Evaluating changes in electronic gambling machine policy on user losses in an Australian jurisdiction

The Effectiveness of Sinking Lid Policies in Reducing Gambling Expenditure

In many countries, problem gambling is a significant public health concern. Gambling addiction has been linked to poor health, psychological distress, financial difficulties, and strained interpersonal relationships. In New Zealand, problem gambling is estimated to affect over 10% of the population. To minimize harm, the Gambling Act of 2003 was introduced to limit the number of electronic gaming machines in non-casino establishments. Beyond national-level restrictions, local governments were required to adopt gambling policies of their own and review them every three years. One specific policy that emerged at the local level, found exclusively in New Zealand, is the sinking lid. Sinking lids are designed to gradually reduce machine caps by prohibiting the transfer of gaming licenses. This study leverages variation in the geography and timing of local policy interventions to estimate the effect of sinking lids on gambling expenditure. Results suggest that sinking lids reduce gambling expenditure by 13% relative to regions not adopting policies beyond national-level restrictions.

"It started 30 years ago, and it still haunts me": an exploratory investigation of Territorians' gambling behaviours, harm, and help-seeking for gambling issues in an Australian jurisdiction

Background

There is a lack of qualitative gambling research on lived experience, help-seeking, and gamblers and affected others’ views on the regulatory environment in the Northern Territory (NT), Australia. This study provides 1) lived experience of individuals who reported experiencing harms from gambling, 2) insights into help-seeking for gambling issues, 3) and people’s views on current legislation on gambling in the NT. The results of this study begin to establish an evidence base that could be used to inform targeted interventions for people experiencing harms from gambling in the NT.

Methods

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with a targeted selection of respondents from the 2015 and 2018 NT Gambling Prevalence and Wellbeing Surveys. The sample (n = 27; age 18+ years; Aboriginal (The term of ‘Aboriginal’ has used been used throughout the manuscript to reflect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander, Indigenous, or First Nations people for purposes of brevity. We respect the diversity among these populations.) and Non-Aboriginal) included weekly (online and venue-based electronic gambling machine (EGM)) gamblers, non-regular gamblers, and those negatively affected by others’ gambling. A Framework Analysis approach was used for data analysis. Appropriate ethics approval was obtained.

Results

Negative impacts and harms from gambling were experienced by both gamblers and non-gamblers. These included monetary losses, relationship conflicts, emotional distress, and decrements to health. A lack of self-realisation of gambling issues and awareness of the available services, shame, and embarrassment, were reported as the main barriers to help-seeking. Where help was sought, it was primarily informal (e.g., family) and was rarely preventive. In many instances, self-help strategies were successful in controlling one’s own gambling. Gamblers suggested regulations should set limits on the daily number of hours of playing, the bet size, and reduced access to EGM. The need for strengthening the existing awareness and education interventions was emphasised.

Conclusions

Viewing the findings from a public health lens, targeted approaches based on specific circumstances may have the potential to minimise harms from gambling, but only for those already experiencing harms. The treatment, policy, and regulatory approaches need to be tailored to address the causes and impacts of harms experienced by people.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12889-020-10141-5.

The development and implementation of electronic gambling machine policy: a qualitative study of local government policy makers

OBJECTIVE

To understand how policies developed by Local Government Authorities (LGAs) to address electronic gambling machine (EGM) harm are developed and implemented.

METHODS

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 16 participants from 15 LGAs in metropolitan Melbourne who worked in a role associated or aligned with gambling. An inductive thematic analysis was used to interpret the data.

RESULTS

Three key themes emerged. First, participants described a shift from addiction frameworks to public health policy responses to EGMs, which was driven by increasing EGM losses and the harms caused by EGMs to communities. Second, there was the role of stakeholder groups in the policy-making process, including the challenges associated with engaging the community. Finally, there were barriers and facilitators to policy development and implementation. Barriers included a lack of financial resources and legislative boundaries imposed by the State Government. Facilitators included whole-of-LGA approaches, supportive councillors and collaborative efforts. Conclusions and implications for public health: LGAs have made shifts towards public health responses to EGM harm. Initiatives to further support policy development and implementation could include imposing a levy on EGM losses to directly support public health prevention activities and implementing robust state-based regulatory frameworks that support LGA responses to EGM harm.