Study Commission [Electronic Version]. Chicago, IL: Author.

National Research Council (NRC). (1999). Pathological Gambling: A Critical Review. Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press.

Thompson, W., Gazel, R., Rickman, D. (1996). The social cost of gambling in Wisconsin. Wisconsin Policy Research Institute Report, 9, 144.

Unwin, B.K., Davis, M.K., & Leeuw, J.B. (2000). Pathological gambling. American Family Physician, February 2000, 61, 741-749.

Wallisch, L., & Liu, L. (1996). Drug use and gambling behavior among adults and youths in Texas: Survey findings. In: Epidemiologic Trends in Drug Abuse. Rockville, MD: National Institute on Drug Abuse. Volume II: 433-457.

MORE FACTS & FIGURES ON THE WEB

About Youth Gambling

http://www.youthbet.net
For youth, this site from the University of Toronto is highly interactive and focuses on youth gambling and problem gambling.

http://www.youthgambling.com
International Center for Youth Gambling Problems and High-Risk Behaviors.

http://www.camh.net/egambling/issue2/feature
“ Youth Gambling: A Clinical and Research Perspective.” From The Electronic Journal of Gambling Issues; prominent researchers Jeffrey Derevensky and Rina Gupta provide an overview of youth gambling problems and review of recent youth gambling research.

Help and Treatment

http://www.oregonlotteryhelp.org/quiz.html
Self-Assessment Quiz from the Oregon Lottery Help website.

http://www.gamblersanonymous.org/
Official Gamblers Anonymous website.

http://www.gam-anon.org/
Gam-Anon. Support for spouse, family, or close friends of the problem gambler.

http://www.gamblingaddiction.org/gp_cnty.htm
Oregon gambling treatment providers. List of state-funded treatment providers throughout the state.

http://www.apgsa.org
International Association of Problem Gambling Service Administrators website. Also is the host for information on National Problem Gambling Awareness Week.

http://www.ncpgambling.org
National Council on Problem Gambling, Inc. website. Provides information on state affiliates, a counselor search, and other resources.

About Athletes and Gambling

http://www.umich.edu/~mgoblue/compliance/gambling
University of Michigan athletics gambling education. Contains research and articles on gambling for anyone involved with athletics, as well as video clips about athletes with gambling problems.

http://www.thewager.org/Backindex/Vol4HTML/w423fr.html
Harvard’s The WAGER journal report on risk behaviors among athletes and non-athletes.

http://www.responsiblegambling.org/articles/
“ A Comparison of Problem Gambling Rates Between College Athletes and Non-Athletes in the Southeastern Conference” (.pdf). A research study; you will need the Adobe Acrobat Reader application to view this file.

Problem Gambling Research

http://www.gamblingaddiction.org
Oregon Gambling Addiction Treatment Foundation. A research and education resource for gambling addiction treatment professionals.

http://www.thewager.org
The Weekly Addiction Gambling Education Report (WAGER) is a research bulletin published by the Division on Addictions at Harvard Medical School and the Massachusetts Council on Compulsive Gambling; it is intended to disseminate information about the study of pathological gambling.

http://www.abgaminginstitute.ualberta.ca/agrilibrary/blogger.html
Alberta Gaming Research Institute Library Weblog. Provides a selection of Internet gambling research resources updated regularly.

http://www.geminiresearch.com/
The “Reports and Links” section offers a number of international research studies and reports available online.

http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/ngisc/reports/fullrpt.html
National Gaming Impact Study Commission Final Report, 1999.

http://www.responsiblegambling.org
The Responsible Gambling Council (Ontario) provides a collection of more than 2,500 articles, reports and documents on a “wide range of gambling-related issues.” Click the “e-Library” link to reach the gambling prevention and awareness resource e-library.

http://www.naspl.org/bibliog.html
Problem gambling: A bibliography. North American Association of State and Provincial Lotteries (NASPL) provides a number of research resources divided into categories related to problem gambling.

For Non-English Speakers

http://www.gamb-ling.com
Problem gambling information in 11 languages.

http://www.juegopatologico.com
Spanish: El juego patológico. Este sitio tiene artículos, noticias, autoayuda, y información en el diagnóstico y tratamiento del juego patológico. (Pathological gambling. This site contains articles, news, self-help, and information on the diagnostics and treatment of pathological gambling.)

http://www.adicciones.org/enfermedad/juego
Spanish: Addición al juego. Un sitio dedicada a adicciones en general, también se enfoca en la “adicción” al juego. (Gambling addiction. A site focused on general addictions, this page focuses on gambling “addiction.”)

http://www.cop.es/colegiados/M-13641/
Spanish: Juego patológico (ludopatía) en españa. Más información y enlaces sobre el juego patológico; artículos (dirigido a los profesionales) de investigaciones sobre el juego patológico. (Pathological gambling – a site from Spain. More information and links about pathological gambling; articles for professionals on studies related to pathological gambling.)

General Prevention/Treatment Resources

http://www.well.com/user/woa
Web of Addictions. Provides a host of information and links related to alcohol and other drug addictions.

http://www.unr.edu/westcapt/bestpractices/index.htm
Western Center for the Application of Prevention Technology (CAPT) provides information about building a successful prevention program, from needs assessment to program evaluation.

http://www.unr.edu/westcapt/powerpoint.htm
Western CAPT provides PowerPoint presentations online for such topics as media advocacy, social marketing, and other prevention strategies.

http://www.social-marketing.org
Social Marketing Institute. “Social marketing” link offers educational papers and conference information related to social marketing issues.

http://www.nfattc.org
Northwestern Frontier Addictions Technology Transfer Center. Offers a number of resources for addictions professionals, including Addictions Messenger, a monthly online treatment journal, information on education and trainings, and information on grants.

http://www.samhsa.gov