ORIGINAL ARTICLE Are Online Gamblers More At Risk Than Offline Gamblers? Sylvia Kairouz, Ph.D., 1,2 Catherine Paradis, Ph.D., 2,3 and Louise Nadeau, Ph.D. 2,4 Abstract Objectives: To characterize and compare sociodemographic profiles, game-play patterns, and level of addictive behaviors among adults who gamble online and those who do not, and to examine if, at the population level, online gambling is associated with more risky behaviors than offline gambling. Methods: Respondents were 8,456 offline gamblers and 111 online gamblers who participated in a population-based survey conducted in the province of Que ´bec, in 2009. The study sample is representative of adult general population. Results: There is an unequal distribution of online gambling in the population. A disproportionate number of men, young people, and students say they participate in online gambling. Poker players are overrepresented among online gamblers and gambling behaviors tend to be more excessive on the Internet. Compared with offline gamblers, online gamblers report more co-occurring risky behaviors, namely alcohol and cannabis use. Conclusion: Those who gamble online appear to be more at risk for gambling-related problems, but the present findings alone cannot be used as evidence for that conclusion. Future research designs could combine longitudinal data collection and multilevel analyses to provide more insight into the causal mechanisms associated with online gambling. Introduction T hrough private Internet access and mobile technol- ogy, online gambling has become readily accessible. The gambling field has thus seen dramatic changes over recent years. The number of gambling websites has grown from about 15 in 1995 to 2,358 in 2010. Global Internet gambling revenues have increased from $3 billion in 2000 to $24 billion in 2010. 1 In this context, many worry about the possible effects of this growth on public health. In Que ´bec, when the Crown corporation announced its decision to set up a gambling website in 2010, public health directors from across the province openly expressed concerns that those who gamble online could be more prone to an array of gambling-related problems. 2 Theoretical research undertaken by Griffiths 3–5 over the last decade has shed light on how the Internet in itself can be addictive and how online gambling can increase the potential for other gambling-related problems. Empirical studies have drawn similar conclusions. For example, using a self-selected sample of 1,920 American, Canadian, and international In- ternet gamblers, Woods and Williams 6 found that, compared with offline gamblers, Internet gamblers were more likely to have a higher score on the Canadian Problem Gambling In- dex (CPGI). In their study, 20.1 percent of Internet gamblers were classified as problem gamblers. Only a few empirical studies have specifically compared online and offline gamblers. An analysis of the British Gambling Prevalence Survey showed that online players were more likely to positively score on the DSM-IV patho- logical gambling criteria. Online gamblers were also more likely to be male, young, single, educated and working in managerial or professional occupations than offline play- ers. 7 In a clinical sample, Ladd and Petry 8 found that online gamblers were more likely to have a higher score on the South Oaks Gambling Screen, more likely to be young and more likely to be non-Caucasian than offline gamblers. Using an opportunity sample of 38 participants, Cole et al. 9 observed that those who gambled on online roulette placed more chips per bet and made riskier bets than those who gambled on roulette offline. Thus, empirical studies appear to support the idea that online gamblers are more at risk than their land-based counterparts. However, the majority of these findings are based on convenience samples that make it impossible to assess the extent to which they are representative of all online gamblers. Therefore, from an epidemiological perspective, very little is known about the characteristics of online gam- blers compared to their offline counterparts. 1 Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Concordia University, Montre ´al, Canada. 2 Lifestyle and Addiction Research Lab, Concordia University, Montre ´al, Canada. 3 Department of Political Studies, Bishop’s University, Lennoxville, Canada. 4 Department of Psychology, Universite ´ de Montre ´al, Montre ´al, Canada. CYBERPSYCHOLOGY,BEHAVIOR, AND SOCIAL NETWORKING Volume 00, Number 00, 2011 ª Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. DOI: 10.1089/cyber.2011.0260 1