Chasing Data: Sources of Data for the Study of Gambling Economics

Abstract

The last decade has seen significant deregulation in the betting and gaming sector in many developed countries. This deregulation, coupled with technology-led product innovation, has seen a renewed interest in the drivers of the demand for gambling and the prevalence of excessive gambling. The necessity for governments to track the social impacts of the gambling has led to an increased need for high-quality data and this article will review the variety of empirical resources available to researchers. I also discuss innovations in measures or scales employed to quantify excessive gambling and addiction. © 2012 The University of Melbourne, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research.