Comparison of the addiction levels, sociodemographics and buying behaviours of three main types of lottery buyers in China

Abstract

Objective: To compare the addiction levels, sociodemographic characteristics and buying behaviours of the buyers of the three main types of lottery in China.Design: A cross-sectional study using a battery of self-reported questionnaires, including the Lottery Addiction Scale (LAS) and questions related to sociodemographic information and buying behaviours.Setting: Zhejiang, Liaoning and Anhui Provinces in China.Sample: 856 respondents between 19 and 65 years old (mean age 37.96 years). The sample sizes for the buyers of the Union Lotto, 3-Digit lottery and Online Lottery were 304, 289 and 263, respectively.Results: A one-way ANOVA (F [2,806] = 21.43, p < 0.001) revealed that the buyers of the 3-Digit lottery received the highest mean LAS score (M = 30.32, SD = 7.37), followed by the Online Lottery buyers (M = 28.15, SD = 8.69) and then the Union Lotto buyers (M = 25.86, SD = 8.11). Sociodemographically, the 3-Digit buyers were the oldest and had the lowest levels of education and income, whereas the buyers of Online Lottery tickets were the youngest and had the highest levels of education and income. In terms of buying behaviours, 49.3% of the 3-Digit buyers allocated more than 20% of their income to the lottery every month, and this group spent the most time on the lottery every day.Conclusion: The most addictive lottery in China is the 3-Digit lottery. Further research is needed to explore the causal relationships between addiction levels, sociodemographics and buying behaviours among Chinese lottery buyers.