Gambling and problem gambling in a sample of university students
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Date
2006-04
Authors
Williams, Robert J.
Connolly, Dennis
Wood, Robert T.
Nowatzki, Nadine R.
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health
Abstract
University students from southern Alberta (n = 585) were administered a questionnaire to assess their gambling behaviour. Seventy-two percent reported gambling in the past 6 months, with the most common types being lotteries and instant win tickets (44%) and games of skill against other people (34%). Most students who gambled spent very little time and money doing so (median time spent = 1.5 hrs; median amount of money spent = $0). While gambling is an innocuous activity for most, a significant minority of students are heavy gamblers who experience adverse consequences from it. Seven and one-half percent of students were classified as problem or pathological gamblers, a rate significantly higher than in the general Alberta adult population. The characteristics that best differentiated problem gamblers from non-problem gamblers were more positive attitudes toward gambling, ethnicity (41% of Asian gamblers were problem gamblers), university major (kinesiology, education, management), superior ability to calculate gambling odds, and older age.
Description
Keywords
Gambling , Problem Gambling , University Students
Citation
Williams, R. J., Connolly, D., Wood, R.T., & Nowatzki, N. (2006). Gambling and problem gambling in a sample of university students. Journal of Gambling Issues, 16.