Socioeconoic and demographic determinants of household gambling in Australia. Discussion Paper No. 156

Abstract

Regression modelling is used to predict gambling patterns in Australia on the basis of the unit record files underlying the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ Household Expenditure Survey of 6,892 households. Eight categories of gambling expenditure are examined, namely: lottery tickets, lotto type games and instant lottery (scratch cards), TAB and related on course betting, poker machines and ticket machines, blackjack, roulette and other casino-type games, TAB-betting (excluding animal racing), club and casino broadcast gaming and gambling not elsewhere classified. Determining factors analysed include the source and level of household income, family composition and structure, welfare status, gender, age, ethnicity and geographic location. Apart from the determinants of expenditure varying widely across the different types of gambling activity, the results generally indicate that the source of household income is more important than the level of income and that household composition and regional location are likewise significant in determining gambling expenditure.