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01-09-2006

The Influence of Religiosity on Gambling Participation

Author: Desmond Lam

Published in: Journal of Gambling Studies | Issue 3/2006

Abstract

Gambling is now a popular legal activity among people around the world. Despite numerous studies on individuals’ gambling behavior, few researchers examine the influence of religiosity on gambling participation. This study investigated the effect of religiosity, measured in terms of frequency of religious participation and importance of faith, on gambling participation across four different types of games: casino, track, lottery, and bingo. Using data collected by the National Gambling Impact Study Commission in 1999, the study found that there was indeed a significant difference in the frequency of religious participation between gamblers and non-gamblers. Moreover, it seemed like the more types of games one played, the lower was their frequency of religious participation. The importance of faith, however, did not seem to have a significant impact on gambling participation. The implications of these findings to businesses and public policy makers were discussed.

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Title: The Influence of Religiosity on Gambling Participation
Author: Desmond Lam
Publication date: 01-09-2006
Publisher: Kluwer Academic Publishers-Plenum Publishers
Published in: Journal of Gambling Studies / Issue 3/2006
Electronic ISSN: 1573-3602
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-006-9018-4

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