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An examination of internet and land-based gambling among adolescents in three Canadian provinces: results from the youth gambling survey (YGS).
- Source :
- BMC Public Health; 3/18/2016, Vol. 16 Issue 1, p277-286, 10p, 5 Charts, 3 Graphs
- Publication Year :
- 2016
-
Abstract
- <bold>Background: </bold>With the rapid proliferation of new gambling technology and online gambling opportunities, there is a concern that online gambling could have a significant impact on public health, particularly for adolescents. The aim of this study is to examine online and land-based gambling behaviour among adolescents in 3 Canadian provinces (Ontario, Newfoundland and Labrador, Saskatchewan) prior to the implementation of legalized online gambling.<bold>Methods: </bold>Data are from 10,035 students in grades 9 to 12 who responded to the 2012-2013 Youth Gambling Survey (YGS) supplement, a questionnaire administered as part of the Canadian Youth Smoking Survey (YSS, 2012) in 3 provinces: Newfoundland and Labrador (n = 2,588), Ontario (n = 3,892), and Saskatchewan (n = 3,555).<bold>Results: </bold>Overall, 41.6% of adolescents (35.9% of females and 47.4% of males) had gambled in the past 3 months. 9.4% of adolescents had gambled online in the past 3 months alone (3.7% of females and 15.3% of males). The most popular form of online gambling was online sports betting. Adolescents also engaged in online simulated gambling including internet poker (9.1%) and simulated gambling on Facebook (9.0%). Few adolescents participated in online gambling exclusively and online gamblers were more likely than land-based gamblers to engage in multiple forms of gambling. A higher proportion of adolescent online gamblers scored "high" or "low to moderate" in problem gambling severity compared to land-based only gamblers.<bold>Conclusions: </bold>Despite restrictions on online gambling at the time of the study, adolescents were engaging in online gambling at a significantly higher rate than has been previously found. Adolescents were also using technology such as video games to gamble and free online gambling simulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 14712458
- Volume :
- 16
- Issue :
- 1
- Database :
- Complementary Index
- Journal :
- BMC Public Health
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 114249129
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-016-2933-0