Gambling in Asian Communities in Great Britain

Abstract

This paper examines the prevalence of gambling and problem gambling among people of Indian, Pakistani, and Bangladeshi cultural backgrounds living in Great Britain. Information was gathered from the last two versions of a large-scale national adult prevalence survey and a similar survey of children aged 11 to 15 years, all conducted since 2007. Together, the surveys yielded sub-samples of 589 Asian adults and 482 Asian children from a combined total of more than 16,000 adults and nearly 9,000 children. In both adult and child Asian populations, the 7-day participation rate in gambling (22% and 13%, respectively) was found to be low relative to that in the white majority community, yet problem gambling prevalence, measured by the adult Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition screen (1.4%) and its juvenile equivalent (2.9%), was significantly higher, including among women. It therefore follows that those Asians who do gamble are unusually prone to experiencing problems, which has implications for public health policies such as the provision of information and help in minority languages. The relevance of the findings seems likely to extend to other countries with significantly sized Asian communities.