Dr Stephanie Bramley
Stephanie is a Research Associate at the NIHR Health and Social Care Workforce Research Unit, King’s College London. Stephanie’s research interests include the design and promotion of gambling products, responsible gambling, gambling amongst vulnerable populations and the impacts of gambling. Stephanie recently joined Calderdale Citizens Advice as a Gambling Support Service Trainer. In this role she provides training about gambling-related harm to frontline staff across Yorkshire and The Humber.
Improving understanding of migrant gambling in the UK: Insights from three studies
Presentation audio: Improving understanding of migrant gambling in the UK: Insights from three studies
Aims: England has one of the most liberal gambling policy regimes in the world and there is concern that those migrating from jurisdictions with more restricted gambling cultures may be at heightened risk of experiencing gambling-related harm. Problem gambling is linked to a range of harms affecting resources, relationships and health. To date there is no UK research examining migrant gambling and little research internationally. The aim of this study was to investigate the type of support that may need to be made available to new UK migrants experiencing gambling-related harm.
Methods: The study comprised three phases: 1) rapid evidence review; 2) secondary analysis of Health Survey for England 2012 and 2015 data; and 3) workshops attended by organisations which support migrants affected by gambling in Leeds and London – places with higher than average migrant communities.
Results: The study provided initial evidence of a ‘harm paradox’ – non-white and non-British born individuals were less likely to gamble, but if they did were more likely to be classified as problem gamblers (7.2%) compared to individuals who were British-born and white (0.8%). Workshop participants viewed gambling as highly accessible, a way to supplement income and to relieve acculturative stress. Participants also thought that existing gambling support services may not meet the needs of migrant communities.
Conclusions: Work should be done to ensure that gambling support services are accessible to migrants and culturally sensitive. Future research should investigate gambling-related harms from migrants’ perspectives to improve the promotion, design, delivery and accessibility of support services.