The increase in the number of pathological gamblers is another
concerning issue regarding the development of casino gambling.
Janes and Collison (2004) found that problem gambling had risen in
the studied site from 1995 to 2000, and community leaders have
also noticed that issues concerning child neglect and family problems
had become more challenging and widespread during this
period. Long (1996) found that there were growing demands for
child protection, marriage counseling, and other social service
programs in these gaming communities. However, other studies
have claimed that casinos do not directly cause the issue of problem
gambling (Braunlich, 1996; Room, Turner, & Ialomiteanu, 1999).
After analyzing the perspectives of residents, Pizam and Pokela
(1985) studied these residents' perceptions toward the development
of casino gambling in the Adams and Hull areas of Massachusetts
and found that these residents did not perceive this
development as an improvement in their standard of living. Ironically,
these residents thought that the development of casino
gambling had increased their cost of living. Similarly, Roehl's (1999)
research found that only one-third of the survey respondents
agreed that the casino gambling establishment made their community
a better place to live. Overall, the majority of the investigated
respondents stated that they would not recommend the
implementation of legalized gambling in other communities (Long,
1996). However, even in the discussion of the negative social impacts
of casino gambling, there could be significant determinants
(such as the community size and the magnitude of the casino industry)
to induce differentiated strengths and extensions of negative
social impacts on the host communities (Eadington, 1996) (for
example, in comparison with the magnitude of casino gambling
between Macau and Singapore).
As indicated by Lee, Kim, and Kang (2003) based on their studies
of casino gambling in Korea, the positive socio-cultural impacts
would lead to advocacy for the development of casino gambling by
residents, but the negative impacts would provoke opposition from
residents against the existence of casino gambling.