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Listed in chronological order of award:
| January 2022 - Major Exploratory Grant Competition |
| Recipient: Dr. David Zendle, University of York
Date of decision: 17 March 2022 Project Title: RETRO: The Retrospective Spending Observatory Abstract: This study will use a novel methodology to retrospectively measure spending on gambling over longitudinal timeframes. Namely, it will use a mobile app to scan participants’ inboxes for ‘transactional emails’ to reconstitute their spending history. Next, data will be entered into time-series models to estimate the ‘temporal precedence’ between gambling engagement and loot box and social casino spending. Finally, the project will facilitate access to the newly created longitudinal dataset for the research community. This study will generate data that can address policy-critical issues, such as loot box regulations, and will also provide a novel data infrastructure for future gambling research. |
| January 2022 - Minor Exploratory Grant Competition |
| Recipient: Dr. Richard J. E. James, University of Nottingham
Co-investigator: Prof. Richard J. Tunney Date of decision: 17 March 2022 Project Title: Harnessing gambling prevalence microdata to model socio-political and economic factors that contribute to gambling harm Abstract: This study will pool data from 69 gambling prevalence surveys to develop a comprehensive gambling prevalence dataset. This dataset will be used to examine geographic/jurisdictional variance in gambling behaviours and to assess the role of societal factors that may affect gambling (e.g., GDP per capita, gambling regulation, and healthcare spending). Finally, the researchers will make available the code they used to pool the datasets to encourage its use by other researchers. The greater understanding of societal factors that influence gambling behaviour could stimulate policy interventions to reduce harm from gambling.
Recipient: Dr. Philip Newall, University of Bristol Co-investigators: Mr. Ty Hayes, Dr. Lukasz Walasek, and Prof. Matthew Browne Date of decision: 17 March 2022 Project Title: A novel test of a widely-cited consequence of the illusion of control in gambling Abstract: This study will empirically test the claim that gamblers will roll dice harder if they need a higher number to win, which is often cited in support of the illusion of control in gambling. Participants will complete a custom dice-rolling experiment on their phone, where animated dice will be thrown in proportion to how hard they shake their phone, using the phone’s accelerometer. Participants will also complete the Problem Gambling Severity Index, to test for moderators of any dice-rolling effects. This study will provide strong evidence for the consequences of the illusion of control, which is a key concept in many models of disordered gambling. |
| January 2022 – Postgraduate Research Support Grant Competition |
| Recipient: Leon Y. Xiao, Queen Mary University of London
Academic Supervisor(s): Dr. Rune Kristian Lundedal Nielsen and Dr. Philip W.S. Newall. Date of decision: 17 March 2022 Project Title: The effectiveness of Belgium’s gambling law ‘Ban’ of loot boxes and a large-scale Chinese survey on loot box engagement, gambling-related constructs and mental wellbeing
Recipient: Dr. Reece Bush-Evans, Bournemouth University Academic Supervisor(s): Prof. John McAlaney Date of decision: 17 March 2022 Project Title: Gambling, personality and wellbeing
Recipient: Jennifer Robinson, Chester University Academic Supervisor(s): Dr. Paul Moran and Dr. Frances Atherton Date of decision: 17 March 2022 Project Title: A Realist Evaluative Case Study: In what ways does support for affected others, during and post the FOLD (Focus On Living Differently) treatment programme, impact upon sustained recovery for those experiencing gambling harm?
Recipient: Elena Petrovskaya, University of York Academic Supervisor(s): Dr. David Zendle Date of decision: 17 March 2022 Project Title: Predatory monetisation?: The shift of digital game design into gamblification and its effects on players
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| October 2022 - Major Exploratory Grant Competition |
| Recipient: Professor John. A Cunningham, King’s College London
Date of decision: 12 January 2023 Project Title: Brief online personalised feedback intervention for the UK context designed to prevent, reduce, and address gambling harm Abstract: This exploratory research project will assess the short-term impact of a brief self-directed online personalised feedback intervention for the UK context designed to prevent, reduce, and address gambling harm. The intervention comprises of normative feedback and personalised information on the risk of gambling above lower-risk gambling guidelines. The purpose of this exploratory research is to conduct the first randomised controlled trial of this intervention. Further, given the increased prevalence of online gambling, the project will target this at-risk population. |
| October 2022 - Minor Exploratory Grant Competition |
| Recipient: Dr. Bryan F. Singer, University of Sussex
Co-investigator: Prof. Simon Dymond Date of decision: 12 January 2023 Project Title: Modelling individual variation in response to pharmacological intervention for problematic gambling Abstract: Few pharmacological interventions exist for treating gambling disorder and problematic gambling (GD/PG). Designing treatments is challenging because of substantial individual variation in GD/PG symptoms and co-morbid mental health conditions. For specific individuals, excessive value (salience) attributed to gambling-related cues may drive persistent gambling, even when stimuli don’t reliably predict reward. The proposed work will evaluate a pharmacological strategy to decrease gambling for individuals attributing excessive salience to cues.
Recipient: Jamie Torrance, University of Chester Co-investigator: Dr. Philip W. S. Newall Date of decision: 12 January 2023 Project Title: The development and evaluation of a brief intervention that incorporates gambling advertising scepticism and persuasion inoculation; a mixed-methods exploratory project Abstract:This exploratory mixed-methods project will encompass two studies to develop and evaluate a brief-intervention that aims to increase gambling advertising scepticism and reduce gambling advertising persuasion amongst young-adult gamblers. Study one involves an online experimental pre/post-test control-group design in which participants will be exposed to either the brief-intervention video or a control-video. Self-reported measures of advertising scepticism and persuasion knowledge will be recorded before and after exposure in both conditions for analytical comparison. Study two involves an online focus-group study that utilises a sample of experts by experience and academics with a familiarity and understanding of gambling advertising. These focus groups will aim to evaluate and further develop the intervention content, feasibility, and acceptability. |
| October 2022 – Postgraduate Research Support Grant Competition |
| Recipient: Nick Ballou, Queen Mary University of London
Academic Supervisor(s): Dr. Laurissa Tokarchuk Date of decision: 12 January 2023 Project Title: Untitled: Loot boxes
Recipient: Dr. Scott Houghton, Swansea University Academic Supervisor(s): Prof. Simon Dymond Date of decision: 12 January 2023 Project Title: Direct communication within the social media marketing of gambling: A machine learning approach
Recipient: Fay Laidler, University of Glasgow Academic Supervisor(s): Dr. Heather Wardle, Prof. Gerda Reith Date of decision: 12 January 2023 Project Title: Exploring the policy roles of women harmed by gambling
Recipient: Leon Y. Xiao, University of York; IT University of Copenhagen Academic Supervisor(s): Dr. Rune Kristian Lundedal Nielsen, Dr. Philip W. S. Newall, Dr. David Zendle Date of decision: 12 January 2023 Project Title: Reassessing the link between purchasing card packs and problem gambling
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