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British Columbia Problem Gambling Prevalence Study

In late 2002, the British Columbia government's Gaming Policy and Enforcement Branch conducted province-wide research on gaming issues and gambling activities in BC The findings from the 'British Columbia Problem Gambling Prevalence Study' will be used to assist the Province in its on-going management and coordination of gaming activities, as well as a research resource to assist in the development of future responsible gambling and problem gambling programs, services and activities. What follows is a summary of the study's key findings.

The entire study is available in PDF format here.

Executive Summary

The following report presents the results of a survey conducted by Ipsos-Reid and Gemini Research to estimate the number of individuals in British Columbia who are experiencing difficulties controlling their involvement in gambling, as well as to provide information about the demographic characteristics of such individuals. The survey was commissioned by the Province of British Columbia through an RFP process. The main purpose of the 2002 survey is to assist the Province in its efforts to help individuals and groups affected by this disorder.

The survey results are based on telephone interviews with a representative sample of 2,500 adult (18+) British Columbians. The interviews were conducted by Ipsos-Reid between November 12th and December 14th, 2002. All data have been weighted to accurately reflect the actual age, gender and regional distribution of adult British Columbians, according to 2001 census figures. The margin of error for the total sample of 2,500 interviews is ±2.0 percent, 95 times out of 100.

Measuring Problem Gambling

A unique feature of the 2002 British Columbia survey is the use of two problem gambling screens. Canadian Problem Gambling Index (CPGI) provides an estimate of problem gambling that can be compared with recent studies in other provinces and will serve as the baseline for future studies. The South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS) provides comparability to previous problem gambling studies conducted in British Columbia in 1996 and 1993. The CPGI and the SOGS use different questions to measure problem gambling. For this reason, the results from the two screens are not directly comparable.

The CPGI was developed after a 1997 inter-provincial group—including British Columbia— commissioned the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse to design and test a new instrument for measuring problem gambling in non-clinical settings. The need for a new gambling screen was based on growing dissatisfaction with the SOGS among Canadian researchers. The main criticism of the SOGS among Canadian researchers was that this screen was developed and tested in a clinical setting and the characteristics of its performance in community samples were unknown (Wiebe, Single & Falkowski-Ham, 2001).

Both of these screens are used to estimate the "prevalence" of problem gambling within a population. In this study, prevalence refers to the percentage of the adult BC population that exhibit problem gambling behaviours. Problem gambling is commonly used to indicate all gambling behaviour patterns which compromise, disrupt or damage personal, family, or vocational pursuit; it includes pathological gambling as the extreme end of a spectrum of gambling involvement. A history of problem gambling measurement and a more detailed explanation of the CPGI and the SOGS are provided in "Section 2.0: Measuring Problem Gambling" of the full report.

Key Survey Findings

Gambling Activity in British Columbia

• Gambling participation in British Columbia has fallen since the 1993 and 1996 prevalence studies. The 2002 survey finds significantly fewer British Columbians are gambling on a lifetime (91%), past year (85%) and weekly (39%) basis. The sharpest drop has been in lottery game play, although lottery games remain by far the most popular gambling activity in the province. In contrast, the proportion of British Columbians taking part in casino gambling activity has risen significantly from previous surveys.
• Average individual spending has increased among British Columbians who gamble. Provincial government statistics show that total spending on gambling in BC has increased since the 1993 and 1996 studies. With fewer British Columbians now gambling, the most likely explanation for this increase is that individual gamblers are spending more on average than they were in 1993 or 1996.
• Nevertheless, gambling is a low cost entertainment activity for most British Columbians, with two-thirds of past year gamblers reporting they spend less than $10 per month. Heavier spending is found among past year participants in certain activities, including those who gamble on the Internet, horse racing, sports lotteries, electronic gaming machines, bingo and casino games.
• British Columbians in the pre-retirement age group (55 to 64 years) are the most likely to be gambling on a weekly basis. In contrast, BC residents under the age of 35 years are much less likely to be weekly gamblers. Other more prevalent weekly gamblers include those with less education, retired residents, men and higher income residents.

Problem Gambling Prevalence

• The estimate of total problem gamblers in British Columbia is in the middle of the pack of Canadian jurisdictions that have recently completed surveys using the CPGI methodology. Manitoba is the only province that has a statistically lower level of total problem gamblers than BC. Meanwhile, the incidence of "severe" problem gamblers in British Columbia is the lowest of any comparable province.
• Using the Canadian Problem Gambling Index, we estimate that 4.6 percent of adult British Columbians are problem gamblers, including 4.2 percent who are moderate problem gamblers and 0.4 percent who are severe problem gamblers. When projected across the entire BC population, this equates to an estimate of between 123,400 and 177,100 total problem gamblers. The estimate of British Columbians with "severe" gambling problems is much lower (5,800 to 22,700).

• British Columbia is not without risk of developing problems in the future. The level of at-risk gamblers (11.1%) in the province is the highest of any jurisdiction that has conducted a CPGI study. This suggests the need for focusing on prevention and awareness issues to avoid a progression of at-risk gamblers into the more serious problem categories.
• Using the SOGS methodology to compare 2002 results with previous BC surveys, we find that the incidence of problem gambling in British Columbia is unchanged from previous surveys. The 2002 survey classifies 3.8 percent of past year gamblers as either a problem gambler (2.8%) or a probable pathological gambler (1.1%). This estimate of total problem and probable pathological gamblers is identical to estimates from 1996 and 1993. There is also no statistical change from previous surveys among weekly gamblers or the population as a whole.

Profile of Problem Gamblers

• While problem gambling is not restricted to any particular segment of the BC population, some segments have much higher rates and merit special attention. Specifically, the prevalence of problem gamblers is higher than average among Northern residents (10.2%), young residents (9.8%, 18-24 years) and lower household income residents (6.8%, <$30K).
• In addition, past year participation in many gambling activities is associated with higher problem gambling rates. The top activities in terms of problem gamblers are sports lotteries (12.9%), bingo (10.9%), horse racing (10.4%) and casinos (8.8%).
• There is also evidence that problem gambling rates are higher among Internet gamblers (9.9%) and those who play electronic gaming machines outside casinos (8.4%). These findings, however, are based on small sample sizes because of the very low level of participation in either of these two activities.
• These findings point to the need for the Province to focus special attention on the North, youth and lower income residents. They also suggest the need for venue specific efforts directed at sports lotteries, bingo halls, horse racing betting sites and casinos.
• The 2002 survey confirms many behaviours, attitudes and correlates of problem gambling found in other studies. These findings suggest some specific messaging for communications aimed at at-risk and problem gamblers. Relevant messages would include topics like distance traveled to gamble, money spent on gambling, belief in fallacies, remembering a big win and drinking while gambling.

Help Services

• Most British Columbians are unaware of the help services available for at-risk and problem gamblers in BC. Three-in-ten BC residents say they are aware of free counselling services (29%) and of counselling services available in their community (29%). Nearly five-in-ten (45%) residents claim to be aware of the toll-free help line in British Columbia.
• These services should be promoted to British Columbians who fall into one of the problem gambling or at-risk categories. In addition, awareness of these programs and services is much lower in the Lower Mainland than in the rest of BC. Younger residents are much less likely to be aware of toll-free help lines and that counselling services are provided free of charge. Older residents are much less likely to be aware of counselling services in their particular community.

Download the British Columbia Problem Gambling Prevalence Study in PDF format

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