Gambling Prevalence in Prince Edward Island [research report]
The report entitled "Gambling and Problem Gambling in Prince Edward Island" (2006, February) was produced by UPEI Professor Jason Doiron for the Prince Edward Island Department of Health. Some highlights:
- Since an initial prevalence study in 1999, the report notes that, "the overall rate of participation in gambling in Prince Edward Island appears to have remained virtually unchanged"
- "The rate of problem gambling among survey participants was 1.6%. It is estimated that the problem gambling rate in Prince Edward Island has remained stable since 1999."
- "Problem gambling in Prince Edward Island has been shown – for the second time – to be uniquely related to involvement in video lottery terminal gambling. Participants who engaged in VLT gambling in the year prior to the survey were 37.97 times more likely to have a gambling problem than participants who did not participate in VLT gambling in the year prior to the survey."
Also of interest is the CBC news article "Study recommends fewer VLTs" (2006, November 14) which provides some additional background and analysis on the report.
posted by RS @ 9:04 AM
2 comments
2 Comments:
Whenever I see such very low figures of problem gambling rates in commection with VLT's, I am immediately suspicious of the overall worth of the article. In view of the fact that self-reporting is the usual method of problem gambler identification and in view of my own long experience as a problem gambler, for years before I finally admitted and confronted the issue,I know that problem gambling is severely under-reported.
Australian studies have found between 50-75% of gamblers report being 'at risk' because they report over-spending. In consumer terms over-spending IS a problem. Your figures, with all due respect are more likely to be wrong for another reason...why would up to 90% of citizens be 'up in arms' to reduce gambling harms, if only 1-2 people per 100 were severely affected by VLT presence? For me, the PEI report is likely to be contrived...sorry!
LIBBY MITCHELL, WILUNA, WEST AUSTRALIA.
This study uses a trusted and validated instrument called the CPGI (Canadian Problem Gambling Index) to obtain a reliable estimate the percentage of the population that has gambling problems -- gamblers and non-gamblers alike.
The author of this report also used the collected data to review the links between problem gambling and specific gambling activities (p.57). He found that "participation in VLT gambling places individuals at significant risk for developing a gambling problem: If a person participated in VLT gambling, he or she was 37.97 times more likely to have a gambling problem than people that did not participate in VLT gambling."
I think the results of this study actually provide some evidence for your contention about the problematic aspects of VLT gambling.
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