Predictors of Problem Gambling in the U.S.

In this article we examine data from a national U.S. adult survey of gambling to determine correlates of problem gambling and discuss them in light of theories of the etiology of problem gambling. These include theories that focus on personality traits, irrational beliefs, anti-social tendencies, neighborhood influences and availability of gambling. Results show that males, persons in the 31–40 age range, blacks, and the least educated had the highest average problem gambling symptoms. Adults who lived in disadvantaged neighborhoods also had the most problem gambling symptoms. Those who attended religious services most often had the fewest problem gambling symptoms, regardless of religious denomination. Respondents who reported that it was most convenient for them to gamble had the highest average problem gambling symptoms, compared to those for whom gambling was less convenient. Likewise, adults with the personality traits of impulsiveness and depression had more problem gambling symptoms than those less impulsive or depressed. Respondents who had friends who approve of gambling had more problem gambling symptoms than those whose friends did not approve of gambling. The results for the demographic variables as well as for impulsiveness and religious attendance are consistent with an anti-social/impulsivist pathway to problem gambling. The results for depression are consistent with an emotionally vulnerable pathway to problem gambling.     

Business games and implementation research

This paper reviews some recent research in OR implementation and suggests that a new approach is required, which will take fuller account of the perceptions of managers concerned with the problem. Research games in business settings seem to offer a means for such approach. Some lessons learned from a business game used in this way are described and their implications for modelbuilders are discussed.     

Comparisons of Gambling and Alcohol Use Among College Students and Noncollege Young People in the United States

Abstract

Objective: Gambling and alcohol use were compared for college and noncollege young adults in the US population. Participants: Participants were 1,000 respondents aged 18 to 21. Methods: Data were analyzed from a representative household sample of US young people aged 14 to 21 years old. Telephone interviews were conducted between August 2005 and January 2007. Results: After taking into account gender, age, race/ethnicity, and socioeconomic status, college student status did not predict gambling, frequent gambling, or problem gambling. In contrast, being a college student was associated with higher levels of alcohol use and problem drinking. Being male was the strongest predictor of both problem gambling and problem drinking. Blacks were less likely than whites to drink heavily; yet they were more likely than whites to gamble heavily. Conclusion: Young males should be targeted for prevention and intervention efforts for both problem gambling and problem drinking regardless of college student status.     

The Prevalence of Problem Gambling Among U.S. Adolescents and Young Adults: Results from a National Survey

A random telephone survey was conducted with a representative sample of 2,274 U.S. residents aged 14–21. The prevalence of problem gambling, as measured by the SOGS-RA, was 2.1%. Sixty-eight percent (68%) of the respondents had gambled in the past year, and 11% had gambled more often than twice per week. Males had much higher gambling involvement than females, and gambling involvement increased among older respondents. Blacks were less likely than average to have gambled in the past year, but if they gambled, they were more likely to do so frequently. Low SES respondents were less likely to have gambled in the past year, but if they gambled, they were more likely to be problem gamblers. Life transitions that are associated with assuming adult roles (employment, living independently of parents, non-student status) are also associated with greater gambling involvement. The rates of problem and pathological gambling were lower than those in an adult survey conducted earlier, when measured with the same questionnaire.     

Gambling on the Lottery: Sociodemographic Correlates Across the Lifespan

Two representative U.S. telephone surveys of gambling were conducted—an adult survey of adults aged 18 years and older (n = 2,631) and a youth survey of young people aged 14–21 years old (n = 2,274). Because the questions and methods were the same or similar in both surveys, the data from these two surveys were combined into a single dataset to examine the prevalence and sociodemographic correlates of gambling and problem gambling across the lifespan. The present work focused specifically on gambling on the lottery which is the most prevalent form of gambling in the U.S. The frequency of gambling on the lottery increased sharply from mid adolescence to age 18 which is the legal age to purchase lottery tickets in most states; lottery play continued to increase into the thirties when it leveled off and remained high through the sixties and then decreased among those 70 years and older. Considering multiple sociodemographic factors together in a negative binomial regression, the average number of days of lottery gambling was significantly predicted by male gender, age, neighborhood disadvantage and whether or not lottery was legal in the state where the respondent lived. These findings can be used to inform policies regarding lotteries in the U.S.     

Work–family reconciliation policies without equal opportunities? The case of Austria

This paper explores the main public work–family policies in Austria (parental leave in connection with the Childcare Benefit, parents’ entitlement to part-time work, the extension of the childcare infrastructure) from the perspective of social justice using the normative concepts of gender equality, recognition, and choice. The main results show that for the most part, these policies offer affirmative recognition of maternal care and limited employment of mothers but offer little support for transformative recognition, particularly in terms of increasing the social status of working mothers and fathers as carers. Austrian work–family policies also do little to redistribute incomes and career opportunities from men to women and childcare from women to men; instead, they grant only limited freedom to choose between parental duties and employment, and the (financial) support they do offer is strongly concentrated on early childhood. All in all, the construction of the parental leave system (together with the Childcare Benefit), the entitlement to work part time, shortfalls in public childcare structures, and the lack of awareness of gendered (cultural and material) structures on the labour market and within families do not actively encourage gender equality. Some aspects of these policies even stabilise and deepen gendered structures on the labour market and in families.     

Experience with a multi-year fleet planning model

The fleet planning problem requires determination of the changing airline fleet mix based on existing traffic levels and projected growth, on the existing fleet, various aircraft types available in the future, and other operational and financial considerations. Several applicable mathematical formulations have been reported. One of these has been programmed for the computer and used by the authors for several years. This paper discusses the application of that model to real airline planning situations. Such practical experience has effected changes in the program and the manner it is used in fleet planning studies.     

Gambling participation in the U.S.--results from a national survey

Demographic patterns of gambling participation in the U.S. were examined. A national telephone survey was conducted with 2,630 representative U.S. residents aged 18 or older. The sample as weighted for analysis was 48% male, 12% black, and 11% Hispanic. Respondents were questioned on 15 types of gambling: how often they played and how much they won or lost. Eighty-two percent gambled in the past year. Lottery was the most commonly played game, while casino gambling accounted for the largest extent of gambling involvement. Men and women were equally likely to gamble in the past year, but men gambled more frequently and had larger wins and losses, particularly on sports betting and games of skill. Blacks were less likely to have gambled in the past year, but blacks who gambled did so more heavily than other racial groups. Blacks and Hispanics were more likely than average to be pathological gamblers. The rate of past year gambling declined with age, but extent of gambling involvement among gamblers did not vary with age. Rates of participation in most forms of gambling increased with socioeconomic status, but higher socioeconomic status gamblers had lower rates of pathological gambling, and lower extent of gambling involvement, particularly for lottery. New Englanders gambled more heavily than other Americans. Comparison with past studies showed an increase in overall gambling participation in the U.S., and large increases in rates of participation in lottery and casino gambling.     

Victimization, Psychological Distress and Subsequent Offending Among Youth

The current study examined the relationship between the victimization of youth, psychological distress and subsequent offending. It examined whether direct and vicarious victimization by exposure to violence in the family, among peers, and in the neighborhood, significantly predicted psychological distress among study participants and whether psychological distress significantly predicted subsequent offending over time. In addition, it examined the extent (if any) to which psychological distress mediated the relationship between victimization and subsequent offending. Method: study data are from wave 1 and wave 2 of the Buffalo Longitudinal Study of Young Men (BLSYM), a population based sample (n = 625) of young men, ages 16-19 years old in a metropolitan area of Buffalo, New York. A path analytic approach was used for the main analyses. Findings: personal, vicarious victimization by exposure to violence among peers, and perception of neighborhood safety were significant predictors of offending at wave 1. Personal and property victimization was significant predictors of psychological distress. Psychological distress did not have a significant relationship with offending at wave 1 yet, it did at wave 2. Vicarious victimization by exposure to violence among peers and offending at wave 1 were all significant predictors of offending at wave 2. The results highlight the need to respond to both direct and vicarious victimization among young males to reduce psychological distress and subsequent offending.     

The Relationship Between Distance from Gambling Venues and Gambling Participation and Problem Gambling Among U.S. Adults

In this article we examine the relationship between extent of gambling for U.S. adults and the distance from their residence to the nearest casino or track. We employ data from a telephone survey of U.S. adults conducted in 2011–2013. The chances that the respondents gambled in the past year, were frequent gamblers, or were problem gamblers were greater if they lived close to a casino. The chances that the respondents gambled in the past year or were frequent gamblers were greater if they lived close to a horse or dog track. The effects of closeness to a casino on the likelihood of past-year gambling, frequent gambling, and problem gambling, as well as the effect of closeness to a track on past-year gambling, extended to about 30 miles from the respondent’s home. In addition, the concentration of casinos within 30 miles of the respondent’s home was positively related to the respondents’ chance of being a frequent or problem gambler. If a respondent had no casinos within 30 miles, he or she had a 2.7 % chance of being a problem gambler; if one casino, a 3.9 % chance; if six or more, a 6.2 % chance. The authors estimate that at least part of this effect is causal.