Gambling and problem gambling among adult Minnesotans: Changes 1990 to 1994

We assess changes in gambling and problem gambling from 1990 to 1994, a period of rapid expansion in gambling availability. Surveys of non-institutionalized adult Minnesotans were conducted in the spring of each year. Problem gambling was assessed using the SOGS-M, the Minnesota revision of the South Oaks Gambling Screen. Gambling was found to be more frequent among Minnesotans in 1994 than in 1990, and the preference for games changed. Moreover, problem gambling increased over the period. This increase, however, appears to have occurred at the lower ends of the problem gambling continuum rather than at the probable pathological level. Policy implications are explored.