Graduation Term

Spring 2026

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Department of Economics: Applied Economics

Committee Chair

Harris Timothy

Committee Member

Srishti Slaria

Committee Member

German Blanco

Abstract

This study examines the causal Impact of sports gambling legalization on marital stability in the United States using data from the Current Population Survey Annual Social and Economic Supplement (CPS-ASEC) and the American Community Survey (ACS) from 2013 to 2024. The analysis leverages variation in the staggered adoption of state-level sports gambling laws and applies two-way fixed effects, event-study, and the Callaway and Sant’Anna (2021) difference-in-differences estimators, controlling for geographic and individual characteristics. Legalization increases divorce rates by 0.42 percentage points in the CPS and 0.51 percentage points in the ACS, corresponding to increases of 2.4% and 2.6%, or approximately 4 to 5 additional divorces per 1,000 annually. These effects are large relative to typical U.S. state-level divorce rates of 2 to 3 per 1,000 population (National Center for Health Statistics, 2023). Retail legalization drives the aggregate effect, with increases of 0.51 percentage points in the CPS and 0.55 percentage points in the ACS, while online legalization yields smaller and statistically insignificant changes. Event-study estimates show no evidence of differential pre-treatment trends and a gradual increase post-treatment. Heterogeneity analysis indicates stronger responses among individuals without children, employed individuals, and those with education beyond high school, and middle-income households. These findings indicate that sports gambling legalization imposes measurable social costs on household stability that extend beyond its economic benefits.

Access Type

Thesis-Open Access

Download

Share

COinS