All kinds of wagers down about 5 percent
Has the increased availability of gambling on mobile devices and computers led to an explosion in problem gaming? Not at all, according to a new study from the University at Buffalo Research Institute on Addictions.
“We compared results from two nationwide telephone surveys, conducted a decade apart. We found no significant increase in the rates of problem gambling in the U.S., despite a nationwide increase in gambling opportunities,” John W. Welte, PhD, senior research scientist at RIA, said in a release from the university.
The first survey interviewed 2,600 people in 1999-2000. The second survey interviewed almost 3,000 people in 2011-13. They were asked about their participation in casino gaming, the lottery, internet gaming, as well as raffles, office pools, bingo, sports, and horse or dog track betting.
Despite the increasing accessibility of gambling opportunities, rates of problem gambling “remained stable,” the report said. In fact, researchers found that overall participation in gambling dropped to less than 77 percent in 2011-13, down from 82.2 percent in 1999-2000.
“Our results show it is clear that U.S. residents are gambling less often,” Welte says.
