Saturday, July 6, 1996

Texas Poll: Men gamble more than women...except in Bingo

By STEVE RAY
Harte-Hanks Austin Bureau

AUSTIN - Texas men and women both like to gamble - but they're taking a chance on different games.

A Harte-Hanks Texas Poll released today shows that more men than women were likely to be at the dog track, play the lottery and favor legalizing casinos. But when it comes to playing bingo - the gender gap turns the other way.

Experts say differences apply to men and women addicted to gambling. They gamble for different reasons: Women gamble to escape reality, men because of their egos.

"There is a vast difference in gambling behavior (among the sexes) and in the way it impacts them," said Sue Cox, executive director of the Texas Council on Problem and Compulsive Gambling. "One of the main differences is their choices of games. Women's addictions show up more in games of luck - such as the lottery, bingo and machine games at casinos. For most women gamblers it is an escape mechanism.

"Many men (who become addicted to gambling are) seeking action at places like the horse and dog tracks."

The Texas Poll indicates some differences in how men and women view gambling and in what types of games they have played in the past year:

- Fifty-six percent of Texas men favor legalizing casinos, compared with 46 percent of Texas women.

- Men were more likely than women to have played the lottery in the past year - 74 percent to 63 percent.

- Men and women were almost even in attending horse races. Seven percent of Texas men and 6 percent of women had gone to a Texas horse racing track during the past 12 months.

- Men outnumbered women two to one at Texas dog tracks. Six percent of Texas men had attended a dog track, while 3 percent of women had done so.

- Women outnumbered men at the bingo parlor. Ten percent of Texas women had played bingo in the past year, compared with 7 percent of men.

Those results don't surprise addiction experts who say women often are the family members who become hooked on bingo.

"They begin to play bingo as a recreation or a social experience, but a combination of factors can result in their developing serious gambling-related problems," said Sheri Udkisy, coordinator of the Problem Gambler HelpLine, which is run by the Texas Council.

The Texas Council on Problem and Compulsive Gambling is a state-sponsored agency that helps train compulsive gambling counselors and runs a hotline for the state's compulsive gamblers. It was mandated by state law as part of the 1991 Texas Lottery Act and the group's hotline number is posted in bingo halls and on the back of Texas lottery tickets.

There is also a gender difference in how men and women react to their gambling addiction, Udkisy said.

"Women are much more embarrassed and have a lot more guilt," said Cox, the council's executive director. "And (their gambling problems) begin later in life. Most male gamblers had their initial gambling experience in childhood.