The impact of COVID-19 lockdown on gambling habit: A cross-sectional study from Italy.

ABSTRACT:

Background and aims

Few preliminary studies have shown an impact of COVID-19 confinement on gambling habits. We aim to evaluate short-term effects of lockdown restrictions on gambling behaviors in Italy.

Methods

Within the project Lost in Italy, a web-based cross-sectional study was conducted on a representative sample of 6,003 Italians aged 18-74 years, enrolled during April 27-May 3 2020, and were asked to report gambling activity before the lockdown and at the time of interview.

Results

The prevalence of participants reporting any gambling decreased from 16.3% before lockdown to 9.7% during lockdown. Traditional gambling decreased from 9.9 to 2.4% and online gambling from 9.9 to 8.0%. Among gamblers, median time of gambling grew from 4.5 to 5.1 h/month. Among non-p

SUBMITTER: Lugo A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8997195 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature