The first large-scale study of gambling within LGBTQ+ communities in Great Britain has found that although LGBTQ+ adults gamble slightly less than the general population, they are more likely to experience gambling-related harm and to face distinct, magnified risks linked to social inequality and minority stress. According to the University of Brighton, which led the research in partnership with YouGov and Brighton & Hove LGBT Switchboard and with funding from GambleAware, 59% of LGBTQ+ participants reported gambling in the past year compared with 62% of the wider public, yet 18% of LGBTQ+ respondents reported gambling-related harm versus 15% across the general population.
The nationally representative survey of 3,000 adults, supplemented by qualitative methods including interviews and diaries, reveals stark heterogeneity within the LGBTQ+ sample. Those from ethnic minority backgrounds were three times more likely to meet criteria for problem gambling than white LGBTQ+ participants, with rates reported at 9% and 3% respectively, the researchers said. The University of Brighton’s scoping review and GambleAware’s summary of evidence further identify sexual minority men, young lesbian and bisexual women, and transgender and non-binary youth, particularly transgender women, as groups at heightened risk, noting drivers such as minority stress, stigma and the use of gambling as a coping mechanism.
Among participants classed as problem gamblers the study documents severe downstream harms: hiding the extent of gambling, depleting savings or borrowing to fund play, relationship breakdown, involvement in criminal behaviour to secure funds, and reports of violence or abuse connected to gambling. Around a third of LGBTQ+ respondents gambled at least weekly, with online National Lottery tickets and scratch cards the most common products used in the previous 12 months.
Benjamin Howard, a 36-year-old gay man from Warwickshire and a lived-experience advisor on the project, described how gambling became entwined with his search for acceptance. He said he first gambled after leaving a gay bar, wanting to maintain a sense of belonging, but eventually lost relationships, housing and his career, and became involved in the criminal justice system. He said gambling often presents itself as a 'safe space' for LGBTQ+ people facing rejection or discrimination, but can compound trauma instead. He called for inclusive, trauma-informed support and regulation that protects those made vulnerable by social inequality.
Researchers and advocacy partners stressed that the findings point to unmet needs for tailored prevention and support. Dr Alexandra Sawyer, Principal Investigator and Principal Research Fellow at the University of Brighton, said the research offers 'the clearest insight yet into gambling harms in LGBTQ+ communities in Great Britain' and urged policymakers to strengthen legislation, tighten advertising rules, improve age checks and launch public campaigns focused on risk. Dr Laetitia Zeeman, co-lead on the project and Principal Lecturer at the university, said the findings are vital to developing evidence-based support and prevention strategies that reflect the realities of LGBTQ+ people’s lives.
Lauren Hunter, Acting Head of Community and Inequalities Research at GambleAware, said the work demonstrates how gambling harms can affect different communities in different ways and hoped the findings would encourage more people to seek support. Kate Gosschalk, Associate Director at YouGov, said the study builds on GambleAware’s existing research by providing one of the most detailed examinations to date of gambling in LGBTQ+ communities. Robert Sainsbury, Chief Executive of Brighton & Hove LGBT Switchboard, said gambling harm is closely tied to discrimination, exclusion and mental distress, and emphasised the need for support services that understand the complexities of LGBTQ+ identities and experiences.
The research team, led by the university’s Centre for Transforming Sexuality and Gender, delivered the GambLGBTQ+ project using a mixed-methods design intended to build an extensive evidence base on prevalence, risk and protective factors and on help-seeking experiences. According to project documentation and the accompanying scoping review, the combination of survey data and qualitative work was chosen to capture both the scale of harm and the lived experience that shapes pathways into and out of problematic gambling.
Policy implications were a dominant theme among participants and partners. Some respondents called for tighter regulation including a ban on gambling advertising and a public-health approach similar to that used for smoking and alcohol addiction. The researchers and funders framed such responses as consistent with evidence that population-level measures, alongside culturally competent, trauma-informed support services, are likely to be needed to reduce inequalities in gambling harm. Source: Noah Wire Services