Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.

The main aims of this research were to determine the levels of underage sales of National Lottery products, and the prevalence of 'problem gambling' (as determined by the DSM-IV-MR-J - see full reference under 'Main Topics' section below) by under-16-year-olds on National Lottery scratchcards. These findings were also compared with a similar study conducted in 1997. The research also attempted to explore whether those under 16 understood the reasons for the age restriction on the National Lottery. The findings from the 1997 survey were reported in: Fisher, S.E. (1998) <i>Gambling and problem gambling among adolescents in England and Wales</i>, prepared for the Office of the National Lottery, OFLOT (now The National Lottery Commission).

Main Topics:

Subjects covered included: demographic details, general questions about gambling in lifetime/past year, past week National Lottery Draw play, past week National Lottery scratchcard play, past week National Lottery 'Thunderball' play, illegal and legal purchases on all three National Lottery games, number of successful and unsuccessful attempts on all National Lottery games, past week expenditure on other gambling games, what respondents think the attitude of their parents is towards gambling on the National Lottery/fruit machines, social and psychological implications of gambling on fruit machines/National Lottery scratchcards in the past year; viewing of National Lottery television programmes, attitudes towards the National Lottery. Standard Measures DSM-IV-MR-J (youth adapted version of the DSM-IV criteria published by the American Psychiatric Association, 1994).

One-stage cluster sample

initially, a letter was sent to head teachers explaining what the survey was about and asking for t

Self-completion

supervised self-completion questionnaires were used