People who gamble online may experience more gambling problems. This could be due to the easy availability of online gambling. However, online gambling allows for people's gambling behaviour to be tracked over time. This is called behavioural tracking. In this study, the researchers used behavioural tracking data to predict voluntary self exclusion (VSE), which might be a sign of problem gambling. The researchers obtained data from a provincially owned online gambling site in Canada. The de-identified data set contained 2,157 players who had a record of VSE and 17,526 who did not.
The researchers selected 20 variables as predictors of VSE. The variables included measures of gambling frequency, intensity, and variability. Overall, the variables predicted VSE well. The most important predictor of whether a player had a record of VSE was variability in the amount of money bet per session. It captured unusual betting patterns that fluctuated a lot in the amount of money bet. Another important predictor was Bets per Day. Variance in Money Bet per Session and Bets per Day together accounted for 58% of the predictive signal. Overall, behavioural tracking data could be used to identify and intervene with people experiencing problem gambling.
