WASHINGTON — A new white paper released today by the
American Gaming Association (AGA) examines why little progress has been made in
researchers’ ability to adequately identify and measure the potential costs of
legalized gambling and strives to provide researchers and policymakers with an
understanding of the basic problems inherent in measuring the social costs of
gambling. The white paper, “Challenges that Confront Researchers on Estimating
the Social Costs of Gambling,” is the latest release in the AGA’s
10th anniversary white paper series.
“The issues discussed in this paper are among the most pressing problems that
confront social cost of gambling researchers,” writes the paper’s author and
College of Charleston economics professor Douglas M. Walker, Ph.D. “Past
studies have not acknowledged these issues, and consequently, their ‘social cost
of gambling’ monetary estimates have been overestimates.”
Dr. Walker suggests four fundamental issues that must be addressed before
researchers can truly begin to estimate the social costs of gambling. The four
issues are (1) comorbidity, or the idea that many pathological gamblers have
other coexisting disorders; (2) survey data validity; (3) measuring government
expenditures relating to the treatment of problem gambling; and (4) the
counterfactual scenario, which refers to “the situation that would have
otherwise been.”
“While it is true that there may be social costs associated with gambling, as
there are with any type of economic development, this paper very clearly shows
there are deep flaws in current estimates of social costs,” said Frank
Fahrenkopf, Jr., president and CEO of the American Gaming Association (AGA).
“These are complex issues that don’t have easy answers, but the methodological
issues outlined in this paper must be addressed by researchers in order for
policymakers and voters to have a meaningful debate about social costs
attributable to gambling.”
Each white paper in the 10th anniversary research series, started
in 2005, is authored by an individual or organization with expert knowledge of
the paper’s topic and provides either an analytical or broad-stroke examination
of a different industry-related subject. Previous papers have looked at the
opinions and job satisfaction of gaming industry employees; Internet gambling;
responsible gaming initiatives; indoor air quality and the gaming industry; the
impact of various tax rates on capital investment in the gaming industry; and
civic leaders’ opinions of the gaming industry.
The full text of “Challenges that Confront Researchers on Estimating the
Social Costs of Gambling,” is available in the “10th Anniversary
Research Series” section of the AGA Web site at www.americangaming.org.
The AGA represents the commercial casino-entertainment industry by addressing
federal legislative and regulatory issues. The association also serves as a
clearinghouse for information, develops educational and advocacy programs, and
provides leadership on industry-related issues of public concern.
