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- Title
A prospective study of the impact of opening a casino on gambling behaviours: 2- and 4-year follow-ups.
- Authors
Jacques, Christian; Ladouceur, Robert
- Abstract
<bold>Objective: </bold>It is widely believed that the rate of pathological gambling is related to the accessibility and availability of gambling activities. Few empirical studies have yet been conducted to evaluate this hypothesis. Using a longitudinal prospective design, the current study evaluates the impact of a casino in Canada's Hull, Quebec region.<bold>Method: </bold>A random sample of respondents from Hull (experimental group) and from Quebec City (comparison group) completed the South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS) and gambling- related questions before the opening of the Hull Casino (pretest), 1 year after the opening (posttest), and on follow-up at Years 2 and 4.<bold>Results: </bold>Although, 1 year after the opening of the casino, we did observe an increase in playing casino games and in the maximum amount of money lost in 1 day's gambling, this trend was not maintained over time (2- and 4-year follow-ups). In the Hull cohort, the rate of at-risk and probable pathological gamblers and the number of criteria on the SOGS did not increase at the 2- and 4-year follow-ups. The residents' reluctance to open a local casino was generally stable over time following the casino's opening.<bold>Conclusion: </bold>The discussion raises different explanatory factors and focuses on the context of the Regional Exposure Model as a potentially more applicable measure of studying the expansion of gambling.
- Subjects
GAMBLING &; psychology; COMPARATIVE studies; LEISURE; LONGITUDINAL method; RESEARCH methodology; MEDICAL cooperation; QUESTIONNAIRES; RESEARCH; SOCIAL change; TIME; EVALUATION research
- Publication
Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 2006, Vol 51, Issue 11, p764
- ISSN
0706-7437
- Publication type
journal article
- DOI
10.1177/070674370605101206