As with all research, the research team recognises the limitations and constraints of this project. Analysis of the cultural aspects of gambling and their impacts created particular problems for the research team. Qualitative research is a time-consuming and intrusive procedure and requires a relationship of trust and collaboration as a prerequisite – humans are not simply a source of data.105 In particular, questions concerning thoughts and behaviours associated with problem gambling are invasive and potentially stigmatising.106
Effort was made in the research design to overcome the common limitations of gambling studies (eg the tendency to rely on self-report information, media-derived understandings of problem gambling, assumptions about relationships between problem gambling and social effects for individuals, families and communities). Even so, this project has been hampered by the short time allowed for research (February- July 2004), by lack of relevant and sensitive data, and by the fact that it was not possible in the short time available to gain access to cultural groups and develop the level of trust and acceptance that is essential for such research. Data inconsistencies, information gaps and resource constraints restricted the capacity of this study to comprehensively analyse and compare the experiences of gambling and help-seeking in different cultural communities.
• The project’s time and resource constraints prevented us from generating primary data which would adequately identify the actual extent of gambling problems in the nominated cultural communities. The short time-frame of the study prevented the use of methodologies that would allow more culturally sensitive recruitment of respondents, detailed observations of cultural practices and data collection, and generalised conclusions which may have emerged with better developed relationships amongst the cultural groups of interest.
Analysis identifies where it is not possible to identify gambling-specific impacts or causality with adequate confidence.
• Although the cooperation and assistance of ACT community and counselling agencies was sought to recruit suitably large samples of ‘at-risk’ individuals and families from cultural groups, no respondents were recruited from non- Anglo-Celtic communities. The research therefore was not able to provide a definitive account of the experience of problem gambling in ACT cultural groups.
In combination, the absence of participants from cultural groups, self-referral recruitment strategies and the limited time available seem to have resulted in potential
‘middle-class’ bias in the sample of gamblers, families and friends who agreed to participate in interviews. The self-referral process may also have attracted participants who were more comfortable contacting university researchers, rather than community representatives.
• The sample size for face-to-face interviews with volunteer informants and representatives of key organisations is relatively small. However, the quality
105 ibid.
106 Chambers, K. (2003), op. cit
of information provided by those people interviewed is superior to any information that may have been provided by an alternative method;
• Because all participants in the interviews were self-referrals, however, the study cannot draw generalised conclusions about the wider population of problem gamblers in the ACT;
• Some issues emerged during the study that could not be adequately explored or analysed. For example, project constraints prevented examination of the particular features of Aboriginal gambling and the impact of commercial gambling on their community games, or the access and efficacy of support services for people with gambling problems;
• Moreover, secondary data that would allow precise identification of the use of existing support services by people with gambling problems often were not available or were inconsistent.
Within these constraints, the research design provided significant information about the needs and help-seeking behaviours of ACT gamblers and their friends and families. A framework for analysis was constructed based on issues that were identified in the literature as key areas of relevance. The project provided first hand accounts of gambling behaviour and the experiences of problem gamblers, up-to-date information about patterns of help seeking and relationships between gamblers, gambling providers and support agencies in the ACT. This study presents a preliminary analysis of those issues which will suggest avenues for further research.
4 ACT Multicultural Profile
This section provides a multicultural profile of Canberra with specific reference to the selected groups of interest to this study. The ACT is home to a population from a wide range of cultural backgrounds. Migrants from over 200 different countries live in the ACT. Of persons recorded in the ACT during the 2001 census 44.7% (50.8%
female and 49.2% male) were either born overseas or had a parent born overseas.107 At the time of the 2001 census 1.3% of people in the ACT identified as being of indigenous origin.108
England is by far the largest source country for migrants to the ACT (20%) with the next largest groups being from New Zealand, Germany, Scotland and Italy.109 The ACT currently receives about 800 new arrivals every year from a variety of countries with the largest numbers of new migrants from New Zealand (15.3% of all arrivals), China (9.5%), UK (8.7%) and India (8.3%).110 The largest religious denomination in the ACT is Roman Catholic (29%) followed by Anglican (18.5%) and Uniting Church (4.6%), while 19.6% of residents stated in the 2001 census that they have no religion.111
Migration patterns have changed as Canberra has evolved into the multicultural city it is today. The proportion of migrants from English speaking countries and Europe, while high in the mid-20th century, has not altered significantly over the last two decades. The proportion of migrants from the rest of the world has increased steadily and makes up between 20-30% of all arrivals into Canberra. This pattern illustrates how Canberra has developed from a European dominated community to a much more culturally diverse conglomerate. This migration pattern is also reflected in the age profile of Canberra residents born overseas. European migrants tend to be older, having migrated here in the 1950s and 1960s, many of them to work on the Snowy Mountains Scheme.
After the end of the Vietnam War a wave of Vietnamese-born people arrived in Australia. In more recent times, there has been a significant increase in the number of migrants from South East Asia, North East Asia and other so-called new source countries such as China, South Africa and Afghanistan. In 1946 less than 10% of migrants came from Asia compared to about one third of the total number today.
Patterns of humanitarian settlement have reflected world current events, and arrivals in these categories have come in recent times from former Yugoslav countries, Vietnam and Myanmar.
107 Australian Bureau of Statistics 2001. Census of Population and Housing 108 ibid.
109 ibid.
110 ibid.
111 ibid.
The main reasons for settling in the ACT are similar to the reasons for migrating to other parts of Australia. The major incentives were family, political and social reasons. Migrants were likely to be satisfied with their life in Australia with over 90%
saying they were satisfied or very satisfied with their life here. However, principal applicants are more likely to be content than their spouses on the same visa.112
Unlike many other Australian cities, Canberra does not have clusters of migrants speaking other languages concentrated in particular suburbs. This reflects the integrated social composition of Canberra which is a relatively homogenous city both socially and demographically, especially in comparison to other Australian cities.