Gambling Economy and Social Protests in Macao: A Happy Problem?

Gambling has both negative and positive impacts on every economy. The existing literature of gambling-related protests has mostly centered on “cost-challenging protests,” referring to resistance against social costs such as legalized gambling, problem gambling, and environmental deterioration. In this article, we adopt alternative types of collective action, namely “benefit-sharing protests,” referring to those that seek state or casino companies to share economic benefits. By analyzing 754 protests in Macao from 2000 to 2021, this study examines the trends and characteristics of gambling-related movements in the Chinese special administrative region. The results indicate that most protests were benefits-sharing in nature rather than cost-challenging. The conclusion strongly supports the thesis that improved performance by the gambling sector can help alleviate conflicts within society. Interestingly, as revenue from the gambling sector increases, there is a corresponding rise in benefit-sharing protests, which acknowledge the contributions of the gambling industry and advocate for enhanced welfare transformation for residents. These findings offer a novel perspective on understanding protests related to gambling in the context of Macao’s well-established gambling economy.