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Examining the effect of proximity and concentration of B2 machines to gambling play

Author: G. Astbury & H. Wardle Published: March 2016
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Summary

This report by Geofutures for the Responsible Gambling Trust examines the relationship between the spatial concentration of betting shops with fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs) and gambling behaviour amongst loyalty card holders in Great Britain.

Topics covered

  • geographical distribution of betting shops and gamblers
  • relationship between betting shop density and problem gambling
  • machine play patterns near betting shop concentrations

Key findings

Problem gambling rates were higher amongst those living near concentrations of betting shops. The spatial configuration of betting shops appears important, with clusters showing stronger associations to gambling behaviour than simple counts of nearby shops.
This provides new evidence of a link between betting shop locations and problem gambling risk.

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