Prevalence and predictors of illegal gambling in Canada

Abstract

ABSTRACT Most forms of gambling have been legalized in Canada over the past 50 years. One of the main government justifications for legalization is to eliminate illegal gambling. The purpose of the present study is to shed some light on this issue by establishing the current prevalence of illegal gambling in Canada. A survey of 10,199 Canadian adults was conducted in 2018 as part of a comprehensive national study of gambling. Past year prevalence of illegal gambling was found to be very low: 0.05% for using illegal betting shops or bookies; 0.07% for patronizing illegal casinos or card rooms; 0.09% for illegal animal contests; and 1.59% for illegal online gambling. The most robust individual predictors of participating in any type of illegal gambling were engagement in a larger number of gambling formats and having a higher overall frequency of gambling. Additional individual predictors for specific types were the presence of gambling problems, provincial illegality of that form, male gender, younger age, and race/ethnicity. In conclusion, the low level of illegal gambling provides support for the contention that legal forms may have displaced illegal forms. However, illegal gambling does continue to exist to a limited extent, especially among heavily involved gamblers.