Summary and conclusions: gambling policy and the public interest

Sulkunen, Pekka; Babor, Thomas F.; Örnberg, Jenny Cisneros; Egerer, Michael; Hellman, Matilda; Livingstone, Charles; Marionneau, Virve; Nikkinen, Janne; Orford, Jim; Room, Robin

doi:10.1093/oso/9780198817321.003.0012

Cited by 14 publications

(28 citation statements)

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“…It estimates that the annual socioeconomic costs associated with gambling are around £1.05bn-£1.77bn,10 although the review acknowledges that these figures are likely to underestimate the true scale of harm experienced by those who gamble or who are harmed by another person’s gambling 7. The actions of the gambling industry are recognised to increase the risk of gambling harms,11 which in turn widen inequalities, disproportionately affecting individuals and communities who already experience poor health and adverse social conditions 121314151617…”

Section: Gambling Harm Is a Public Health Problemmentioning

confidence: 99%

Statutory levy on gambling may do more harm than good

Schalkwyk

Thomas

McKee

et al. 2023

BMJ

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Section: Gambling Harm Is a Public Health Problemmentioning

confidence: 99%

Statutory levy on gambling may do more harm than good

Schalkwyk

Thomas

McKee

et al. 2023

BMJ

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“…The status of the companies as state-owned makes them an interesting object of study because all the companies claim to be particularly responsible and underline that they contribute their revenue to different societal purposes (Cisneros Örnberg and Tammi, 2011 ; Selin, 2016 ; Alexius, 2017 ). The companies are also a prime example of the conflict of interest the governments have as the beneficiaries of gambling revenue and the preventers of gambling harm (Sulkunen et al, 2018 ). It is thus possible that the companies are more often pushed into taking gambling harm more seriously than their privately owned counterparts.…”

Section: Responsible Gambling Governmentality and Ethical Subject For...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Politics of hesitance and the formation of ethical subjects through responsible gambling practices

Selin

2022

Front. Sociol.

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IntroductionInstead of harm prevention and risk related to gambling products, responsible gambling discourse emphasizes the importance of voluntary measures. From the point of view of governmentality, the responsible gambling practices produce, rely on, and call forth subjectivities. The aim of the study is to find out what kind of subjects are being produced through the responsible gambling practices of four Nordic state-owned gambling companies. As the companies are state-owned and operate on different types of markets, there are reasons to suspect that the companies could endorse different versions of the figure of responsible gambler. Previous research indicates that responsible gambling practices typically presuppose or aim to produce a self-governing subject making informed choices. Less attention has been given to detailed analyses of the heterogeneous factors contributing to the ethical subject formation. Moreover, there is a growing body of literature indicating, that along with the use of detailed behavioral data (big data), new forms of governmentality, that are highly relevant from the point of view of subject formation, are emerging.MethodsThe responsible gambling practices are analyzed along Michel Foucault's four aspects of ethics. First, there is ethical substance, the problematic aspect of the self that is taken as the target of the ethical work. Second, the subject needs to have a certain relation to social norms and moral codes. Third, ethical work is needed to mold the problematic aspect of the self. Fourth, the aim of the ethical work is a certain mode of being or relationship to oneself. The analyzed material consists of the annual reports of the companies between 2019 and 2021.Results and discussionThe results show that the figure of subject making informed voluntary choices is deeply embedded in the responsible gambling practices of the companies. The companies entice the gamblers to think about themselves and to act upon themselves as subjects capable of self-control. Hesitancy to intervene characterizes the activities of the companies, even if all the companies collect and use detailed behavioral data. The inclusion of the precarious subject of gambling harm would allow the companies to do much more to prevent gambling harm.

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“…12 Recently, and in an effort to demonstrate the broader burden of gambling harm, there has been a focus on harms experienced by family and social network members, described in the literature as affected others. [16][17][18] The harms experienced by affected others are not only as the result of problem gambling behaviours, but may also be associated with the low and moderate risk behaviours of a gambler. 16 There is a recognised ripple effect of harmful gambling on social network members, including financial losses, domestic conflicts, and relationship complexities that partners have experienced.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“They loved gambling more than me.” Women's experiences of gambling‐related harm as an affected other

McCarthy

Thomas

Pitt

et al. 2022

Health Prom J of Aust

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Background Gambling poses a global threat to public health due to its far‐reaching impacts. Research has demonstrated a ripple effect of harmful gambling on social network members and broader communities. While researchers have documented extreme harms associated with an affected other, limited research has qualitatively investigated how women describe their concerns about the gambling of a social network member, and any subsequent negative impacts on their own lives. Methods An online panel survey was conducted with women aged 18 years and older, who gambled at least once in the last 12 months, and resided in the Australian states of Victoria and New South Wales. This paper focused on the open text responses of a subsection of the sample (n = 136) who reported being negatively impacted by someone else's gambling. The study utilised reflexive thematic analysis to interpret the data. Results Results indicated that women were concerned about the gambling behaviours of a broad range of social network members. Open text responses regarding the nature of these concerns mostly related to individualised paradigms of gambling behaviour – including whether the participant perceived their network member could afford to gamble, was being responsible with their gambling, or were gambling too frequently. Participants experienced a range of negative impacts including significant financial issues, relationship difficulties, poorer emotional wellbeing as a result of worrying about the gambler, and loss of trust. Some described the negative experiences associated with growing up with a parent who gambled. Conclusion The research demonstrates the broad impacts of gambling on affected others. This study enhances our understanding of how women are harmed by gambling and considers the complexities of their experiences and relationships with the gambler. This extends knowledge beyond quantitative descriptors of harm among affected others and provides a critical reflection on the nuances of women's experiences with gambling and gambling harm.

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Summary and conclusions: gambling policy and the public interest

Cited by 14 publications

References 0 publications

Statutory levy on gambling may do more harm than good

Statutory levy on gambling may do more harm than good

Politics of hesitance and the formation of ethical subjects through responsible gambling practices

“They loved gambling more than me.” Women's experiences of gambling‐related harm as an affected other

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