Online survey examines Australia’s online gambling habits

An online survey aimed at gaining a comprehensive understanding of the online gambling behaviour of Australians has been launched as part of a research project being conducted by Southern Cross University post doctoral research fellow Dr Sally Gainsbury.

Dr Gainsbury, based at Southern Cross University’s Centre for Gambling Education and Research, is collaborating with an international team of researchers including Professor Nerilee Hing from Southern Cross University, Professor Alex Blaszczynski from the University of Sydney and Associate Professor Robert Wood from the University of Lethbridge, Canada.

“My hope with the research project is that it will assist key stakeholders, including governments, regulators, and gambling operators to develop appropriate policies to regulate Internet gambling because this is one of the fastest growing forms of gambling in Australia and there is relatively little known about its social and economic impact,” Dr Gainsbury said.

“My aim is that the results will give a clearer indication of the behavior of gamblers and the participation rates in all forms of gambling - with a particular emphasis on interactive gambling. The results will also provide a clearer indication of the extent of gambling-related problems and how they are related to particular gambling involvement.

“The results will also be able to make a strong contribution towards national discussions around gambling as two members of the current research team on this project, Professors Alex Blaszczynski and Nerilee Hing were appointed to the Ministerial Expert Advisory Group on Gambling late last year.

“The establishment of that group shows that there is increasing recognition from politicians, regulators, gambling operators and the community that we need to develop more knowledge about gambling and its prominence in society.

"For example we are seeing opportunities for the community to participate in gambling, including online gambling, being regularly advertised during sporting events and via team sponsorship and perhaps that needs to be considered more closely.

“This is an important issue and so I am really encouraging all Australians who have gambled in the past year to participate, particularly those who gamble online; using mobile phones; or through interactive television. The survey went online in December and will remain active until May 2011. I will then collate the results and plan to make them available in August 2011.

“The survey takes approximately 10 to 15 minutes to complete and asks about gambling behaviour, knowledge and attitudes. It is an interactive survey and provides participants with feedback on how their responses compare with responses of other participants who are the same age and gender. This is included to make the survey more interesting and engaging for participants. Also, all responses are completely anonymous.

“We are promoting the survey predominantly through online advertising and links placed on relevant websites including: several online gambling sites (e.g., UniTAB); problem gambling treatment sites (e.g. Gambling Help NSW and the University of Sydney Problem Gambling Treatment Clinic); and sports sites (e.g. Netball Australia). Advertisements have also been placed on social networking sites such as Facebook.”

Dr Gainsbury was awarded a $25,000 allied health start-up grant from the Menzies Foundation to conduct the research in August 2010. She currently holds a Post Doctoral Research Fellowship from the Centre for Gambling Education and Research at Southern Cross University and is a Research Affiliate in the School of Psychology at the University of Sydney. She recently completed a Doctorate of Clinical Psychology and a PhD at the University of Sydney. She is also the Associate Editor for International Gambling Studies, an academic peer-review journal that publishes a multi-disciplinary gambling paper.

For more information or to contact Dr Gainsbury visit the Centre for Gambling Education and Research at http://cger.scu.edu.au or email sally.gainsbury@scu.edu.au.

Photo: Southern Cross University post doctoral research fellow Dr Sally Gainsbury.