Abstract
BackgroundInformation about public gambling attitudes and gambling participation is crucial for the effective prevention of gambling-related harm. This study investigates female and male attitudes towards gambling, gambling participation, and gambling-related harm in the Finnish population aged 15–74.MethodsCross-sectional random sample data were collected in 2011 (n = 4484) and 2015 (n = 4515). The data were weighted based on gender, age and region of residence. Attitudes were measured using the Attitudes Towards Gambling Scale (ATGS-8). Gambling-related harms were studied using the Problem Gambling Severity Index and the South Oaks Gambling Screen.ResultsAttitudes towards gambling became more positive from 2011 to 2015. Female attitudes were generally negative, but nonetheless moved in a positive direction except in age groups under 25. Occasional gambling increased among women aged 18–24. Women aged 18–24 and 45–54 experienced more harms in 2015 than in 2011. Both land and online gambling increased among women aged 65–74. Male attitudes towards gambling were generally positive, and became more positive from 2011 to 2015 in all age groups except 15–17. Weekly gambling decreased among males aged 15–17. Gambling overall increased among males aged 18–24. Gambling several times a week decreased among men aged 35–44 and 45–54, and gambling 1–3 times a month increased in the latter age group. Online gambling increased only among men aged 55–64.ConclusionsAttitudes towards gambling became more positive in all except the youngest age groups. Under-age male gambling continued to decrease. We need to make decision-makers better aware of the continuing growth of online gambling among older people and women’s increasing experiences of gambling-related harm. This is vital to ensure more effective prevention.
Highlights
Information about public gambling attitudes and gambling participation is crucial for the effective prevention of gambling-related harm
Men aged 18–54 had a generally positive attitude in 2011, and by 2015 the age group 55–64 took a positive view. Overall these results show a clear tendency towards more favourable gambling attitudes and towards a narrowing of gender differences – a major departure from earlier results in Finland, and from results in the UK and Australia [1, 3, 4, 16, 40]
The exceptionally positive attitudes that we found in comparison with the UK and Australia are probably explained by a complex interplay of several factors, such as gambling environment, gambling exposure, gambling types and gambling resources [41]
Summary
Information about public gambling attitudes and gambling participation is crucial for the effective prevention of gambling-related harm. This study investigates female and male attitudes towards gambling, gambling participation, and gambling-related harm in the Finnish population aged 15–74. Epidemiological studies have shown that increased gambling participation, and higher gambling frequency in particular, leads to an increase in gambling problems [20, 21]. It seems that online gambling contributes more strongly to gambling problems than land-based gambling [22,23,24]
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