published_or_final_version / Psychology / Doctoral / Doctor of Philosophy

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The primary purpose of this study was to explore the differential gambling patterns of underage adolescents in order to identify the specific characteristics and determinants that influence the appeal of the lottery and their lottery playing behaviour. This study was an exploratory investigation of the structural characteristics of lottery products that are particularly appealing to youth (e.g., monetary value, attribute of the ticket, type of game, prize structure, advertisements, colour of ticket, etc.). / This research consisted of three phases. Phase I consisted of the inclusion of 5 focus groups (47 children, age 12--19) designed to provide qualitative information on adolescent lottery playing behaviour; Phase II included the development and validation of an instrument to assess lottery playing and gambling behaviour; and Phase III included the participation of a large community sample of youth in Ontario who completed the questionnaire assessing their gambling behaviour in general, factors influencing lottery playing behaviour (e.g., structural characteristics of lottery tickets), and severity of gambling problems. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)

This thesis examines the legal history of regulating early gambling venues in Canada. Two case studies illustrate the manner in which a 'spatially oriented' legal regime emerged: early Chinese gambling dens in Victoria and Vancouver, and racetracks in Ontario. The term 'spatially oriented' recognizes that gambling law, both past and present, regulates gambling places rather than the activity of gaming itself. Moreover, the application of the law was spatially inconsistent: early Chinese gambling dens received a discriminate amount of police scrutiny while an express exemption in the criminal law insulated racetrack betting from sanction. The theoretical perspectives of moral regulation and critical legal geography are used to show that discourses of law, liberalism, race and morality are inextricably linked to 'place.' In particular, the relationship between law and place is highlighted to show how moral and ideological geographies may be both reflected in law, and created by law. The implication for early Canadian gambling venues was the development of a reputation of respectability for particular forums, such as the racetrack, versus the association of criminal connotations with unlicensed social gambling clubs, such as the Chinese gambling den.

This study examined whether children's cognitive perceptions of the amount of skill and luck involved in gambling activities could be modified as a function of reinforcement schedules on a gambling task (Hilo). Children (N = 174) from grades 5 and 7 completed a questionnaire to evaluate cognitions and played a computer simulated card-cutting game. Cognitions were assessed after the game to examine if cognitive perceptions changed and then again one and four weeks later to evaluate if changes were maintained. Results reveal that experiencing repeated losses decreased perceived skill and increased perceptions of luck on gambling tasks in general. Cognitive changes in younger children were larger and were maintained longer than for older children. Analyses of game playing behaviour indicated that children in the losing condition chased losses by betting a larger percentage of bankrolls per hand in the final portion of game time. The results are discussed with emphasis on implications for prevention programs based on cognitive restructuring.

There is a growing trend to liberalisation of the gambling industry around the world. This originated during the late 1980s in the USA. The European Commission is currently considering policies that might standardise regulations in the industry across the EU, while governments in several Asian countries have been considering legalisation of casinos faced with the rapid growth of gaming.

This thesis has two main aims. The first is to develop a standard measure of addiction to gambling in children which could be used to estimate the extent of dependency among children aged 11 to 16 years. The second focusses upon patterns of usage and seeks to understand the various meanings which children attach to fruit machine gambling in an arcade. The first aim has been achieved by adapting a measure used to diagnose addiction to gambling in adults for use with children. The resulting DSM-IV-J criteria were tested using a questionnaire survey on a sample of 467 schoolchildren aged between 11 and 16 years. Those children who were defined as "probable pathological" gamblers by the DSM-IV-J index were significantly more likely to be involved in behaviours hitherto associated with dependency, than were the control group. DSMIV- J appears to be a major advance in the discrimination of pathological gambling in children. This study disaffirms the popular, generic image of the typical young fruit machine "addict" as being a lone, adolescent male. "Probable pathological" gamblers were equally male or female, spread across the age range of eleven to sixteen years, and came from a range of social class and religious backgrounds. However, "probable pathological" gamblers were more likely than "social" gamblers to have started playing fruit machines when they were very young (at the age of eight years or younger) and to have parents who gambled. The second aim has been investigated by ethnographic fieldwork and is presented in the form of a typology. Arcade Kings and their Apprentices, Machine Beaters, Escape Artists, Action Seekers and Renta- Spacers comprise a classification which includes "addicts" as well as "social gamblers". The typology reveals the multi-dimensional nature of fruit machine gambling as a leisure pursuit. It thus provides a theoretical contribution to the sociology of gambling as well as an "ethnographic road map" for researchers and counsellors in the field.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Indiana State University, 2006. / Adviser: Christine MacDonald. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Psy.D.)--Alliant International University, Fresno, 2006. / Adviser: Ronald Gandolfo. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.Sc.)--University of Guelph (Canada), 2005. / Includes bibliographical references.