Gambling Responsibility – What Does It Mean In Asia?

如何在亚洲实践「负责任博彩」？ – 点击这里阅读中文/Read in Chinese

When it comes to responsible gambling, responsibility can be separated into 2 core areas:

1. Responsibility of the individual person




2. Responsibility of the gambling organisation

In Asia, the issue of problem gambling has been around for years. It is one that constantly surrounds the industry. Both online and offline gambling providers have a duty to tackle problem gambling issues, such as addiction or compulsiveness.

Unfortunately, however, there are still too many companies that view profit over people.

There are many cultural factors that play a part in why Asians gamble: fortune, fate and a strong belief in luck among them. Research has shown that Asians not only gamble more, as a whole, than citizens of other nations, such as the United States or the United Kingdom, but also have a larger number of those who are sufferers of problem gambling.

So why are there more gambling problems amongst Asians?

When we look at research into cultural differences between Asians, we can see that their attitudes to gambling tend to be different.

Asians have a larger history and culture when it comes to gambling, and many Asians put more emphasis on it being a social activity than other societies do.

An underlying issue is that the boundaries between activities that are classed as casual fun or as gambling are blurred.

For example, many Asians play Mah-jong, a game that can be both a social activity and a way to wager money.

Mah-jong is often learnt from a young age. The game is embedded within Asian culture.

It is also common in Asian society for friends and family to visit each other’s houses and play card games.

Again, this can be just for fun, but it is often something Asians experience at a young age. It can thus be viewed as an introduction to gambling as a youngster. Moreover, card games and games such as Mah-jong are competitive by nature and can lead one to wager money in the future as people grow.

As early as young teenagers, Asians are introduced to these games on a regular basis, which can increase the motivation to start gambling as early as age 18.

Furthermore, Asians tend to be more superstitious in life in general. More emphasis in everyday life is placed on omens and lucky or unlucky numbers compared to Western societies such as the US and UK. The result of this is that the psychological influence of losing and winning carries much more weight and tends to be a much larger reflection on the person as a whole.

In addition, superstitious behaviours can be deeply rooted within a particular family, spanning hundreds of years back to the family’s ancestors. An Asian individual may believe they are inherently or biologically luckier than others.

Additionally, Asian immigrants can often be made to feel more welcome within a community by attending gambling establishments.

Another big factor in problem gambling in Asians is the emphasis placed on money. People are judged by how much money they do or do not have, which shapes the way Asians think, live, and do business.

Governments have stepped in to ensure there are laws and protections in place to help Asians. For example, in China, gambling, other than state-run lotteries, is officially banned.

Hong Kong and Macau do provide an avenue to casino gambling, however, which causes some issues, although Macau law does allow an individual, or family member, to submit a request to stop a person gambling. An individual can contact the Coordination Bureau or Gaming Inspection and request that a person be excluded from gambling establishments.

In Singapore, the government discourages locals from excessively visiting casinos by asking those that visit more than five times a month to provide evidence that they are not in financial distress or face restrictions, apart from charging them excessive Casino Entry Levy.

Organisations are trying to raise awareness in parts of Asia about mental health, since gambling addiction is of course a mental health issue, rather than a moral issue.

Therefore, shaping society and changing the way people think about gambling is important, both in helping to tackle addictions and in ensuring individuals take responsibility for their actions in a way they are able to tolerate.

KL is a senior executive of a reputable international consulting firm, focusing on regulatory compliance in the financial sector and gaming industry with experiences gained from various leading consulting firms. He can be reached at kl@cdcgamingreports.com.

Chinese version

在赌博责任方面，该责任可分为两个核心领域：

1. 个人责任




2. 赌博组织的责任

在亚洲，赌博问题已存在多年，并且一直围绕着该行业。

在线和离线赌博提供商均附有解决赌博问题的责任，如成瘾或强迫症。

然而，不幸的是，仍有很多公司以利润为主。

亚洲人赌博的原因含有多种文化因素，其中一些是财富、命运和对运气的坚定信念。

研究表明，亚洲公民的赌博人数不仅胜于美国或英国等其他国家的公民，而且也是赌博问题受害者的集中地。

那么，为什么亚洲人会面临更多的赌博问题呢？

当我们研究亚洲人之间的文化差异时，我们可以看到他们对赌博持有不同态度。

在赌博方面，亚洲人拥有更深厚的历史和文化。许多人更强调它属于一种社交活动，而非其他社会人士所视的赌博活动。

其中的潜在问题是活动和赌博之间的界限，活动被归类为趣味，而赌博则较为模糊。

如，许多亚洲人玩麻将，这个游戏既可以是社交活动，也可以是赌钱游戏。

通常人们在年纪很小时便开始学习麻将，这意味着它被视为亚洲人的文化之中。

在亚洲社会中，朋友和家人彼此到访做客，玩扑克牌是很常见的现象。

同样，这可能单纯旨在娱乐，但往往是亚洲人在年轻时喜欢做的事情，这也可被视为年轻人赌博的触发点。

诸如麻将和扑克牌之类的游戏具有较高竞争力，并会随着人们的成长而演变为未来的下注。

早在青少年时期，亚洲人会时常参与这些游戏，由此也增加了他们最早自18岁开始赌博的动力。

此外，在日常生活中亚洲人往往倾向于迷信。与美国和英国等西方社会相比，亚洲人将专注于日常生活中的好运/坏气和数字。

其结果是失败和获胜的心理影响持有更大比重，并反映在人的整体上。

此外，迷信行为可在一个家族中根深蒂固，可追溯至家族几百年前的祖先。

因此，亚洲人可能认为他们比其他人更幸运。

还有一点是，亚洲移民通常可以通过参与赌博场所而在社区内受到大众欢迎。

亚洲人赌博问题的另一个重要因素是对金钱的重视。

人们的个人价值基于其财富的多少，这也是塑造亚洲人思考、生活和经商的方式。

组织正在亚洲部分地区努力提高对心理健康的认识。

赌博成瘾是心理健康问题，而不是道德问题。

因此，塑造社会，改变人们对赌博的看法对于帮助解决成瘾问题和确保个人在其能力范围内对自己的行为承担负责十分重要。

政府也介入其中，以确保设有可为亚洲人提供帮助的法律及保护措施。其中的一个实例是中国，除了参与国营彩票之外，中国正式禁止赌博。

然而，香港和澳门提供参与赌博的途径，因而也会引起一些问题的出现。

这由联络协调局或博彩稽查的人员处理，由此人们便可以被拦截在赌博场所之外。法律允许个人或家庭成员提交阻止某人在澳门赌博的请求。

在新加坡，政府不鼓励当地人进入赌场，但每月进入赌场超过五次的人士，除需缴纳高额的赌场入场征费之外，还需提供其没有陷入财务困境或面临限制的证据。

KL 是一家全球领先的国际咨询公司的高级行政人员, 专注于金融行业和博彩业的监管合规， 并拥有来自多家大型咨询公司的经验。 在亚太地区的监管机构的参与下, KL先生领导并大量参与了许多监管合规审查项目。 同时，KL先生也一直在亚太新兴博彩业地区积极协助业内相关政府机构和成员。可以通过 kl@cdcgamingreports.com 与他联系。

Nic W.为一资深注册社工，具多年家庭及青少年工作经验。因为长期接触不同背景的家庭及青少年，Nic W.期望能为亚洲博彩业提供独到的分析。Nic W.现在于欧洲研究院攻读表达艺术治疗的硕士课程。可以通过 nicw@cdcgamingreports.com 与他联系。