Cyprus Survey on Gambling Addiction to Provide Valuable Behaviour Data
Published October 27, 2017 by Lee R
Profiles of vulnerable gamblers will be based on study of a wide and diverse participant sample.
Emerging iGaming trailblazer Cyprus is getting even more proactive and protective with its first quantitative study on the subject of gambling.
Study Focus
The study seeks to determine the “frequency of participation” in games of chance and assess the effects on characteristics and behaviour of the participants.
Study Goal
The country’s National Betting Authority NBA announced the study as a way to determine the extent of gambling addiction within Cyprus.
Intended Policy Outcomes
The NBA further expressed its intention to use the study results to develop policies for protecting players and reducing the relative level of engagement that problem gambling has been found to stimulate.
NBA Chairwoman Ioanna Fiakou stated the study was commissioned with a mandate to establish appropriate standards for responsible gambling—the first of its kind.
Doing the Study
Research think tank IMR (Insights Market Research) was tabbed by the NBA to conduct the extensive study, estimated to ultimately involve some 3000 respondents.
Data Collection
Specific data will be collected on the extent of participation in gambling, the extent of problematic participation, the demographic and social traits of gamblers, the frequency of gambling engagement per individual, and the spending habits of gamblers (real vs. budgeted).
Gaps in Existing Data
The study will further seek to illuminated gaps between public understanding of the difference between illegal gambling and legal gambling as well as differences between borderline, social, and pathological gamblers.
Identifying Those at Risk
The study will also generate profiles of pathological gamblers to better illuminate the nature of gambling risks to the public.
Invaluable EBP
The evidenced-based view of gambling in Cyprus will guide the NBA and other concerned authorities to develop effective addiction prevention strategies.
Methodology
The study will be carried out via personal interviews of a random sampling of respondents spread across the age groups of 13-17, 18-34, 35-49, 50-64, and 65+ to generate age-relevant measures.
Study Demographics
The population distribution of the study is estimated at 1208, 863, 516, 257, and 166 participants from the Cypriot districts of Nicosia, Limassol, Larnaca, Paphos, and Famagusta, respectively.
