The U.K. National Center for Social Research has recently published the findings of its survey into the prevalence of, and attitudes toward, gambling in Britain. The research was done as part of the new Gambling Commission’s role to give advice to government on the nature of gambling. It also provides a benchmark as to the state of affairs before the new U.K. Gambling Act took effect at the start of September 2007.
For those interested in Asian gambling markets the United Kingdom's gambling prevalence survey might initially appear to contain little of interest. On closer reading, however, it reveals some thought-provoking results.
The research attempts to paint a national picture of gambling in the United Kingdom and 4 percent of the 9,003 survey respondents described their ethnic background as "Asian/Asian British" and 3 percent as "Other," trying to reflect the ethnic makeup of the country [see footnote 1. -Ed.] It should be noted that "Asia" here refers to countries such as India, Pakistan and Bangladesh and does not include China, Japan, etc. [see footnote 2. -Ed.]
Number of gambling activities
Of Asian/Asian British respondents, 45 percent said they had engaged in one or more gambling activities in the past year. This compared with 68 percent of the total U.K. population.
Source: National Center for Social Research, British Gambling Prevalence Survey 2007
Types of gambling activity
"Gambling activity" in the survey covered everything from the National Lottery, through casino games, to private betting with friends.
By far the most popular gambling activity to take part in was the National Lottery, whilst online betting and gaming showed similarly low percentage participation across the board.
Source: National Center for Social Research, British Gambling Prevalence Survey 2007
Attitudes toward gambling
The survey appears to show that, as a group, Asian people in the United Kingdom tend to gamble less compared to the U.K. population as a whole. It is not surprising, then, that the research also finds that this same section of the population has a less favorable attitude toward gambling [see footnote 3. -Ed.].
Problem gambling
Given these apparent trends of looking less favorably upon gambling as an activity and participating in gambling less often, the real surprise comes in the prevalence of problem gambling amongst the country's Asian population [see footnote 4. -Ed.].
Based on the problem gambling screens employed in this research, the prevalence of problem gambling amongst the Asian/Asian British population is estimated at 1.4 percent of people. For those people classed as belonging to "Other" ethnic groups this figure rises to 2.2 percent, compared to 0.5 percent in the "White" population and between 0.5 percent and 0.6 percent in the U.K. population as a whole.
Source: National Center for Social Research, British Gambling Prevalence Survey 2007
Conclusions
The prevalence survey was not intended to look in detail at gambling habits amongst the United Kingdom's different ethnic groups. Caution is advisable, therefore, in drawing too many broad conclusions about gambling habits in specific sections of the population based on the small sample sizes involved.
But the research does yield some unusual findings concerning participation in gambling and the rates of problem gambling among Asian people in the United Kingdom. For I-gaming operators keen to attract Asian punters who live both in Asia itself and elsewhere around the world, it makes an interesting starting point for further investigation.
See the study itself for the full range of caveats and methodology related to the statistics quoted above.
Notes
- (1) 91 percent of respondents described themselves as "White," while 2 percent described themselves as "Black/Black British."
- (2) Chinese respondents were classed in the "Other" category.
- (3) Respondents were asked to rate how strongly they agreed/disagreed with a series of statements about gambling.
- (4) Problem gambling defined as "gambling to a degree that compromises, disrupts, or damages, family, personal or recreational pursuits."