Report
Measuring the adverse consequences from gambling
Read how we have developed new questions about adverse consequence from gambling which are included in the GSGB survey.
Implications for reporting the negative impacts of gambling
Through careful consideration of findings from our development work, we have made the following decisions about how gambling-related harms should be reported in our annual official statistics.
Consultations with stakeholders
Consultations with stakeholders, including those with lived experience of gambling-related harm, have highlighted the variability in people’s experiences of gambling and its consequences. To reflect this variability, we will use the term ‘adverse consequences from gambling’ when reporting findings from the new survey questions. This terminology aligns with established frameworks of gambling-related harm. For example, ‘adverse consequences’ is used by Langham et al. (2016) to describe the range of harms experienced from gambling, and within PGSI definitions of low-risk, moderate-risk, and problem-gambling. While the term is often used interchangeably with ‘negative consequences’ (which is the term used in the ICD-11 definition of gambling disorder), we opted for ‘adverse consequences’ to maintain consistency with the harms frameworks that guided the development of our survey questions.
Distinguishing consequences
We distinguish between ‘severe adverse consequences’, and ‘other potential adverse consequences’ experienced due to gambling.12
Annual report
The annual report highlights the percentage of people who had gambled in the past year who experienced at least one severe adverse consequence from gambling (such as, significant financial loss, relationship breakdown, violence or abuse, and committing a crime). The percentage of people experiencing each of these harms is also be reported.
Reporting severe adverse consequences separately
Due to the unequivocal negative impact of severe adverse consequences, these are reported separately from other potential adverse consequences.
Recording frequency of responses
When presenting the prevalence of ‘other potential adverse consequences’ from gambling, we decided not to provide an aggregate figure. Instead, for each question, we report the frequency of each of response to each question (such as, 'occasionally,' 'fairly often,' and 'very often’).
Recording use of support services
The report includes the percentage of people who had gambled in the past year who had accessed support services (such as, relationship counselling, gambling support, financial advice, and mental health services).
Recording suicidal ideation
Due to the need to examine associations between gambling participation and suicide, the percentage of people who experienced suicidal ideation due to one’s own gambling are reported separately from other adverse consequences.
While these form the core statistics, we will also explore associations between the negative impacts of gambling and various demographics, Problem Gambling Severity Index (PGSI) scores, mental wellbeing, and the types and number of gambling activities that people engage in. In future reports, we will also report the prevalence of negative impacts by each type of gambling activity.
References
1Severe adverse consequences refer to those which negatively impact people’s lives, even if experienced once.
2Other potential adverse consequences refer to experiences that can have cumulative and gradual negative impacts on people’s lives, and which may affect people to differing degrees (for example, reduced spending on everyday items).
Assessing the adverse consequences of gambling - Limitations Next section
Conclusions - Measuring the adverse consequences from gambling
Last updated: 1 August 2024
Show updates to this content
Formatting updated