technique to obtain detailed information about the experiences and perceptions of the people who volunteered for the study, the study could not recruit a representative cross-section of social groups or locate cultural participants for face-to-face interviews.
Problem gambling is a sensitive subject, and more sensitive in some cultures than in others. It was apparent from interviews with ACT cultural organisations that there is a high level of suspicion in these communities about the topic, not least because they fear being targeted and stigmatised. Thus we have had to rely largely on evidence from research elsewhere to provide some insight into the experiences and perspectives of cultural communities (Section 5 – Literature Review). As explained below, a precise understanding of problem gambling and help-seeking behaviour of cultural communities in the ACT would require considerably more time and resources than were available for this project.
There were also considerable differences in the ways that interviewees defined
‘problem gambling’. Individual gamblers were inclined to define their gambling problems in terms of their own behaviour - ‘my gambling is an act of self-hate’ – although the behaviours they perceived to be a problem varied widely from person to person. In contrast, the families of problem gamblers related problematic gambling primarily to its impacts upon the family and wider society - ‘It’s not only the gambler…it is children, families, friendships. The social costs they create are played down’. This group also reported a widely diverse range of problems, reflecting their own circumstances and social context.
All participants in this study agreed that problem gambling can profoundly affect families and the community, as well as the gamblers themselves. Common themes were the harmful effects of gambling on people’s financial situation, personal relationships and self-esteem. Yet the degrees of gambling involvement or harm that were perceived as a problem varied widely between individuals. The conception of problem gambling appears to be highly relative to each person’s circumstances, norms and values, and priorities. For some people interviewed, gambling losses of $100 a week were problematic; for others a loss of $30,000 indicated a gambling problem.
This research has confirmed the findings in other studies that problem gambling is
… probably non-existent as a discrete entity. Evidence ... suggests that people who gamble may at times exceed certain arbitrarily defined limits... They may reflect little excesses, large excesses, episodic behaviour, frequent behaviour, accepted behaviour in a sub-culture, not accepted behaviour in a family culture.270 (Allcock 1995, p. 114).
‘What is ‘excessive’ is personally or socially defined and depends upon a person’s age, sex, socio-economic status, social network, responsibilities and a host of other factors’.271 Some defined problem gambling by the fact that they spent excessive amounts of time gambling to the neglect of social relationships and other activities;
others defined problem gambling by the fact that they were not being honest with loved ones.
All the interviewees expressed the realisation that problem gambling could affect anyone and was not restricted to a particular social, gender or cultural group within society. One gambler summed this up succinctly in the following way: ‘If this can happen to a nice person like me, it can happen to anybody’.
Significantly, all the self-identified problem gamblers indicated that in their ‘lucid moments’ they recognised they had a problem and had endeavoured to control the extent of their gambling. Gamblers and family members had used a wide range of informal self-help strategies that were successful to varying degrees, and several had
270 Allcock, C. (1995) ‘Some ponderings on pathological gambling: an introspective essay’. Paper presented to NAGS ‘95, Sixth National Conference of the National Association for Gambling Studies, Curtin University, Fremantle, 28–30 September.
271 Orford, J. (1985) op. cit.
sought professional help. However, relatively few had found formal gambling counselling services to be effective in meeting their particular needs.
Nature of the problem
For everyone interviewed in this study, problem gambling does not occur in isolation;
it is part of a complexity of problems experienced by the gambler. From the gambler’s own perspective, past and present difficulties in their lives were underlying causes of gambling problems, yet gambling in turn created problems of its own. Many of the issues described about the nature and impacts of problem gambling are similar to those that have been found in the mainstream Australian community. Others are different, specific to the cultural and social context of the ACT community. Cultural and gender differences influence variations in gambling behaviour and impacts, as do the ways gambling is available and marketed in different locations.
For the majority of participants interviewed in this study, the negative impacts of gambling were perceived as the real problem, rather than gambling itself (Figure 20).
They articulated a clear distinction between gambling and problem gambling. Nobody interviewed expressed the view that gambling per se was unacceptable, although many people voiced strong opinions about the particular harms associated with gaming machines and by industry practices that were perceived as irresponsible or as promoting excessive gambling: ‘I got to know all the staff … None of them have ever said anything to me about my gambling’.
Figure 20. Impacts of problem gambling
Impacts
Personal
Community services
Work & study
Interpersonal
Financial
Legal
Poor health Depression
& anxiety
Financial hardship
Loan sharks Stress
Suicide
Asset losses
Debts
Bankruptcy
Imprisonment Theft
Domestic or other violence Job
loss
Poor performance
Relationship breakdown Neglect of
family
Impacts on others Absenteeism
Loads on charities
Loads on public purse
Source: Productivity Commission (1999) Australia’s Gambling Industries. AusInfo, p. 7.3.
Significantly, all the gamblers interviewed and the majority of gamblers’ relatives suggested that problem gambling was a response to underlying social or personal problems, rather than an initial cause of those problems (Figure 21).272 ‘He fell into a depression. That’s when he started gambling strongly’; ‘When people are going through trauma they turn to something’. However, while gambling may have provided a temporary ‘escape’ or solution to the difficulties that people were experiencing, in the long term it either exacerbated those problems or created new ones.
272 The Productivity Commission cautioned strongly against assuming causal relationships between gambling and associated behaviours (Productivity Commission 1999, pp.7.1-7.12). Cause-effect relationships between problem gambling and other impacts have yet to be rigorously researched and established.
Figure 21. Causal pathways and problem gambling
Problems (eg depression, loneliness, stress, unemployment, relationship problems)
Other dependencies (alcohol, drugs)
Large financial (and time) commitments
Psychological conditioning
(eg continuous gambling forms, big early wins)
Other predisposing factors:
Parents with gambling problems or culture of gambling
Environment (accessibility, gambling and venue characteristics, advertising)
Crime Cognitive misperceptions
(eg chasing losses, misunderstanding odds)
Dependency on illegal gambling High
impulsiveness
OR
Dependency on legal gambling
a The figure shows the different pathways of possible causality associated with problem gambling, its outcomes and determinants. Arrows show the causal directions.
Source: Productivity Commission (1999) Australia’s Gambling Industries. AusInfo, p. 28.
Gender roles and different cultural practices and values can also influence the way people respond to gambling problems. Problem gambling was reported by cultural community leaders to be an issue of serious concern, although the lack of evidence and the reluctance of people to talk about it prevent any firm conclusions. In light of difficulties in finding participants from non-Anglo-Celtic backgrounds, however, this study has been unable to explore the experiences of problem gamblers in cultural groups, or of their friends and families. Nor have we been able to identify with certainty the cultural factors which may be barriers to appropriate support services or the relevance of existing services for people of different cultural backgrounds in the ACT. In this regard, research conducted elsewhere has been reviewed to suggest likely issues for those groups.
That research suggests that gender and cultural factors, and the interaction between them, shape the way people perceive and experience gambling in their lives. Conflict can occur between traditional cultural norms and relationships and the Australian
gambling culture. Assimilation to Australian culture generally, and the gambling culture specifically, can cause problems between generations.
The precise nature or extent of problem gambling in ACT cultural communities is little understood. Information from community leaders highlighted the contradictory nature of gambling in ACT’s cultural communities. Gambling is often used to deal with tensions from the migrant experience and to establish new social networks; but in turn gambling can create major problems for individuals, families and communities.
Development of the problem
Social isolation, disconnectedness and the need to participate in acceptable recreational activities were frequently identified as factors for triggering gambling related problems. Gambling became a problem for vulnerable and lonely women in particular.
A common theme throughout all interviews was the capacity for gamblers and their family and friends to clearly identify points when they first started gambling and when gambling became problematic. Although a number of self-identified problem gamblers did not initially consider gambling an attractive activity or pastime, all gambled socially before it became a problem: ‘Pokies were not an attraction – they were just there’; ‘We went there for work functions. That’s when I started playing the pokies for the first time’. Many interviewees visited clubs on a regular basis to socialise and partake in non-gambling activities. In doing so, gambling became an acceptable and everyday occurrence: ‘Gambling is entrenched in Australian culture’.
The people interviewed for this study reported varied origins of gambling problems;
problem gambling developed in a variety of ways:
• A small number gradually moved along a continuum from unproblematic gambling to moderate problems to a severe problem.273 This pattern conforms to the conventional view that a ‘gambling career’ develops progressively over time.
• Others reported that they plunged rapidly into gambling problems – some after many years of safe gambling;274 others turned to intensive gambling to escape from immediate personal problems: ‘I’m angry because I made a terrible mistake in my marriage’; and
• Many reported that their ‘problem’ gambling was episodic, with intermittent periods of controlled gambling and problem gambling.
It seems that the social context of people’s lives, for instance a personal crisis or social isolation or dislocation from family networks, is a good indicator of people who may be more vulnerable to experiencing adverse impacts of their own gambling. Most of the people interviewed were able to identify specific events that led to gambling becoming a perceived problem. Characteristically self-identified problem gamblers identified times of significant change in their life when they first began to gamble problematically, for example:
273 Productivity Commission (1999) op. cit., p.19.
274 Nower, L. and A. Blaszczynski (2003) ‘Binge gambling: a neglected concept’. International Gambling Studies, 3(1), pp.23-36.
• Following relocation to Canberra - visiting clubs to meet people, to overcome loneliness, social isolation.
• After the break-up of a marriage - frequenting clubs for companionship and to forget problems.
• After arriving in Australia – visiting clubs to make friends, to cope with past trauma.
• During unemployment or when a partner began working long hours – gambling to offset loneliness and boredom, to kill time.
• After periods of abuse – to escape from low self-esteem.
Relatives of problem gamblers also described periods of stress and change in the gambler’s life when gambling became excessive, for example:
• Depression over a relationship breakdown.
• Strain and anxiety associated with bullying and racism in the workplace.
• Depression and loss of pride during a long period of unemployment.
• Convalescence after an accident at work.
During such times of tension and uncertainty, interviewees reported that gambling appeared more attractive and was often an ‘escape’ to help them cope with their situation. In particular, they emphasised that gambling environments, specifically clubs, provided a safe and friendly refuge and a convivial setting to socialise.