Gambling Harm Prevention

In the UK, gambling harm prevention has often relied on gambling industry self-regulation.

In one major instance of this, the industry was required to use safer gambling messaging, but they were allowed to determine their own messages many will recall "Gamble responsibly" and "When the fun stops, stop". As a result, the messages implied the responsibility for preventing gambling harm is with the consumer, as well as suggesting that gambling is fun.

In a collaboration between the Universities of Bristol, Swansea, Nottingham, and Leeds, we have been testing independently developed gambling harm prevention messages the Department of Health and Social Care could consider for implementation. Two of the messages we tested have already been adopted by the Thrive LDN 'Odds Are: They Win' campaign. The campaign aims to prevent gambling harm during mainly the 2026 FIFA World Cup, a time when gambling advertising is common. The campaign has been used by 30 local authorities, distributing the message in online and offline spaces.

There are three published papers already:

Positive Emotional Harm Prevention (Safer) Gambling Messages: Results of an Online Experiment.

‘Gambling products are designed to be addictive’: an experimental comparison of counter-industry gambling harm prevention messages

“Would You Be Comfortable Telling Your Family How Much You Lost Gambling Today?”: An Experimental Comparison of Self-Appraisal Gambling Harm Prevention Messages

The main outcome will be a policy brief with our findings of the most successful messages.

This project is relevant to business and management because the gambling sector is a more than £16 billion industry in the UK alone - similar to the GDP of Brunei. The impact of this work will affect how the industry is perceived, regulated, and how gambling harm is distributed