Griffiths, MD

Parke, A

Parke, J

Nottingham Trent Institutional Repository (IRep)

The co-relationship between violence, addiction andcrime has been much reported. However, therelationship between violence, crime and gambling isonly just emerging. The National Gambling Impact StudyCommission (1999) reported that the advent of casinoswould bring increased violent crimes especially moredomestic violence and child abuse. In the US, this appearsto have happened. For instance, Mulenman, DenOtter,Wadman, Tran and Anderson (2002) found that intimatepartner violence was predicted by pathological gambling inthe perpetrator. Furthermore, the US National CoalitionAgainst Legalized Gambling (2003) reported that with theopening of casinos in South Dakota, child abuse anddomestic assaults rose by 42 per cent and 80 per centrespectively. Cano and Vivian (2001) identified a strong linkbetween life stressors (particularly financial stress) andhusband to wife violence. The underlying cause of thefrustration, embarrassment, guilt and aggressionexperienced by the gambler (or spouse) is the financial stresscaused by losing.Traditionally, socially disadvantaged groups, whenfrustrated are prone to resorting to aggressive behaviourfor several reasons. Berkowitz (1993) states that whenunderprivileged individuals do not meet societal expec-tations they will continually assess their self-worth. Actingaggressively may be an important outlet of expression andfrustration (if not the only one available). Aggressivebehaviour in gambling environments is probably reinforcedthrough gaining status in social groups through suchdisplays of power and dominance. In gambling environ-ments, any number of different contexts may trigger aviolent incident (eg, violence generated by frustration overlosing a large amount of money on a machine). This articleparticularly concentrates on potential trigger factors in thegambling environment itself.In research looking at the causes of pub violence (eg,Farnsworth et al, 1990; Leather & Lawrence, 1995; Beale,Cox, Clarke, Lawrence & Leather, 1998), a number offactors have been isolated as contributing to violentepisodes. Many of these appear directly applicable to thegambling environment:• the type of punter (eg, blue collar/manual customergroups are more violent than white collar; “regular”customers are less violent than passing trade);• the nature of the environment (eg, allowing the decor todeteriorate sends out the wrong message to players);• the nature of the overall organization (eg, the potentialconflict between control over sales and pressure toreturn high profits);• other factors (eg, players under the influence of alcohol;)• behaviour of the staff such as (i) staff themselves mayfacilitate violent incidents if they themselves areincapable of handling disputes, (ii) poor customer care,and (iii) unsympathetic response to customer problems(such as faulty payout on slot machines).Of all the surveys considering crimes against business inthe UK, none have specifically considered abuse andviolence in gambling environments. Two major nationalsurveys have considered crimes against businesses. Theseare the British Retail Consortium (BRC) surveys (see forexample the Retail Crime Survey, 1999) and theCommercial Victimization Survey (Mirrlees-Black & Ross,1994). To date the BRC have conducted seven nationalsurveys of crimes against businesses. These surveys measurecrime through head offices of business and have a coverageof around 44,000 outlets per year. However, the BRCsurvey only considers crime against retailers. This sector isbroken down into business types (such as off-licences, DIYshops etc.) with gambling establishments being covered inthe “other” business types section. Therefore this surveyhides the true extent of crime involving gambling in this“other” business category. The Commercial Victimization Survey is another majornational survey to consider crimes against businesses. Thiswas published by the UK Home Office in 1995 and itcovered around 3,000 retail and manufacturing premises.Some gambling businesses were covered by the survey butthe extent of crimes against them was hidden as they werecovered under the general category of “retailers” thusmaking it impossible to establish the extent of crime againstthem. There have also been some smaller “localized”surveys of crimes against businesses. The largest twosurveys were the Small Business and Crime Initiativesurveys conducted in the Belgrave and West End areas ofLeicester in September 1995 and 1997 (Tilley & Hopkins,1997). The total sample of businesses interviewed was 894in 1995 and 965 in 1997. Eleven of these were gamblingestablishments – all of which were bookmakers (four in1995 and seven in 1997). Though this sample is small, itdoes give us some indication as to the rate of victimizationin gambling environments. In sweep one of the survey threeout of four gambling environments experienced abuse (75per cent) and one violence (25 per cent). These prevalencerates are fairly high when compared to other business types(such as pubs, hotels and eating places). On average, avictim experienced two incidents per year which is lowerthan business types such as pubs and hotels thoughcomparable to businesses such as restaurants.It has already been acknowledged that the sample ofgambling establishments in each survey is small. However,if these are merged there is an overall sample of 11ARTICLEVolume 167 JUSTICE ofthe PEACE 1Violence in Gambling Environments:A Cause for Concern?MARK GRIFFITHS, ADRIAN PARKE and JONATHAN PARKE** Psychology Division, Nottingham Trent University.Violence in Gambling  27/5/03  3:16 pm  Page 1gambling environments. Of these premises, seven (64 percent) were victims of abuse over a period of 12 months, andtwo (18 per cent) were victims of violence. There was anaverage of 22 incidents of abuse per 100 gamblingenvironments and 3.6 incidents of violence per 100gambling environments. A victim of abuse would beexpected to experience around 3.5 incidents of abuse andtwo incidents of violence per year. These statistics perhapsgive an estimation as to the risks of abuse and violence forgambling establishments in general. Hopkins and Griffiths(2001) made a return visit to a victim of abuse and violence.From these limited data they were able to establish anumber of clear reasons why gambling environmentsgenerated abuse and violence. It is apparent that gamblingenvironments have many of the common “lifestyle”attributes that generate abuse and violence against staff.For example:• They appear to have a ready supply of potentialoffenders. These are obviously people visiting thebusiness to gamble. Many gambling environments (eg,betting shops, casinos, amusement arcades) are maledominated environment and males are more likely to beviolent and aggressive than females.• Female staff may be viewed as “easy targets” by thepredominantly male customers. Staff may also lackinterpersonal skills and/or training to reduce the risk ofviolence being triggered within the premises.• There is a lack of formal guardianship on the premises(such as security guards or CCTV). It has often beensuggested that increasing guardianship will discouragepotential offenders from engaging in violent crimes. • They constantly handle cash. Research has generallyshown that businesses where money is constantlyhandled have high risks of experiencing incidents ofabuse and violence (see Hopkins, 1997). Tensions canarise when wrong amounts of change given (oftenaccidentally).• Customers are likely to become frustrated over losingmoney on the machines. This may lead to aggressive andviolent behaviour.Though the data are limited, it appears that gamblingestablishments may have higher risks of experiencing abuseand violence than many other business types. It is apparentthat more data are required here on both the national andlocal level. Both the BRC and CVS do not measure abuseand violence specifically against gambling establishments,and data at the local level are limited. Implications for Management ofGambling Environments On a logical level, there are many different ways in whichthe problem of violence and abuse at work can be tackled.This could be anything from the changing of organizationalpolicies and procedures, redesign and marketing of theorganization and/or better selection and training formanagers and staff. The following points of action couldbe important in the prevention of violence and particularlyuseful in promoting peace within gambling environments(after Farnsworth et al, 1990).Good Housekeeping Good housekeeping sets the standards by which others, inpart, decide their own behaviour. Furthermore, it creates asocially attractive environment that helps to limitfrustration and keep flashpoints to a minimum. Simple(common sense) measures include:• Removing “silent” irritants and keeping a “clean”environment.• Avoiding letting the environment becoming unpleasantlystuffy or smelly.• Avoiding an undue build-up of cigarette smoke.• Avoiding unpleasantly high or low room temperatures.• Keeping floors and other surfaces clean.• Keeping the environment tidy and not allowing a buildup of debris.Good Hospitality Management Staff working in gambling environments should try andbuild up a good knowledge of their punters and develop agood relationship and rapport. Greeting people,acknowledging them and conversing with them creates anatmosphere that reduces the likelihood of violence. Suchcontact facilitates early (diplomatic) intervention inpotentially difficult situations. Simple (common sense)measures include:• Welcoming people as they come up to the counter to getchange.• Being visible (eg, making yourself known to the puntersand them to you).• Being diplomatic wherever possible and appropriate.• Remaining vigilant at all times.• Knowing the nature and early signs of violence (eg,raised voices, body language, rowdy behaviour, etc).• Treating the customers with respect so that they respectyou.• Acknowledging those that are waiting that you will bewith them as soon as possible.• Not giving preferential treatment (ie, not having onerule for some and another for others).It is also worth noting that violent behaviour can in partstem from both drinking alcohol and drug taking (bothwhich have similar effects). Drugs and alcohol distortindividual perceptions and intellectual processes in waysthat make explanations less likely to be accepted, anddisputes and violent interactions more likely. It is also worthpointing out that (i) it is not uncommon for pubs andgambling environments to be closely situated from oneanother and (b) gamblers are more likely to (ab)use bothalcohol and drugs (Griffiths, 1994; Griffiths & Sutherland,1998).Though the data are limited, the research evidencesuggests that gambling environments experience high ratesof abuse and violence when compared to a number of otherbusiness types. Therefore, these specific establishmentsappear to have a number of “lifestyle” characteristics thatgenerate abuse and violence. Here we have identified aARTICLE2 JUSTICE ofthe PEACE Volume 167Violence in Gambling  27/5/03  3:16 pm  Page 2number of these characteristics. For example, the gamblingenvironment will often attract a ready supply of offendersto the premises and it is able to trigger incidents ascustomers become frustrated over losing money on bets andsometimes become involved in disputes with staff over stakemoney or odds given on bets. In addition to this, there area number of other environmental factors noted that mayhelp to generate incidents (such as the general appearanceof the shop, untidiness and so on) and it is apparent that thebehaviour of staff can in some circumstances help toescalate incidents. ReferencesBeale, D., Cox, T., Clarke, D., Lawrence, C. & Leather, P. (1998)“Temporal architecture of violent incidents”. Journal ofOccupational Health Psychology, 3, 65-82.Berkowitz, L. (1993) Aggression: Its causes, consequences, andcontrol. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.Budd, T. (1999) Violence at Work: Findings from the BritishCrime Survey. London: Home Office, Health & SafetyExecutive.Cano, A., & Vivian, D. (2001) “Life stressors and husband-to-wife violence”. Aggression & Violent Behavior, 6, 459-480.Farnsworth, B., Leather, P. & Cox, T. (1990) Keeping PubsPeaceful: A Trainer’s Guide Developed for Taylor Walker.University of Nottingham.Griffiths, M.D. (1994) “An exploratory study of gambling crossaddictions”. Journal of Gambling Studies, 10, 371-384.Griffiths, M.D. & Hopkins, M. (2001) “Betting shop violence: Acause for concern?” Police Journal, 74, 55-60.Griffiths, M.D. & Sutherland, I. (1998) “Adolescent gambling anddrug use”. Journal of Community and Applied SocialPsychology, 8, 423-427.Hopkins, M. (1998) “Abuse and Violence Within the Workplace:A Study of Small Businesses in Leicester”. InternationalJournal of Risk, Security and Crime Prevention, 4(3), 293-306.Leather, P. & Lawrence, C. (1995) “Perceiving pub violence: Thesymbolic influence of social and environmental factors”.British Journal of Social Psychology, 34, 395-407.Mirrlees-Black, C. & Ross, A. (1995) “Crime Against retail andManufacturing Premises: Findings from the 1994 CommercialVictimization Survey”. Home Office Research Study No. 146.London: Home Office.Mulenman, R.L., Den Otter, T., Wadman M.C., Tran T.P., &Anderson, J. (2002) “Problem gambling in the partner of theemergency department patient as a risk factor for intimatepartner violence”. Journal of Emergency Medicine. 23,(3),307-312.National Coalition Against Legalized Gambling (2003) “TheExplosive Growth of Gambling in the United States”.Available at: http://www.ncalg.org/the_expl.htm [Accessed29/1/2003].National Gambling Impact Study Commission. (1999) NationalGambling Impact Study Commission Final Report. Availableat: http://www.casino-gambling-reports.com/GamblingStudy/[Accessed 29/1/2003].Poyner, B. & Warne, C. (1986) Violence to Staff. Health andSafety Executive. London: HMSO.Retail Crime Survey (2000) Retail Crime Costs, 1999 Survey.London: British Retail Consortium.Tilley, N. & Hopkins, M. (1998) Business as Usual: AnEvaluation of the Small Business & Crime Initiative. PoliceResearch Series Paper 95. London: Home Office.ARTICLEVolume 167 JUSTICE ofthe PEACE 3Violence in Gambling  27/5/03  3:16 pm  Page 3ARTICLE4 JUSTICE ofthe PEACE Volume 167Violence in Gambling  27/5/03  3:16 pm  Page 4

Violence in gambling environments: a cause for concern?

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