Prevalence of Problem Gambling: A Replication Study 7 Years Later

Abstract

French

Objectives:

To investigate the relationship between availability of gambling activities and participation in gambling, maximum amount of money lost in 1 day to gambling, and number of pathological gamblers.

Method:

Two random samples (1002 and 1257 adults) were surveyed 7 years apart using the South Oaks Gambling Screen to identify pathological gamblers.

Results:

Seven years later, significantly more people reported having gambled, and the number of pathological gamblers had increased by 75%.

Conclusions:

These findings support the hypothesis that increases in the availability of gambling are related to increases in the number of problem gamblers.

Keywords

pathological gambling prevalence availability and pathological gambling

References

Volberg

. Problem gambling in the United States. Journal of Gambling Studies 1996;12:111–28.

Ladouceur

. The prevalence of pathological gambling in Canada. Journal of Gambling Studies 1996;12:129–42.

Beconia

. Prevalence surveys of problem and pathological gambling in Europe: The cases of Germany, Holland and Spain. Journal of Gambling Studies 1996;12:179–92.

Abbott

Volberg

. Gambling and pathological gambling: Growth industry and growth pathology of the 1990's. Community Mental Health in New Zealand 1996;9:22–31.

Eadington

. Understanding gambling. In: Eadington

Cornelius

, editors. Gambling: Public policies and the social sciences. Reno (NV): Institute for the Study of Gambling and Commercial Gaming, College of Business Administration, University of Nevada; 1997. p 3–9.

Lesieur

. Epidemiological surveys of pathological gambling: Critique and suggestions for modification. Journal of Gambling Studies 1994;10:385–98.

Volberg

. Replication studies of problem gambling. Paper presented at the 10th International Conference on Gambing and Risk-Taking, Montreal, Quebec, 1997.

Ladouceur

. Prevalence estimates of pathological gambling in Quebec. Can J Psychiatry 1991;36:732–4.

Lesieur

Blume

. The South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS): A new instrument for the identification of pathological gamblers. Am J Psychiatry 1987;144:1184–8.

10.

Volberg

Steadman

. Refining prevalence estimates of pathological gambling. Am J Psychiatry 1988;145:502–5.

11.

Volberg

Steadman

. Prevalence estimates of pathological gambling in New Jersey and Maryland. Am J Psychiatry 1989;146:1618–9.