The 2014 Study on Gambling expenditure by level of problem gambling, type of activity, and demographic and socioeconomic characteristics.

Abstract

Spending money is a defining feature of gambling. In 2013/14, Australian’s lost around $21 billion on gambling reflecting average losses of $1,172 per adult (Australian Gambling Statistics, 2015). In 2010, the Australian Productivity Commission noted that gambling losses represented 3.1% of all household final consumption expenditure for the country. Despite the large sums involved, a relatively small proportion of gambling research has investigated the amounts of money spent by gamblers. A previous report by the ANU Centre for Gambling Research (CGR) explored the proportion of gambling expenditure derived from people with gambling problems and amongst different socioeconomic and demographic population subgroups. This report used the 2009 ACT Survey on Gambling, Health and Wellbeing and was funded by the ACT Gambling and Racing Commission (GRC). Since 2009, the ACT has seen a 15% reduction in gambling participation rates (Davidson et al., 2015). Industry data also show large reductions in gambling expenditure over this time period. The degree of the reduction in expenditure differs substantially across individual gambling activities, with the biggest declines evident for races (a 40% reduction), table games at the casino (a 32% reduction) and electronic gaming machines (EGMs: a 28% reduction) (ACT Gambling and Racing Commission, 2015). The recent and rapid changes in the ACT’s gambling expenditure landscape raise questions as to whether findings and recommendations derived from the 2009 data are still applicable. In 2015, the GRC funded a replication study using data from a subsequent ACT survey conducted in 2014. The current report presents findings from the 2014 ACT Survey. Information on gambling expenditure in Australia comes from three main sources, (i) Industry data as reported and released publically for Australian Gambling Statistics (AGS), (ii) Individual self-report surveys asking questions on money spent by individual respondents, and (iii) Household self-report surveys including questions about gambling expenditure at the household level. These different sources have their own strengths and weaknesses. Industry data provide objective measures for particular types of gambling and can be used to chart trends over time. However, they do not include any information on the characteristics of individuals who spend their money on gambling. Self-report information from specialist surveys can include a wide range of data on personal characteristics. However, self-reports can be inaccurate and it is well established that expenditure on certain gambling activities is substantially underreported and some is overreported. Household expenditure surveys are a potentially valuable means of assessing differences in expenditure both within and between households, but their use to date has been very limited. They, too, are constrained by underreporting Show more