‘Gambling laws are analogue in a digital age’

In November Bournemouth University Psychologists Dr Emily Arden-Close and Dr Reece Bush-Evans, both members of the university's Gambling Research Group, will be discussing the scale and impact of online gambling at a British Psychological Society webinar. Ella Rhodes asked them about it. 

What will your webinar cover?

EAC: The workshop will introduce what gambling is, including gambling-like activities that are not directly classified as gambling. It will introduce the landscape of gambling in the UK. This will include summarising the current legislation and introducing proposed changes to the UK gambling legislation following the recent white paper on reform to the Gambling Act 2005, published 27 April 2023. It will cover issues to be aware of in clients who may be gambling, available screening tools for clients who gamble, current support available for clients who feel they need help with their gambling (at all levels of gambling), and specific populations who are at high risk of gambling at problematic levels.

How did you first become interested in online gambling?

EAC: A colleague had been awarded a grant to develop a mobile phone app to manage safer online gambling and asked me to do some interviews on experiences of gambling and attitudes to such an app, based on my experience as a qualitative researcher. At this time, I knew very little about the scale of the issue. My first interviews were eye-opening. One participant said they had lost £20,000 in one night! The lack of support for customers shocked me – one participant lost thousands in one night and received an email from the operator the next day saying they had deposited £400 in his account to get him started again! Some of my interviews lasted several hours and could have been longer. Hearing people's stories of how gambling had resulted in them losing everything they owned and led to their relationships breaking down, impacting not only them but also their families, motivated me to continue this research to raise awareness and bring about changes in legislation to protect people.

What still needs to change in this area?

EAC: The short answer is a lot! I will break this answer down into two parts: changes in relation to legislation and changes in attitudes.

Changes needed in legislation:

The current Gambling Act became law in 2005, even though the first smartphone was invented in 2007, and most people now bet online rather than in-person, a trend that has accelerated since Covid-19. We therefore currently have analogue laws in a digital age. The good news is that the latest White Paper, High stakes; gambling reform for the digital age paves the way for new legislation. Our Gambling Research Group at Bournemouth University has been actively engaged in submitting policy recommendations to government, and we are pleased to see that the White Paper addresses some of the areas that we have argued are important:

• It proposes addressing gaps in legislation to ensure that individuals aged under 18 cannot gamble online – previously there were some grey areas.
• It mandates data sharing on high-risk customers. Previously, it was possible for anyone to move from account to account, spending more and more money to win back their losses (chasing losses) until their money ran out.
• It proposes a consultation on player-set deposit limits to make them mandatory or opt-out – currently they are opt-in.
• It proposes a limit on online slots, which brings it in line with the 2019 reduction in stake to £2 in fixed-odds betting terminals.
• It proposes the use of affordability checks facilitated by credit reference agencies.
• It proposes reviewing bonus structures to ensure that vulnerable players are not being harmed.

However, there are several areas in which the White Paper could go further:

• 'Loot boxes' (in-game purchases offering prizes of online value) are not classified as gambling by law and are available in video games that children and young people are legally allowed to play, such as Minecraft. The White Paper does not consider loot boxes gambling and does not propose any changes to regulate their use in gaming.
• We feel that the White Paper could address more points around transparency in online gambling, in order to improve informed decision-making by players and reduce gambling-related harm. Our research has shown how explainable persuasion (giving players explanations about persuasive design techniques, such as why they are being presented with an incentive like a free bet) empowers players to make more informed decisions.
• The White Paper does not mandate providing regular statements to customers about amounts deposited, lost and won. Our research has shown this is important as even people who feel their gambling is under control report how easy it is to spend money online.
• While the White Paper proposes changes to marketing and advertising practices, they could go further. First, there is no law preventing children and young people's access to gambling advertising. Second, people in recovery from gambling-related harms are likely to be triggered by gambling adverts, yet there is no way they can minimise their exposure.
• Affordability checks could be made mandatory when a customer first signs up to an operator, as individuals who gamble at problematic levels are very adept at finding their way around restrictions.
• Online gambling operators have a great deal of information about their customers. This data, which is currently used for targeted advertising of gambling products, could be used to identify and intervene with customers who are at risk of experiencing harm.
• Matched betting (a betting technique that involves profiting from free bets and incentives) is considered risk-free by its proponents, and is growing in popularity, e.g., amongst students. The White Paper does not consider the potential risk of harm from matched betting, which sets bettors up for exposure to excessive gambling-related advertisements and could lead to increased engagement with gambling products and even gambling-related harm.

Changes needed in attitudes and awareness:

Currently gambling is highly stigmatised, particularly among women. This means that people who gamble often hide this from their loved ones, and individuals at low or moderate risk of problem gambling are reluctant to seek help. Discussion of gambling needs to be more open, and people need to be aware of the ways to seek help if they feel that they or their loved ones are engaging in problematic gambling, so those who need support can receive it.

Reece, could you tell me more about the research you've done with marginalised communities?

RBE: A growing body of literature suggests that there are specific social, demographic and environmental factors (such as low socioeconomic status) that put people at increased risk of gambling-related harm. As such, it is important to understand the potential risk factors associated with gambling, and how they can be utilised to enhance preventative policies and intervention strategies. The work we are currently undertaking involves exploring levels of gambling harm experienced by individuals within the LGBTQIA+ community. This not only interests me as a gay man, but also has important implications for policy and practice.

As part of this research, we have collected data from individuals in the LGBTQIA+ community who gamble frequently, using both a quantitative survey and semi-structured interviews. From survey responses, we have found that LGBTQIA+ people experiencing distress caused by certain life stressors (i.e. discrimination, harassment, social isolation) were significantly more likely to experience gambling harms and turn to gambling as a coping strategy than those who were not experiencing such life stress. From our sample, 49 per cent of individuals reported experiencing regret after gambling, and over a third stated that they hide their gambling from friends and loved ones. We also found that higher levels of problem gambling (as measured by the Problem Gambling Severity Index, a questionnaire to assess levels of problematic gambling) was statistically linked with increased levels of depression and reduced quality of life among individuals in the LGBTQIA+ community.

The interviews revealed that many LGBTQIA+ individuals experienced losing control over their gambling at some point in their life. Some LGBTQ+ individuals reported turning to gamble to cope with negative events (i.e. discrimination, trauma) in their life. In addition, some individuals reported that their gambling behaviour was likely influenced by their sexual orientation and/or gender identity. For example, some reported that they turned to online gambling due to experiencing discomfort or feeling unsafe as an LGBTQIA+ individual in land-based venues (I.e., casinos, betting shops) that are traditionally perceived as 'macho' or 'heterosexual' establishments. This often led them to engage in more risky gambling behaviour due to the accessibility and anonymity that Internet gambling offers.

Interviews with lived experience of gambling harm felt that more targeted and tailored support is needed in the community. Raising awareness of the impact of gambling harm within marginalised communities such as the LGBTQIA+ community will not only promote diversity and equality within this under-researched area, but also provide evidence that can hopefully improve gambling treatment and support services for all affected by gambling.

Could you tell us something that might surprise someone not familiar with this area of work?

EAC: Many more children gamble than expected. Although the legal age for gambling in Great Britain is 18 years (Gambling Act, 2005), 31 per cent of 11–16-year-olds report having gambled within the last 12 months. When you consider that video game loot boxes, which have greater appeal to young people than traditional gambling, are not legally classified as gambling, the percentage of children who gamble is likely even higher. The issue is exacerbated by the fact that gambling content marketing (sharing of material on social media intended to stimulate interest in products/services) uses strategies that are particularly attractive to young people (e.g. music, colours, voiceovers, celebrities).

What do you hope people will take away from the webinar?

EAC: We hope people will come away from the workshop with increased awareness of what gambling encompasses in today's world, the nature of the problem including what to be aware of, and sources of support to which they can signpost individuals who feel they need help with their gambling. It is hoped that this will lead to timely intervention and referral to services.

The webinar, An Introduction to Online Gambling, is being held on Monday 13 November from 12pm to 2pm. Registration is £87.50 (+VAT) or £52.50 (+ VAT) for members of the British Psychological Society.

Find out more and register.