Online gambling in Pennsylvania

The availability and prevalence of online gambling have significantly increased worldwide in the past 25 years. Connections have been established between online gambling and specific demographic characteristics, as well as gambling problems. In 2017, Pennsylvania legalized online gambling. Following legalization, the state saw a rapid expansion in online gambling availability, expanding into lottery, online casinos, and online sports betting. As part of this legislation, an annual assessment of the population prevalence of online gambling participation in the state of Pennsylvania is to occur. This study represents the first annual assessment of the impacts of legalized online gambling on Pennsylvania residents and establishes the 2020-2021 prevalence rate of online gambling within the state. A Dual Frame Random Digit Dial survey was conducted and 1,158 Pennsylvanians' participated in a 5-min telephone survey. Data were weighted to approximate the population of Pennsylvania. The results showed that approximately 11.1% of Pennsylvanians had engaged in online gambling in the previous 12 months. Furthermore, it was determined that 43.9% of the online gamblers had experienced at least one gambling problem in the previous 12 months. The results of this study have implications for the development of materials for the prevention of problem gambling and public policy for online gambling.