The impact of socio‐economic factors on gambling expenditure

This paper examines the socio‐economic determinants of gambling expenditure on lotteries, Lotto and Instant Lotto, TAB/on‐course betting, poker machines and casino‐type games. Using a sample of 8,389 Australian households in 1993‐1994, the impact of income source and level, sex, age, ethnicity, occupational status and family composition on the decision to gamble is assessed. The results indicate that these variables exert a significant influence on the probability of households gambling. Furthermore, the effect of these same variables is likely to vary across the large range of gambling products currently available.