IN the first study of its kind to be carried out in the Isle of Man, people are being invited to take part in a survey on attitudes to gambling.
Questionnaires are being sent out to 4,000 randomly-selected homes across the island.
The research study promises to provide insight about attitudes towards gambling and gambling participation.
It aims to gain a better idea of the scale of gambling in the island and the results will be used to direct service provision for people who may have experienced problems as a result of their gambling.
The survey has been commissioned by the Alcohol Advisory Service and is being carried out by NatCen Social Research, a leading independent research organisation which recently conducted the 2010 British Gambling Prevalence Survey.
The Alcohol Advisory Service has recently launched a support service for problem gamblers and their family members in the island. GamCare Isle of Man is a partnership venture with GamCare UK, the Department of Social Care and the Gambling Supervision Commission.
NatCen project leader Heather Wardle said: ‘We’re really excited about this study as it is the first of its kind to be conducted in the Isle of Man.
‘This gives a unique opportunity to understand what people on the Isle Man really think about gambling and their participation in these activities. Gambling is a recreational activity, and online gambling is an increasingly important part of the Manx economy, but some people can experience problems with their involvement.
‘Results from this study will be used to help inform future service provision for those people.’
The short questionnaires were due to be delivered to the randomly selected homes from today (Friday).
Very little is actually known about what people think about gambling and gambling participation in the island.
The Isle of Man Gambling Study is designed to address this gap by asking a random sample of the population brief questions about their gambling participation over the last 12 months.
In order to obtain accurate insights it is important to gain views and opinion from as many different people as possible, regardless of whether people gamble or not.
Results of the study, which will be published within the year, will be used to help inform service provision for people who might have experienced problems as a result of their gambling participation.
The Manx survey is loosely based on the 2010 British Gambling Prevalance survey which was commissioned by the Gambling Commission in the UK. More than 7,000 adults aged over 16 took part.
It found that more people are gambling and that while men are still more likely to gamble than women, the largest increase in gambling occurred among women.
Most people who gamble said they do so because it’s fun and for the chance of winning ‘big money’.
The British survey found attitudes towards gambling are changing. While most think gambling is harmful, many believe that people have a right to gamble and reject the idea of prohibition.
The survey found that between 0.7 and 0.9 per cent of adults aged 16 and over were ‘problem’ gamblers and about 7 per cent were at risk of experiencing problems.
Anyone with questions about the Isle of Man study can contact NatCen on Freephone 0800 652 4572.
You can add your vote to the online poll at the right of this story.