It has been said that the opposite of responsible gaming is irresponsible gaming. In this perspective, the focus is on gambling behavior, and the sole burden of responsibility lies on the individual to make the “right” or “good” choice about their gambling. This perspective adds stigma and risks discouraging someone experiencing harm from seeking help. While I understand this view, it doesn’t represent a collective commitment by a wide range of stakeholders to reduce problem gambling and gaming-related harms.
There’s a lot to celebrate in the advancements made under the umbrella of responsible gaming. Research has led to new insights about gambling behavior generally and factors associated with problem gambling. Regulators have a new understanding of their role in protecting players. Gaming operators now see the importance of responsible gaming as a key commitment to social responsibility and the sustainability of the industry. Responsible gaming is essential for the sustainability of the industry and the health of those who choose to gamble. The progress has been important, but we must continue to evolve based upon our collective knowledge and experience.
It’s time to take the lessons learned from responsible gaming and evolve toward a focus on player health. By focusing on player health, we can make a paradigm shift that casts a broader net and prioritizes the well-being of everyone who chooses to gamble, not just those engaged in at-risk or problem gambling—because the fact is that gambling harms can be and are experienced by many individuals who do not have a gambling problem. Consider the “Prevention Paradox,” which states that gambling harms are suffered by a large number of individuals who do not have gambling problems due to the fact that they vastly outnumber individuals who exhibit substantial problems with gambling. In Massachusetts, approximately 70 percent of all gambling harms occur in the low-risk adult general population due to the high number of people in those groups, even though people in the high-risk population suffer the greatest amount of harm per individual.
A broader focus on the health of all players is also supported by the findings of the Massachusetts Gaming Impact Cohort (MAGIC) study which revealed that it is common for an individual’s gambling behavior—and thus risk level—to shift back and forth over time. These findings further cement the belief that focusing on player health broadly is essential to advancing responsible gaming goals by reaching people who gamble across the spectrum. This instability of gambling behavior provides opportunities to influence people who gamble at different points of their gambling journey through prevention, treatment, and policies that support player health.
A focus on player health embraces a public health approach that extends to the broader context of player behavior, including additional factors such as economic stability, discrimination, access to education, and social and community context. It’s well supported that these systemic factors contribute to greater risk of negative health outcomes, including problem gambling. In Massachusetts, a general population survey conducted in 2021 found that compared to people engaging in recreational gambling, people engaging in problem gambling were most likely to be male, people of color, people with a high school diploma or less, and people with an annual household income under $50,000.
In terms of the broader context of factors that influence player behavior, a recent Massachusetts study also found that advertising has substantial impacts on attitudes toward and consumption of addictive products, including gambling. Review of available data raised concerns about the impact of gambling advertising on vulnerable groups in the Massachusetts population such as individuals who are underage and individuals in recovery from gambling problems.
Knowing the factors that place people at the greatest risk for gambling-related harm, as well as understanding the distribution and effects of gambling-related harm in the overall population, can help support the development of evidence-based, effective prevention and treatment strategies—and including the broader context of player behavior makes it clear that the responsibility for player health is not a burden that rests on the shoulders of the player but is shared by researchers, regulators, the industry, and broader societal systems.
