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CONCLUSIONS
General Overview
10.1 Understanding of the social impacts of gambling is limited by a shortage of high quality research. The field is complex, and findings are sometimes contradictory. However, some broad conclusions are beginning to emerge.
10.2 Availability of gambling and type of game are features that are strongly associated with problem playing. These features come together in non-casino electronic machines which are associated with the highest rates of problem gambling worldwide.
10.3 Casinos are also associated with high rates of problem gambling, and increasing availability increases levels of problematic behaviour in the local population. However, longitudinal research is beginning to suggest that this may level out or decline over time as communities adapt to the presence of gambling around them. In addition, public health policies that focus on the provision of treatment and information about problem gambling can also militate against such increases.
Research Limitations
10.4 Understanding of the social impacts of gambling is limited by a serious lack of high quality research. Although some economic effects are calculable, social impacts are less easy to quantify, and, to date many studies have produced inconclusive or contradictory results. This can exacerbate the controversy that surrounds gambling, with an evidence base that is often not able to resolve the most contentious issues.
10.5 As a result, both the negative as well as the positive effects of gambling, particularly casino gambling, tend to be overstated. Claims that casinos create significant wealth, new jobs and regenerate local economies; or that they create massive social problems through increases in problem gambling and crime tend to be exaggerated. The evidence base shows that casinos are neither as beneficial as supporters claim, nor as damaging as opponents fear. This situation was summed up by a large-scale review of the effects of casinos in the U.S.:
"For over a decade, advocates and opponents of casinos have argued about whether legalized gambling would produce prosperity or ruin. Our analysis - which compares the experience of counties in the United States that house casinos with those that do not - suggests that both sides are wrong. Instead, the introduction of a casino does appear to produce a few modestly positive effects, a few modestly negative impacts, and, in several areas, no statistically significant effects at all" (Baxandall and Sacerdote 2005: 1).
Problem Gambling and Disadvantaged Groups
10.6 Problem gambling is defined as behaviour that is out of control and that disrupts personal, family, financial and employment relations. It is linked to financial problems, debt and bankruptcy, divorce, lost productivity at work, crime (such as theft and fraud), depression and suicide. It is estimated that between 0.6%- 0.8% of the population in Britain are problem gamblers (between 275,000 and 370,000 people). The percentages of the population are similar for Scotland.
10.7 Disadvantaged social groups who experience poverty, unemployment, dependence on welfare, and low levels of education and household income are most likely to suffer the adverse consequences of increased gambling. Within these groups, those who are male, single and under thirty five years of age are also more likely to be at risk from developing problems with their gambling. In addition, problem gamblers are more likely than non-problem players to have heavy and/or problematic levels of consumption of drugs, alcohol and cigarettes.
10.8 Although individuals from these groups may not spend more on gambling in absolute terms, they do spend a higher proportion of their incomes than wealthier players.
Availability and Electronic Gambling Machines ( EGMs)
10.9 Availability and convenience are strongly associated with problem gambling. EGMs that are located outside casinos and are widely dispersed throughout the community in bars, hotels and clubs can encourage impulsive gambling and are associated with the highest rates of problem gambling worldwide. In addition, EGMs are the fastest growing sector of gambling markets, often displacing other forms as they spread to new venues. Their popularity among women has led to a trend that has been described as a 'feminisation' of problem gambling. In Britain a new type of electronic machine located in casinos and betting shops - Fixed Odds Betting Terminals ( FOBTs) - have become associated with increasing reports of problem gambling.
10.10 At the other end of the scale, casinos tend to require deliberate effort, in terms of planning and travelling to a venue, which discourages impulsive play. Convenience is therefore a crucial regulatory issue (particularly when combined with the absence of public awareness activities), which has implications for the location of casinos. However, casinos themselves are associated with high rates of problematic behaviour, although the picture becomes more complex here with a range of other factors, including the size and location of the casino, coming into play.
Casino Gambling
10.11 Currently, around 3% of the adult population gamble in casinos, although this is likely to increase as the effects of the new legislation come into force. Of these, between 5-8% are considered problem gamblers (i.e. less than one quarter of one per cent of the population).
10.12 Casino patrons have higher levels of income and education than other gamblers, and while casinos are the most popular form of gambling for individuals from the highest social class, they are the least popular form for those from the lowest social class. Individuals on lower incomes and with lower levels of education are less likely to visit casinos than the general population, although when they do, they tend to experience more problems with their playing.
10.13 In Britain, there are two distinct groups who experience problems with casino gambling: single, retired males aged over forty, especially those who are of Chinese ethnicity, and single unemployed males under thirty. These individuals also have higher levels of tobacco and alcohol consumption than other players.
Types of Casinos
10.14 Casinos are distinguished by a range of factors, including size and geographical location, which can result in very different impacts.
10.15 Large 'resort' casinos are often located away from major population centres and incorporate a range of leisure facilities which makes them attractive to tourists. In contrast, smaller casinos are often located in more urban or suburban environments and offer fewer facilities, with less potential for attracting tourists.
10.16 The social costs of casinos tend to be exported to the areas where the gamblers who play them live. This means that 'resort' and rural casinos tend to be associated with the lowest social costs relative to economic benefits, since the majority of their customers come from outwith the immediate area. However, urban or suburban casinos tend to draw large numbers of local residents to them, meaning that social costs remain within the community.
10.17 Unfortunately, few studies distinguish between the impacts of different types of casinos, with the result that simply not enough is known about these complex variables, and the way they interact to influence problem behaviour.
Casino Impacts
10.18 Research has found that proximity to casinos increases rates of problem gambling in the local population. Some studies have found that the location of a casino within 50 miles of an individual's home can double the prevalence of problem gambling, although other work also suggests that the provision of specialist problem gambling services and public health initiatives can militate against such increases.
10.19 Casinos do not appear to increase per capita crime, although total crime in a neighbourhood may increase. This seems to be an effect of population growth: casinos tend to attract large numbers of visitors to an area, and casino-jurisdictions can also experience population growth, increasing the overall population who can commit of fall victim to crime.
10.20 This effect appears to be concentrated on specific types of crime, such as burglary, and does not seem to affect violent crime and most street crimes. Fear of crime does not appear to increase in communities that introduce casinos, and may actually decrease due to the presence of casinos' own security measures and the development of run-down areas.
Long Term Impacts
10.21 Longitudinal studies from Australia, New Zealand and the U.S. have found that the prevalence of problem gambling has remained stable or even declined over time despite the introduction of casinos and other forms of gambling.
10.22 These patterns have been largely attributed to the existence of effective public health initiatives, such as the provision of information to educate local communities about the risks of problem gambling, as well as the provision of a range of treatment services to help those who develop problems with their behaviour. It has also been proposed that rates of problem gambling decline over time as communities adapt to the presence of gambling around them, and develop informal systems to protect against excessive behaviour.
Prevention and Treatment
10.23 Public health strategies can counter possible increases in problem gambling, particularly when targeted towards 'at risk' groups, even when casinos are introduced into a community. In addition, approaches that focus on the prevention of problem behaviour in the general population can save costs in the long term, since, across a range of behavioural disorders, severe problem gambling is one of the most difficult and expensive to treat. Effective interventions at an early stage can help to reduce possible increases in problem gambling throughout the population, even when new forms of gambling are introduced.
10.24 Raising awareness is particularly important in Scotland. As the pre-2005 legislation has restricted gambling in this country for so long, many individuals are simply not aware of the risks gambling can pose, nor are they aware of the availability of services to treat it. For example, less than half of the population have ever heard of Gamblers Anonymous, and only one in five problem gamblers has ever sought help for their difficulties.
Casinos in Scotland
10.25 In Scotland, regional authorities in Glasgow, West Dunbartonshire and Midlothian have bid for regional casino licenses, while Renfrewshire, Falkirk and Dumfries and Galloway have bid for one of the eight large casino licenses that will be awarded.
10.26 In general, small casinos and those located in urban or suburban areas have the greatest potential for negative social impacts in Scotland, particularly if those areas are already characterised by high levels of social deprivation. Large resort casinos have greater potential to attract tourists, resulting in lower social costs relative to economic benefits.
10.27 All but one of these proposals could be considered an urban or suburban location, and in addition, all but one are within fifty miles of each other, and within easy reach of areas of considerable deprivation. As such, it is conceivable that the impacts of one would be felt in surrounding regions, regardless of where any single one was actually built.
10.28 However, the real question is the extent to which these casinos actually attract local residents who are at risk from developing gambling problems. From what we know about casino participation already, we can see that casinos are not particularly popular among those on low incomes, the unemployed and those with low levels of education. However, at present it is not possible to predict what the uptake of casino gambling will be among these groups of individuals.
10.29 Overall, it can be seen that there are negative social impacts associated with increased gambling, and it is likely that the introduction of casinos in Scotland will see numbers of problem gamblers rise to some extent. However, as has been made clear throughout this report, various strategies exist that can be used to address these impacts, and these can reduce potential increases in problem gambling. Research has suggested that in many jurisdictions where specialist problem gambling services were provided, problem gambling did not increase or was kept to a minimum when new forms of gambling, including casinos, were introduced. In areas where there was no such provision, increases were reported.
10.30 In the event of increased gambling in Scotland, it is therefore crucial that public authorities adopt a pro-active approach to problem prevention, by ensuring that the public are informed about the potential risks of gambling and by targeting the appropriate resources to treat individuals who do develop problems with their playing. Ultimately, the steps taken by public authorities could have a significant effect on the eventual social impact of casinos in Scotland.
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