The prevalence of problem gambling in the Chinese community of San Francisco with a focus on exploring treatment access

Author

Vivian Hui, Smith College
Linfang Zhao

Publication Date

2016

Document Type

Masters Thesis

Study Type

Mixed method

Department

School for Social Work

Keywords

Compulsive gamblers-Psychology, Chinese Americans-Psychology, Chinese American-Services for, Compulsive gamblers-Treatment, Compulsive gambling-Prevention, Prevalence, Problem gambling, Chinese, Treatment, SOGS, NICOS

Abstract

Problem gambling, as a significant mental health issue, has been sparsely researched, especially in how it affects Chinese immigrants. Since the 1999 study by Selina Toy and Annie Wong, limited research has been conducted on the prevalence of problem gambling in the San Francisco Chinese community. New data is greatly needed to demonstrate that problem gambling is still prevalent in the Chinese community. The purpose of this study was to utilize the South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS) to measure the prevalent rate of problem gambling in San Francisco’s Chinese community in comparison to a similar study conducted 16 years ago by Toy and Wong (1999). Out of 68 participants, this descriptive study found the actual prevalence of lifetime gambling rate based on their self-identification is 58% and the adjusted prevalence of lifetime gambling rate is 76.9% based on actual gambling behaviors. Approximately 55% of participants did not have a problem with gambling; 40 % displayed some problem with gambling behavior; and almost 5% displayed probable pathological gambling behavior. In general, participants had been living in the U.S. for over 20 years, were born in Mainland China, identified as first generation, or identified as married or having a domestic partner. Practice and policy implications based on the findings from our research and recommendations for future studies on problem gambling are also discussed. Finding also highlighted the stigma of treatment related questions.

Language

English

Comments

v, 88 pages. M.S.W., Smith College School for Social Work, Northampton, Ma., 2016. Includes bibliographical references (pages 54-58)

Recommended Citation

Hui, Vivian and Zhao, Linfang, "The prevalence of problem gambling in the Chinese community of San Francisco with a focus on exploring treatment access" (2016). Masters Thesis, Smith College, Northampton, MA.
https://scholarworks.smith.edu/theses/1768