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Gambling Addiction in Australia Debate

Australia isn’t the only country seeking out figures to detail just how severe the online casino and land-based problem gamblers are in the country. In fact, not only has Australia issued a study on gambling addicts, but Harvard University and the Austria-based Bwin Group also recently spent research time and money looking into problem gamblers and commonly associated behaviors that can be read through the player’s online casinos betting patterns. The problem now lies in the results that the researching center found in terms of problem gamblers.

The Independent Gambling Authority (IGA) commissioned the South Australian Centre for Economic Standards to carry out the study. According to the Centre, they found that 2.8 percent of the population exhibited behaviors associated with problem gambling, and this includes problem land-based and online casino gamblers. This is significantly up from the percentage the IGA previously had on record, 1.6 percent, and for that reason, the IGA is contesting the results the centre is reporting and demanding a more thorough look into the classifications used to determine problem gambling.

Robert Chappell is the head at the IGA, and he comments on the controversy between the two groups. Though the figures could have very well increased according to the Centre because of population growth, and online casino industry expansion, Chappell says, "The number that's been produced is derived from economic indicators that are not indicators of problem gambling but which are indicators that are thought to track closely to it.” He continued to elaborate, "Now clearly those matters are going to have to be re-evaluated but the report itself, the reliability of that model is highly conditional and based on a number of assumptions holding true."

But the IGA is holding firm to the notion that problem gambling could not have risen 400 percent in 25 years.