The New Zealand gaming and betting survey : Chinese and Indian people's experience

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyse attitudes, understanding of gambling and gambling related harm among Asians in New Zealand using secondary data from the New Zealand 2006/07 Gaming and Betting Attitudes Survey (GBAS).

Design/methodology/approach – This survey interviewed 1,973 nationwide randomly selected youths and adults (=18 years) using structured questionnaire. Chinese (N=113) and Indian (N=122) data were analysed separately to compare between them and with NZ Europeans (N=792). Descriptive analysis was carried out and was subsequently tested for significant correlations by weighted (p<0.01) and un-weighted (p<0.05) variables.

Findings – A higher proportion of Chinese males (66.8 percent) represented in the survey compared to Indian (43.0 percent) and NZ European (48.9 percent) where Chinese consisted of more youthful age structure. Chinese respondents were more likely to be in the lowest income bracket (NZ$10,000) compared to others. Among the ten gambling activities “casino table gambling” and “casino electronic machines” (slot-style machine) were most popular among the Chinese where Indians preferred “gambling/casino evening”. A significant proportion of Chinese were unwilling to refer family or friends to gambling help services despite believing that gambling does more harm than good. Pre-committed gambling sum was the most common harm minimising strategy suggested by participants. They believed education and consultation could deter youths from harmful gambling.

Research limitations/implications – This survey highlighted gambling behaviours and thoughts of the ethnic minority population in New Zealand. Study outcomes would be valuable in formulating ethnic specific preventative programme and may have policy implication.

Originality/value – There has been limited research on gambling behaviour of ethnic minorities in New Zealand. This paper fills some of the gaps.