EPIDEMIOLOGY OF YOUTH GAMBLING IN GEORGIA Introduction Since the Georgia Lottery began in 19931, more youth are being exposed to gambling and gambling advertising. However, few data exist on youth gambling in Georgia. Studies link youth gambling with many negative behaviors and outcomes during adolescence: Alcohol and drug abuse2, 3, 4 Drug sales and prostitution5, 6 Delinquency, including low academic achievement, truancy, and stealing3, 5 and conduct problems4 Psychological problems such as depression, suicidality, and bingeing2, 4, 7 and a decreased ability to deal with anxiety, anger, and stress8, 9 Males2, 3, 4, 10 and older youth10 are more likely to gamble. Other attributes associated with youth gambling are familial or peer substance abuse or gambling3, 4, 11 and lack of parental monitoring.11 In addition, early onset gambling12,13 (<18 years of age) is associated with alcohol and drug abuse later in life.14 To measure youth gambling, questions on gambling were included in the Georgia Student Health Survey (also known as the Youth Risk Behavior Survey) in 2003 and 2005. The purpose of this summary is to report current prevalence rates of youth gambling in Georgia. Risk factors and groups at higher risk for gambling are also reported. Key Findings In 2005, more than 247,000 (57%) Georgia students in grades 9-12 gambled* and more than 69,000 (16%) gambled frequently Overall, past-year and frequent gambling rates did not change significantly from 2003 to 2005. However, among females, gambling increased significantly from 33% to 42% Males were 1.9 times more likely than females to gamble in the past year and 3.1 times more likely to gamble frequently Males and females prefer different games, with males preferring cards, sports, and games of skill, and females preferring the lottery, regardless of gambling frequency Blacks were 1.4 times more likely to gamble frequently than Whites 12th grade gambling increased significantly from 2003 (50%) to 2005 (64%) Frequent gamblers were 1.9 times more likely than past-year gamblers to bet $50 in one day Males who gambled frequently were 1.7 times more likely to bet high dollar amounts than males who gambled less frequently, while females who gambled frequently were 2.4 times more likely to bet high dollar amounts than females who gambled less frequently Conclusions Youth gambling is a significant problem in Georgia and control activities are needed Sex is a more useful differentiator of gambler type than race or grade, and should be a basis for designing interventions Males are at higher risk for gambling, but females are more likely to increase spending as gambling frequency increases, suggesting particular risks for females The lottery is the second most popular game for females, while it is the least popular game for males Youth gambling in Georgia is a progressive problem, as the amount of money spent increases with gambling frequency Actions for Lowering Youth Gambling Rates in Georgia Provide interventions targeting specific risk groups, such as males Educate youth on positive coping skills and alternative forms of entertainment Improve enforcement of underage gambling prohibitions Educate the public on the risk and harms of youth gambling Continue measuring youth gambling rates, so that trends can be monitored * Gambling or past-year gambling: having played for money or bet money on at least one of the following, at least once in the past 12 months: cards, games of personal skill, sports, the lottery, or any other game Frequent gambling: having played for money or bet money on at least one of the following, at least once a week in the past 12 months: cards, games of personal skill, sports, or the lottery All risk ratios are significant at =.05 unless otherwise noted EPIDEMIOLOGY OF YOUTH GAMBLING IN GEORGIA 1 Results Total Population In 2005, 57% of Georgia high school students, over 247,000 students, gambled during the past-year; 16%, over 69,000 students, gambled frequently (at least once a week) Overall past-year and frequent gambling rates did not change significantly from 2003 to 2005 Gambling Prevalences by Sex Past-Year Gamblers Males (70%) were 1.9 times more likely than females (38%) to gamble Frequent Gamblers Males (24%) were 3.1 times more likely than females (8%) to be frequent gamblers (once a week or more) Percent Percent Percent of High School Students w ho Gam bled, by Frequency, Georgia, 2003 and 2005 2003 2005 100 80 60 52 57 40 20 16 16 0 Past-Year Gam blers Frequent Gam blers Percent of High School Students who Gambled, by Frequency and Sex, Georgia, 2003 and 2005 100 80 70 60 38 40 20 0 Males Females Past-Year Gamblers 24 8 Males Females Frequent Gamblers Gambling Prevalences by Race Past-Year Gamblers No significant differences between races Frequent Gamblers Blacks (19%) were 1.4 times more likely than Whites (13%) to gamble frequently EPIDEMIOLOGY OF YOUTH GAMBLING IN GEORGIA Percent Percent of High School Students who Gambled, by Frequency and Race, Georgia, 2003 and 2005 100 80 60 60 53 55 40 19 18 20 13 0 Black Hispanic White Black Hispanic White Past-Year Gamblers Frequent Gamblers 2 Gambling Prevalences by Sex and Race Past-Year Gambling by Sex and Race Black males (71%) were 1.9 times more likely than Black females (37%) to gamble White males (71%) were 1.9 times more likely than White females (38%) to gamble Frequent Gambling by Sex and Race Black males (28%) were 1.4 times more likely than White males (21%) to gamble frequently Black females (10%) were 1.8 times more likely than White females (6%) to gamble frequently Black males (28%) were 2.9 times more likely than Black females (10%) to gamble frequently White males (21%) were 3.7 times more likely than White females (6%) to gamble frequently Percent Percent Percent of High School Students who Gambled: Past-Year Gamblers by Sex and Race, Georgia, 2003 and 2005 100 80 71 71 60 37 38 40 20 0 Black White Males Black White Females Percent of High School Students who Gambled: Frequent Gamblers by Sex and Race, Georgia, 2003 and 2005 100 80 60 40 28 21 20 0 Black White Males 10 6 Black White Females Gambling Prevalences by Grade Past-Year Gambling No significant differences between grades Frequent Gambling No significant differences between grades EPIDEMIOLOGY OF YOUTH GAMBLING IN GEORGIA Percent Percent of High School Students who Gambled, by Frequency and Grade, Georgia, 2003 and 2005 100 80 60 53 52 57 58 40 20 16 16 15 16 0 9 t h 10 t h 11t h 12 t h 9 t h 10 t h 11t h 12 t h Past-Year Gamblers Frequent Gamblers 3 Gambling Prevalences by Sex and Grade Past-Year Gambling by Sex and Grade Within each respective grade, males were significantly more likely than females to gamble (1.8 2.0 times more likely) 11th grade males were significantly more likely to gamble than 10th grade males Percen t Percent of High School Students who Gambled: Past-Year Gamblers by Sex and Grade, Georgia 2003 and 2005 100 80 76 74 67 67 60 38 37 38 41 40 20 0 9 t h 10 t h 11t h 12 t h 9 t h 10 t h 11t h 12 t h Males Females Frequent Gambling by Sex and Grade Within each respective grade, males were significantly more likely than females to gamble (2.5 4.2 times more likely) No significant differences between grades for either sex Percen t Percent of High School Students who Gambled: Frequent Gamblers by Sex and Grade, Georgia 2003 and 2005 100 80 60 40 24 23 24 24 20 8 9 6 8 0 9 t h 10 t h 11t h 12 t h 9 t h 10 t h 11t h 12 t h Males Females Prevalence Changes from 2003 to 2005 Significantly more females gambled in 2005 (42%) than in 2003 (33%) The number of White female gamblers increased significantly from 2003 (31%) to 2005 (43%) The percentage of 12th grade gamblers increased significantly from 2003 (50%) to 2005 (64%) The percentage of 12th grade female gamblers increased significantly from 2003 (29%) to 2005 (51%) EPIDEMIOLOGY OF YOUTH GAMBLING IN GEORGIA Percen t Changes in Gambling Prevalences, Georgia, 2003 and 2005 100 80 60 42 40 33 20 0 Fem ales 2003 2005 43 31 64 50 51 29 White Fem ales 12th Grade Gam blers 12th Grade Fem ale Gam blers 4 Prevalences Among Gamblers Popularity of Different Gambling Games Gambling Frequency by Game Frequent gamblers were significantly more likely than past-year gamblers to bet on cards, games, sports, and to buy lottery tickets Regardless of gambling frequency, gamblers were significantly more likely to bet on cards, games, or sports than to buy lottery tickets Past-Year Gambling by Sex and Game Male gamblers were significantly more likely than females to bet on cards, games, and sports Female gamblers (45%) were 1.4 times more likely than males (32%) to buy lottery tickets Male gamblers were 1.2 times more likely to bet on cards (66%) than sports (56%), and 2.1 times more likely to bet on cards than to buy lottery tickets (32%) Females were 1.3 times more likely to bet on cards (47%) than sports (37%) Frequent Gambling by Sex and Game Male frequent gamblers were significantly more likely than females to bet on cards, games, or sports (1.2 1.5 times more likely) Females (61%) were 1.3 times more likely than males (46%) to buy lottery tickets Male frequent gamblers were 1.2 times more likely to bet on cards (86%) than sports (71%), and 1.9 times more likely to bet on cards than to buy lottery tickets (46%) Female frequent gamblers were 1.5 times more likely to bet on cards (73%) than sports (48%) EPIDEMIOLOGY OF YOUTH GAMBLING IN GEORGIA Percent Percent Percent Gambling Frequency by Game Among High School Students who Gambled, Georgia, 2003 and 2005 100 80 59 60 56 49 83 73 66 50 37 40 20 0 C ards Games Spo rts Lo ttery C ards Games Spo rts Lo ttery Past-Year Gamblers Frequent Gamblers Gam bling Frequency by Sex and Gam e Am ong High School Students w ho Gam bled, Georgia, 2003 and 2005 100 80 66 64 60 56 40 47 41 37 45 32 20 0 C ards Games Spo rts Lo ttery C ards Games Spo rts Lo ttery Past-Year Past-Year Gambling Males Gambling Females Gam bling Frequency by Sex and Gam e Am ong High School Students w ho Gam bled Frequently, Georgia, 2003 and 2005 100 86 77 80 71 73 60 61 60 46 48 40 20 0 C ards Games Spo rts Lo ttery C ards Games Spo rts Lo ttery Frequent Gambling Frequent Gambling Males Females 5 Largest Dollar Amount Gambled in One Day Frequent gamblers (30%) were 1.9 times more likely than past-year gamblers (16%) to have bet $50 in one day Past-year gamblers (48%) were 1.7 times more likely than frequent gamblers (28%) to have bet < $10 in one day Past-Year Gambling by Sex and Largest Dollar Amount Gambled in One Day Male past-year gamblers (19%) were 1.9 times more likely than females (10%) to bet $50 in one day Male past-year gamblers (39%) were 1.4 times more likely than females (29%) to bet $10 $49 in one day Female past-year gamblers (61%) were 1.5 times more likely than males (42%) to bet < $10 in one day Frequent Gambling by Sex and Largest Dollar Amount Gambled in One Day Female frequent gamblers (42%) were 1.7 times more likely than males (25%) to bet < $10 in one day Male frequent gamblers were 1.7 times more likely to bet $50 than males who gambled less frequently, while female frequent gamblers were 2.4 times more likely to bet $50 than females who gambled less frequently EPIDEMIOLOGY OF YOUTH GAMBLING IN GEORGIA Percent Percent Percent Largest Dollar Amount Gambled in One Day Among High School Students who Gambled, Georgia, 2003 and 2005 100 80 60 48 40 36 42 28 30 20 16 0 <$ 10 $ 10 - $ 4 9 >=$ 5 0 Past-Year Gamblers <$ 10 $ 10 - $ 4 9 >=$ 5 0 Frequent Gamblers Largest Dollar Amount Gambled In One Day, by Sex, Among High School Students who Gambled, Georgia, 2003 and 2005 100 80 61 60 42 39 40 19 20 29 10 0 <$ 10 $ 10 - $ 4 9 >=$ 5 0 <$ 10 $ 10 - $ 4 9 >=$ 5 0 Males Females Largest Dollar Amount Gambled In One Day, by Sex, Among High School Students who Gambled Frequently, Georgia, 2003 and 2005 100 80 60 44 42 40 32 34 25 24 20 0 <$10 $10 - $4 9 >=$50 Males <$10 $10 - $4 9 >=$50 Females 6 Largest Dollar Amount Gambled in One Day by Game Type Past-Year Gamblers Percent Largest Dollar Amount Gambled in One Day, by Game, Among High School Students who Gambled, Georgia, 2003 and 2005 Cards Games Sports Lottery 100 80 60 48 40 40 41 36 20 40 38 42 31 21 21 22 21 0 <$10 $10-$49 >=$50 Largest Dollar Amount Gambled in One Day Frequent Gamblers Percent Largest Dollar Amount Gambled in One Day, by Game, Among High School Students who Gambled Frequently, Georgia, 2003 and 2005 Cards Games Sports Lottery 100 80 60 40 26 25 22 26 20 42 40 44 40 32 36 34 34 0 <$10 $10-$49 >=$50 Largest Dollar Amount Gambled in One Day EPIDEMIOLOGY OF YOUTH GAMBLING IN GEORGIA 7 Methodology The Georgia Student Health Survey (also known as the Youth Risk Behavior Survey) gathers data on behaviors that contribute to the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in Georgia. The survey provides information on initiation and prevalence of health risk behaviors and trends over time. Topics covered include tobacco use, physical activity, eating habits, alcohol and drug use, unintentional injuries, violence, and suicide16. The Georgia Student Health Survey contains questions from the CDC's Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) and additional questions on selected topics. The survey is conducted every odd-numbered year by the Georgia Department of Human Resources, Division of Public Health and the Georgia Department of Education. The Georgia Student Health Survey includes a random, representative sample of public middle and high school students. A 1996 study conducted by Rachel Volberg for the Department of Human Resources indicated a Georgia youth gambling prevalence rate of 40%, excluding weekly gamblers15. To measure current rates, the Georgia Lottery Corporation funded a module of five gambling questions that was included on the Georgia Student Health Survey in 2003 and 2005. The 2003 and 2005 Georgia Student Health Survey samples are described below. For both surveys, students completed an anonymous questionnaire. The 2003 high school survey consisted of 94 questions and the 2005 high school survey consisted of 90 questions. Response Rates Year High School Students Selected Participated Response rate 2003 2209 2066 94% 2005 1962 1755 89% Selected 50 50 High Schools Participated Response rate 48 96% 43 86% Overall * 90% 77% *Overall Response Rate = School Response Rate * Student Response Rate Participants by Grade (High School) Year Grade 9th 10th 11th 2003 32.0% 26.0% 22.1% 2005 32.6% 25.9% 22.0% 12th 19.8% 19.3% Participants by Racial Group (High School) Year White Black Hispanic Multiple races 2003 54.3% 37.3% 3.8% 1.5% 2005 52.1% 38.2% 5.8% 1.5% Other 3.1% 2.4% References 1 Georgia Lottery Corporation. (2006). Georgia Lottery Homepage. Accessed on July 25, 2006, from www.galottery.com 2 Hardoon K, Gupta R, Derevensky JL. (2004). Psychosocial variables associated with adolescent gambling. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 18(2), 170-9. 3 Winters KC, Stinchfield R, Fulkerson J. (1993). Patterns and characteristics of adolescent gambling. Journal of Gambling Studies, 9:371386. 4 Langhinrichsen-Rohling J, Rohde P, Seeley JR, Rohling ML. (2004). Individual, family, and peer correlates of adolescent gambling. Journal of Gambling Studies, 20(1), 23-46. 5 Jacobs DF. (1989). Illegal and undocumented: a review of teenage gambling and the plight of children of problem gamblers in America, in Compulsive Gambling: Theory, Research, and Practice. Edited by Shaffer ET. Toronto, Lexington Books. 6 Griffiths M. (1995). Adolescent Gambling. London, Routledge. 7 Specker SK, Carlson GA, Edmonson KM, et al. (1996). Psychopathology in pathological gamblers seeking treatment. Journal of Gambling Studies 12:6778. 8 Slutske WS, Caspi A, Moffitt TE, Poulton R. (2005). Personality and Problem Gambling: A Prospective Study of a Birth Cohort of Young Adults. Archives of General Psychiatry, 62, 769-775. 9 Nower L, Derevensky JL, Gupta R. (2004). The Relationship of Impulsivity, Sensation Seeking, Coping, and Substance Use in Youth Gamblers. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 18(1), 4955. 10 Stinchfield R. (2001). A comparison of gambling by Minnesota Public School Students in 1992, 1995 and 1998. Journal of Gambling Studies, 17(4), 273-296. 11 Vachon J, Vitaro F, Wanner B, Tremblay RE. (2004). Adolescent Gambling: Relationships with Parent Gambling and Parenting Practices. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 18(4), 398401. 12 Kaminer V, Petry NM. (1999). Alcohol and drug abuse: Gambling behavior in youths: why we should be concerned. Psychiatric Services, 50, 167-168. 13 Shaffer H, LaBrie R, LaPlante D, Nelson S, Stanton M. (2004) The Road Less Traveled: Moving from Distribution to Determinants in the Study of Gambling Epidemiology. Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 49, 504-516. 14 Lynch WJ, Maciejewski PK, Potenza MN. (2004). Psychiatric Correlates of Gambling in Adolescents and Young Adults Grouped by Age at Gambling Onset. Archives of General Psychiatry, 61, 1116-1122. 15 Volberg R. (1996). Gambling and Problem Gambling among Georgia Adolescents. Atlanta, GA: Georgia Department of Human Resources. 16 Kanny D. (2006). 2005 Georgia Student Health Survey Report. Georgia Department of Human Resources, Division of Public Health, May 2006. Publication Number: DPH06/076HW. Accessed on June 21, 2006, from http://health.state.ga.us/pdfs/epi/cdiee/2005%20Georgia%20Student%20Health%20Survey%20Report.pdf This study was supported in part by an appointment to the Applied Epidemiology Fellowship Program administered by the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE) and funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Cooperative Agreement U60/CCU007277. Suggested citation: Clarkson, LS. Epidemiology of Youth Gambling in Georgia. Georgia Department of Human Resources, Division of Public Health, April 2007. Publication Number: DPH07/085HW. EPIDEMIOLOGY OF YOUTH GAMBLING IN GEORGIA 8