Overtime: Long-Term Betting Trajectories Among Highly-Involved and Less-Involved Online Sports Bettors.

Online sports gambling involvement is discontinuous in nature, with small groups of highly involved gamblers exhibiting betting behavior that is distinctly greater than other gamblers. There is some question about whether these groups, defined by exceedingly high levels of play, also have equivalently high rates of gambling problems, and whether they maintain these play levels over time. The current study builds on past work by examining the long-term trajectories of play and voluntary self-exclusion patterns across two years among a cohort of 32,262 highly-involved and less-involved online sports gamblers. We also examine the relative importance of betting behavior change as a risk factor for gambling problems by testing whether high involvement as compared to escalation of involvement is a better predictor of future self-exclusion. Measures included betting activities, transactional activities, and self-exclusion activities on a European online betting platform between February 2015 and January 2017. Results showed that bettors who were most highly involved in the first 8 months of the study in terms of number of bets and net loss were more likely to continue gambling on the platform in months 9-24 than others. Bettors who were most highly involved in the first 8 months of the study in terms of net loss and amount wagered were more likely to use self-exclusion than others, and more likely to have multiple self-exclusions. Escalations in frequency of play and average bet size within the first 8 months emerged as significant predictors of self-exclusion, even when controlling for high involvement.

Examining Responsible Gambling Program Awareness and Engagement Trends and Relationships with Gambling Beliefs and Behaviors: A Three-Wave Study of Customers from a Major Gambling Operator.

A considerable body of literature has examined elements of responsible gambling (RG) programs in land-based gambling venues. The present pre-registered study examines GameSense RG program awareness and engagement trends and relationships with gambling beliefs and behaviors, at MGM's U.S.-based casino properties using three samples of MGM's loyalty program members. We used a repeated cross-sectional approach including observational data collected from one sample (N = 3748) shortly before the rollout of GameSense in 2017-2018, and from two samples collected 1 year (N = 4795) and 2 years (N = 3927) after the program's implementation. We found that awareness of the GameSense program increased between pre- and 1-year post-implementation, yet did not increase further at 2-years post-implementation. Bivariate analyses showed that respondents who were aware of more GameSense components had a better understanding of gambling concepts and used more RG strategies, whereas respondents who engaged with GameSense used more RG strategies than those who did not, but did not display a better understanding of gambling concepts. The relationship between GameSense awareness and self-reported use of RG strategies remained significant in multivariate analyses with covariates. Moderation analyses indicated that a positive effect of overall GameSense engagement on gambling literacy was only found for respondents who had attended a regional property, as compared to respondents who attended Las Vegas or metropolitan properties. All effect sizes were weak, which suggests that practical impacts of the program currently are limited. Our findings have implications for research on land-based RG programs and we provide recommendations for enhancing such programs.

Open Science Practices in Gambling Research Publications (2016-2019): A Scoping Review.

The replication crisis has stimulated researchers around the world to adopt open science research practices intended to reduce publication bias and improve research quality. Open science practices include study pre-registration, open data, open access, and avoiding methods that can lead to publication bias and low replication rates. Although gambling studies uses similar research methods as behavioral research fields that have struggled with replication, we know little about the uptake of open science research practices in gambling-focused research. We conducted a scoping review of 500 recent (1/1/2016-12/1/2019) studies focused on gambling and problem gambling to examine the use of open science and transparent research practices. Our results showed that a small percentage of studies used most practices: whereas 54.6% (95% CI: [50.2, 58.9]) of studies used at least one of nine open science practices, each practice's prevalence was: 1.6% for pre-registration (95% CI: [0.8, 3.1]), 3.2% for open data (95% CI: [2.0, 5.1]), 0% for open notebook, 35.2% for open access (95% CI: [31.1, 39.5]), 7.8% for open materials (95% CI: [5.8, 10.5]), 1.4% for open code (95% CI: [0.7, 2.9]), and 15.0% for preprint posting (95% CI: [12.1, 18.4]). In all, 6.4% (95% CI: [4.6, 8.9]) of the studies included a power analysis and 2.4% (95% CI: [1.4, 4.2]) were replication studies. Exploratory analyses showed that studies that used any open science practice, and open access in particular, had higher citation counts. We suggest several practical ways to enhance the uptake of open science principles and practices both within gambling studies and in science more generally.

Second Session at the Virtual Poker Table: A Contemporary Study of Actual Online Poker Activity.

Technological advancements and worldwide television exposure led to a poker boom in the early 2000s, and poker (both live and online) has retained some of that popularity today. The present study examined online poker playing trends based on actual electronic betting records data for 2489 subscribers to a major global internet gambling operator from 2015 to 2017. We found that overall financial involvement (median total overall spend: €439.7) and time commitment (median number of sessions: 43) during the two-year study period were relatively moderate. We identified the top 1% by total overall spend as a subgroup of highly involved players with disproportionately higher financial involvement (median total overall spend: €272,581.4) and time commitment (median number of sessions: 1149). Our results were similar to those reported in LaPlante et al.'s (Comput Hum Behav 25(3):711-717, 2009. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2008.12.027 ) study of online poker betting records, suggesting that players' levels of involvement are similar to those from ten years ago despite numerous changes to the online poker environment. We also analyzed records of deposits and withdrawals, and we observed similar indicators of moderate gambling behavior within the overall sample (median two-year total amount deposited: €176.4). In contrast to popular beliefs about internet gambling, in our sample, most online poker play was arguably moderate. However, a small percentage of highly involved players play poker at extreme levels and require closer scrutiny.

Time out: Prediction of self-exclusion from daily fantasy sports.

OBJECTIVE: Responsible gambling (RG) tools that include play management software, self-limit features, and self-exclusion are relatively common offerings on major online gambling platforms. However, how online gaming and daily fantasy sports (DFS) players use such tools is less clear. The goals of this article were to understand how players use self-exclusion at a major DFS platform and to identify DFS activity-related predictors of self-exclusion. METHOD: During November 2015, DraftKings, a major DFS provider, rolled out a self-exclusion feature that allows players to self-exclude from the platform for a specified amount of time, up to 5 years. We used player records from DraftKings, examining play patterns and self-exclusion across 3 + years of data. RESULTS: We found that less than 0.5% of subscribers in our sample self-excluded during the study period and almost one third of those who self-excluded did so more than once. In general, self-excluders engaged with a greater variety of contests and sports and entered contests with higher entry fees than those who did not self-exclude. Repeat self-excluders selected shorter initial self-exclusion terms and also engaged with a greater variety of game types and sports than one-time self-excluders. However, self-excluders did not engage in riskier contests or experience higher percent losses. CONCLUSION: Our findings have implications for our understanding of RG feature use among DFS subscribers and markers of risk for experiencing problems with DFS and gambling more generally. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Using "Markers of Harm" to Track Risky Gambling in Two Cohorts of Online Sports Bettors.

Online gambling poses novel risks for problem gambling, but also unique opportunities to detect and intervene with at-risk users. A consortium of gambling companies recently committed to using nine behavioral "Markers of Harm'' that can be calculated with online user data to estimate risk for gambling-related harm. The current study evaluates these markers in two independent samples of sports bettors, collected ten years apart. We find over a two-year period that most users never had high enough overall risk scores to indicate that they would have received an intervention. This observation is partly due to characteristics of our samples that are associated with lower risk for gambling-related harm, but might also be due to overly high risk thresholds or flaws in the design of some markers. Users with higher average risk scores had more intraindividual variability in risk scores. Younger age and male gender were not associated with higher average risk scores. The most active users were more likely than other users to have ever exceeded risk thresholds. Several risk scores significantly predicted proxies of gambling-related harm (e.g., account closure). Overall, the current Markers of Harm system has some correctable limitations that future risk detection systems should consider adopting.

A Comparison of Two GameSense Implementation Approaches: How Program Awareness and Engagement Relate to Gambling Beliefs and Behaviors.

Despite the size and scope of responsible gambling (RG) programs in the U.S., relatively few studies have evaluated these programs. Using survey data from 4795 subscribers to a casino loyalty program, we examined respondents' awareness of and engagement with the GameSense RG program, and gambling beliefs and behaviors. We compared how differences in the implementation structure and visibility of the GameSense program (i.e., state-regulated with a standalone, branded GameSense center vs. corporate-integrated as part of loyalty program desks) was associated with GameSense awareness and engagement, perceptions of gambling operator RG practices, three Positive Play subscales (i.e., behavior, personal responsibility, and gambling literacy), understanding of gambling concepts, and use of RG strategies. More respondents who had visited the property with a state-regulated, branded center were aware of GameSense (36.5%), compared to respondents who visited other properties (7.4%). Perceptions of the operator's RG practices were generally high for all respondents. Multivariate analyses revealed no relationship between GameSense awareness and gambling belief or behavior outcomes, yet showed that respondents who picked up a GameSense brochure used slightly more RG strategies. Our findings suggest that the visibility of an RG program might influence program awareness and engagement but not certain RG-related behavioral outcomes.

Who holds a shared responsibility view of minimizing gambling harm? Results from a multiwave survey of casino gamblers.

Objective: Academics, gambling regulators, and the gambling industry increasingly espouse a shared responsibility view of preventing gambling harm, considering individual gamblers and external stakeholders (e.g., gambling industry employees, government regulators, and public health workers) to be jointly responsible for this task. This study is the third in a series exploring gamblers' beliefs about responsibility for preventing gambling harm. Method: A sample of 4,336 subscribers to MGM Resorts International (MGM)'s loyalty card program as of January 2020 completed a web-based survey. Results: We observed that 58.1% of participants only held individual gamblers responsible for helping prevent gambling harm. However, two factors increased the likelihood of holding a shared responsibility viewpoint and assigning responsibility to casinos for reducing gambling harm: (a) scoring positive on the Brief Biosocial Gambling Screen (BBGS) or an Expanded Problem Gambling Screen (EPGS) and (b) being aware of GameSense, an onsite responsible gambling education program. Those who screened positive on the BBGS or EPGS also were more likely than their counterparts to deny personal responsibility for minimizing gambling harm to individual gamblers; that is, they were more likely to hold a purely external responsibility viewpoint. A meta-analytic year-over-year comparison revealed that compared to being aware of GameSense, screening positive for problem gambling was more strongly associated with assigning responsibility to casinos for minimizing gambling harm. Conclusions: We discuss these findings in the context of self-determination theory and suggest implications for health promotion and best practices for message design in responsible gambling programs. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Developing and validating lower risk online gambling thresholds with actual bettor data from a major Internet gambling operator.

OBJECTIVE: To help individuals avoid potential negative consequences associated with their gambling, researchers have developed lower risk limits for time and financial involvement among populations of land-based gamblers. The present study extended these efforts to online gambler populations with prospective longitudinal data. METHOD: We used receiver operating characteristic curve analysis and logistic regression models predicting a positive Brief Biosocial Gambling Screen (BBGS; Gebauer et al., Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 55, 2010, 82-90) to develop lower risk limits for six measures of gambling involvement among subscribers to an online gambling operator. We also tested the utility of these six newly developed online limits and three existing land-based limits for the BBGS outcome and proxies for gambling problems including: (a) voluntary self-limiting, (b) voluntary self-exclusion, (c) closing one's account, and (d) being assigned a flag for potential problem gambling by customer service. RESULTS: We identified five optimal limits for lower risk online gambling with adequate sensitivity and specificity for predicting BBGS-positive status, and four of those that also received additional empirical support. These four empirically supported gambling limits were: (a) wagering 167.97 Euros or less each month; (b) spending 6.71% or less of one's annual income on online gambling wagers; (c) losing 26.11 Euros or less on online gambling per month; and (d) demonstrating variability (i.e., standard deviation) in daily amount wagered of 35.14 Euros or less during one's duration active. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings have implications for lower risk gambling limits research and suggest that unique limits might apply to online and land-based gambler populations. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Changes to the playing field: A contemporary study of actual European online sports betting.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Online sports wagering is a popular and still growing gambling activity around the world. Like other types of gambling, it can lead to problems that include devastating financial, social, and health-related harms. The first analysis of actual online sports wagering activity (LaBrie et al., 2007) suggested that levels of financial and time involvement were more moderate than anticipated from earlier self-report studies. However, these findings are now more than a decade old. METHODS: The current study examined actual online sports wagering activity of a similar cohort of 32,262 gamblers who subscribed to a European online betting platform in February 2015 to understand how sports betting might have changed in ten years. Measures included subscriber characteristics, betting activities, and transactional activities. RESULTS: Players placed a median of 15 bets during the 8-month study period, made a median of 2.5 bets per betting day, had a median bet size of 6.1 euros, and experienced a median net loss of 25 euros. We were able to distinguish highly involved bettors in the top 2% of total wagered, net loss, and number of bets, whose behavior differed from that of the rest of the sample. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: Sports wagering behavior has remained relatively stable over time despite legislative changes and an increase in popularity, with a small subset of subscribers exhibiting disproportionately high engagement, transactional activity, and in-game betting. Further investigation of individual trajectories of wagering behavior and engagement with different types of sports wagering products is merited.

Responsible product design to mitigate excessive gambling: A scoping review and z-curve analysis of replicability.

OBJECTIVES: Systematic mapping of evaluations of tools and interventions that are intended to mitigate risks for gambling harm. DESIGN: Scoping Review and z-curve analysis (which estimates the average replicability of a body of literature). SEARCH STRATEGY: We searched 7 databases. We also examined reference lists of included studies, as well as papers that cited included studies. Included studies described a quantitative empirical assessment of a game-based (i.e., intrinsic to a specific gambling product) structural feature, user-directed tool, or regulatory initiative to promote responsible gambling. At least two research assistants independently performed screening and extracted study characteristics (e.g., study design and sample size). One author extracted statistics for the z-curve analysis. RESULTS: 86 studies met inclusion criteria. No tools or interventions had unambiguous evidence of efficacy, but some show promise, such as within-session breaks in play. Pre-registration of research hypotheses, methods, and analytic plans was absent until 2019, reflecting a recent embracement of open science practices. Published studies also inconsistently reported effect sizes and power analyses. The results of z-curve provide some evidence of publication bias, and suggest that the replicability of the responsible product design literature is uncertain but could be low. CONCLUSION: Greater transparency and precision are paramount to improving the evidence base for responsible product design to mitigate gambling-related harm.

A large-scale prospective study of big wins and their relationship with future financial and time involvement in actual daily fantasy sports contests.

OBJECTIVE: Early big wins might have a psychological impact upon gamblers that increases their likelihood of intemperate gambling; however, there has been a paucity of empirical research examining this effect using actual gambling data. METHOD: We assessed the effects of daily fantasy sports (DFS) big wins on subsequent play by analyzing a prospective dataset from a major DFS provider (N = 34,596 DFS subscribers) representing over 18 million entries into DFS contests. RESULTS: We found that experiencing a big win in DFS is associated with subsequently increased DFS engagement (i.e., increased contest entry fees and contest entries) and losses (i.e., higher net loss). However, the effect of a big win on engagement and losses decays over time. Whereas theorists have highlighted the effects of early big wins, our analyses indicated that later big wins had a relatively stronger effect on DFS engagement. Sensitivity analyses confirmed the robustness of most results, with somewhat greater support for big wins' effects on engagement metrics than losses. CONCLUSION: Our results collectively indicate the existence of a big win effect in DFS. For some players, big wins might instill unrealistic expectations about future probabilities of winning and lead to increased-and potentially excessive-engagement. Explanations from cognitive psychology (e.g., the illusion of control) and behavioral psychology (e.g., operant conditioning) might help to explain the big win effect. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Gamblers' beliefs about responsibility for minimizing gambling harm: Associations with problem gambling screening and gambling involvement.

Increasingly, gambling stakeholders communicate that minimizing gambling harm is a shared societal responsibility. Individual gamblers' beliefs about responsibility for minimizing gambling harm are worthy of study because these beliefs might influence gambling behavior. In this study, using a sample of casino loyalty program subscribers (N = 4,795), we observed that respondents who had a positive result on a brief gambling disorder screen were more likely than those who screened negative to hold seven stakeholder groups (i.e., scientists, clinicians, casino employees, government regulators, public health officials, casino industry lobbyists, public safety officials) responsible for helping to minimize gambling harm. The sum of stakeholder groups held responsible for minimizing gambling harm, along with beliefs that casinos share responsibility for encouraging responsible gambling behavior, predicted gambling disorder screening status after controlling for established problem gambling risk factors. These results replicated our previous study using a mostly independent sample. Contrary to our expectations, beliefs about responsibility for mitigating gambling harm were mostly unrelated to measures of gambling involvement. These results provided additional support for the notion that those who are at risk for gambling harm are especially likely to hold others responsible for minimizing such harm. However, they call into question the role of gambling involvement in this relationship.