Report
Young People and Gambling 2022: Official statistics
Gambling Commission report produced by Ipsos on young people and their gambling behaviour, attitudes and awareness in 2022.
Contents
- Executive summary
- Young people’s active involvement in gambling
- Experience of gambling
- The Impact of gambling on young people
- Online gambling
- National Lottery play
- Games and gaming machines
- The Context for gambling participation
- Attitudes towards and exposure to gambling
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- Summary
- Young people’s views on gambling
- Feeling informed about gambling
- Being stopped from gambling
- Young people’s exposure to gambling adverts and promotions and frequency of exposure
- Content of gambling adverts and promotions seen
- Whether ever prompted to gamble by adverts and promotions
- Following gambling companies on social media
- Appendices
- List of gambling activities and definitions
Headline statistics
Headline statistics
31 percent of 11 to 16 year olds spent their own money on gambling in the twelve months prior to taking part in the survey.
During that period, the most common types of gambling activity that young people spent their own money on were legal or did not feature age restricted products, namely:
- playing arcade gaming machines such as penny pusher or claw grab machines (22 percent)
- placing a bet for money between friends or family (15 percent)
- playing cards with friends or family for money (5 percent).
23 percent of young people were spending their own money on regulated forms of gambling.
The youth-adapted problem gambling screen (DSM-IV-MR-J) identified 0.9 percent of 11 to 16 year olds as problem gamblers, 2.4 percent as at risk gamblers and 27.3 percent as non-problem gamblers.
Most (78 percent) young people who spent their own money gambling in the last 12 months, did so because they regard it as a fun thing to do. Whilst one in five (21 percent) agree that gambling makes them feel happy, more (29 percent) disagreed that it made them happy and the same proportion (29 percent) were unsure either way.
Three in ten (28 percent) young people had seen family members they live with gamble, of which 7 percent indicated it had resulted in arguments or tension at home. However, one in ten (11 percent) said that gambling by a family member had helped to pay for things at home for example holidays, trips or clubs.
Introduction Next section
Presentation and interpretation of data
Last updated: 9 November 2022
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