Problem gambling knowledge and perceived community impact among Asian-Pacific Islanders and non Asian-Pacific Islanders.
BACKGROUND
Emerging data suggest that problem/pathological gambling may be highly prevalent among Asian-Pacific Islanders (APIs) and that can be a major concern to their communities.


METHODS
This study surveyed problem/pathological gambling knowledge, attitudes, and perceived community impact of problem gambling among self-identified male and female APIs and non-APIs attending one of two API community events in Los Angeles County.


RESULTS
Unexpectedly, our results indicated no effect for ethnicity with regards to ratings of problem/pathological gambling knowledge, community impact, or consequences. However, a gender effect with women reporting less problem/pathological-gambling-related knowledge than men, regardless of ethnicity was found. Over 40% of all respondents reported that problem/pathological gambling impacted their communities 'a lot', and the ratings for the impact of problem/pathological gambling was equal to ratings for other significant public health issues like diabetes, depression, drug abuse, and alcohol abuse.


CONCLUSIONS
Based on these results, it is recommended that evidence-based legislation support the development of culturally-relevant prevention and intervention programs for problem/pathological gambling in Los Angeles County.
Fong
Timothy
T
UCLA Gambling Studies Program, David Geffen School of Medicine, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, Los Angeles, CA 90024, USA. tfong@mednet.ucla.edu
Campos
Michael
M
Rosenthal
Richard
R
Brecht
Mary-Lynn
ML
Schwartz
Bryan
B
Davis
Alice
A
Chung
Bowen
B
D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001213:Asian; D016739:Behavior, Addictive / Q000453:epidemiology*; D003469:Culture; D005006:Ethnicity; D005260:Female; D005715:Gambling; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D044468:Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander; D012111:Residence Characteristics; D012938:Social Perception; D014481:United States