The role of neighbourhood context in explaining patterns of problem gambling in New Zealand.
In the past few decades, problem gambling has emerged worldwide as a social and public health issue (Korn, 2001) . The negative effects from excessive or uncontrolled gambling behaviour may include significant financial problems, and the disruption of personal relationships, negative effects on the gambler's mental and physical health, and harmful effects for people close to the gambler (Abbott, 2001) . The harm from problem gambling is now recognised in New Zealand , and the Ministry of Health is currently developing strategies for the prevention and minimisation of gambling-related harm, which include a programme of research and monitoring. This study will build on the previous research that has investigated aspects of problem gambling in New Zealand .
Geographic analyses of gambling in New Zealand have investigated the density of gambling opportunities in regions in New Zealand (Ministry of Health 2006, Wheeler, 2003) . This research has found that non-casino gaming machines are more likely to be located in more socioeconomically deprived areas, suggesting that accessibility to gambling venues is greater in these more deprived areas. Furthermore, these reports have found a considerable amount of regional variation in the density of gambling opportunities per capita, at the District Health Board and territorial authority levels.
However, to date little work has focused the role of neighbourhood in explaining patterns of problem gambling. One of the few studies to investigate the association between accessibility to gambling opportunities and gambling behaviour found that residents in one region of Australia were more likely to gamble more if they lived in an area with a higher density of gambling opportunities (Marshall, 2005) . Furthermore, research has suggested that the travel distance to the nearest electronic gaming machine venue influenced both the frequency of visits and the length of stay at the gambling venue, with gamblers who lived close to a venue having increased gambling activity (Marshall et al., 2004) .
Aims and Objectives
This study will examine whether geographical access to a range of opportunities for gambling in local neighbourhoods across New Zealand have an effect upon problem gambling incidence, which is independent of individual socio-demographic characteristics.
The research will be undertaken in five stages and is summarised in Figure 1 above.
Staff Involved
Dr Jamie Pearce
Kylie Mason
Rosemary Hiscock
Dr Paul White
Peter Day