Egm and Problem Gambling Dec 2006

8/8/2019 Egm and Problem Gambling Dec 2006

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Tis report ws prepred by the Responsible Gbling Council (RGC)

reserch te consisting o:

Monic A. White, PhD

Phil Mun, PhD

Ndine Kun, MA

Christin Wheln, MSc

Mtthew Regn, MSW

Jon E. Kelly, PhD

We wish to cknowledge Anit Gupt, PhD, or ssisting with the prep-

rtion o the report, nd Jie Wiebe, PhD, o Fctz Reserch, or con-

ducting nd nlyzing the ocus groups nd interviews.

Te Responsible Gambling Council (RGC) is an independent, non-prot or-

ganization committed to problem gambling prevention. RGC designs and

delivers highly eective awareness programs and promotes the identication

and adoption o best practices in problem gambling prevention through re-

search and inormation dissemination.

www.responsiblegambling.org


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LIST OF TABLES 1

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 3

INTRODUCTION 7

LITERATURE REVIEW 9

EGM FEATURES 9

Speed o Play 9

Sensory Eects 10

Payment Methods 12

Payout Methods 13Betting Options 14

EGM-based Inducements 15

Game Availability 16

Programmed Gaming Features 16

EGM-based Responsible Gambling Features (RGFs) 17

VENUE FEATURES 20

Venue Type 20

EGM Accessibility 20

Venue Conveniences 21

Venue Design 23Advertising 23

Venue-based Harm Minimization Strategies 24

COMMUNITY ACCESSIBILITY FEATURES 25

Number o EGM Venues 26

Proximity o EGM Venues 26

EGM Caps 27

Number o EGMs per Capita (Density) 27

EGMs in Low Income Areas 28

KEY INFORMANT QUESTIONNAIRE 29

METHODOLOGY 29

Participants 29

Response Rate 29

Questionnaire 29

TABLE OF CONTENTS


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SECTION A: CONTRIBUTORS TO PROBLEM GAMBLING 30

Data Analysis Plan 30

Results 32

SECTION B: MODIFICATIONS TO REDUCE PROBLEM GAMBLING 38

Data Analysis Plan 38

Results 39

FOCUS GROUPS WITH PROBLEM GAMBLERS 61

METHODOLOGY 61

RESULTS 61

DISCUSSION 64

FINDINGS 64

EGM Features 64

Venue Features 65

Community Accessibility Features 65

LIMITATIONS 65

SUMMARY & CONCLUSIONS 67

REFERENCES 69

APPENDIX 1: Key Inormants 75

APPENDIX 2: Key Inormant Questionnaire 78

APPENDIX 3: Open-ended Responses to Questionnaire 91

APPENDIX 4: Complete Rankings o Contributors and Modifcations 93

APPENDIX 5: Focus Group Script 98

APPENDIX 6: Counsellor Interviews 100

APPENDIX 7: Counsellor Interview Script 103

TABLE OF CONTENTS


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LIST OF TABLES

TABLE 1 Questionnaire Response Rates 29

TABLE 2 Most and Least Important EGM Contributors to Problem Gambling (Researchers) 32 TABLE 3 Most and Least Important EGM Contributors to Problem Gambling (Specialists) 33

TABLE 4 EGM Feature Thematic Mean Importance Scores (Researchers and Specialists) 34

TABLE 5 Most and Least Important Venue Contributors to Problem Gambling (Researchers) 35

TABLE 6 Most and Least Important Venue Contributors to Problem Gambling (Specialists) 36

TABLE 7 Venue Feature Thematic Mean Importance Scores (Researchers and Specialists) 37

TABLE 8 Community Accessibility Contributors to Problem Gambling (Researchers) 37

TABLE 9 Community Accessibility Contributors to Problem Gambling (Specialists) 37

TABLE 10 Most Eective EGM Modications and Perceived Evidence Strength (Researchers) 40

TABLE 11 Least Eective EGM Modications and Perceived Evidence Strength (Researchers) 41

TABLE 12 Most Eective EGM Modications and Perceived Evidence Strength (Specialists) 42

TABLE 13 Least Eective EGM Modications and Perceived Evidence Strength (Specialists) 42

TABLE 14 Most Eective EGM Modications (Counsellors) 43

TABLE 15 Least Eective EGM Modications (Counsellors) 44

TABLE 16 Most Eective EGM Modications (Problem Gamblers) 45

TABLE 17 Least Eective EGM Modications (Problem Gamblers) 45

TABLE 18 Quartile Ranking (1-4) o Select EGM Modications by Key Inormant Group 46

TABLE 19 EGM Modication Thematic Mean Eectiveness Scores (Total Sample) 47

TABLE 20 Most Eective Venue Modications and Perceived Evidence Strength (Researchers) 48

TABLE 21 Least Eective Venue Modications and Perceived Evidence Strength (Researchers) 49

TABLE 22 Most Eective Venue Modications and Perceived Evidence Strength (Specialists) 50

TABLE 23 Least Eective Venue Modications and Perceived Evidence Strength (Specialists) 51

TABLE 24 Most Eective Venue Modications (Counsellors) 52

TABLE 25 Least Eective Venue Modications (Counsellors) 52

TABLE 26 Most Eective Venue Modications (Problem Gamblers) 53

TABLE 27 Least Eective Venue Modications (Problem Gamblers) 53

TABLE 28 Quartile Ranking (1-4) o Most Eective Venue Modications by Key Inormant Group 54

TABLE 29 Quartile Ranking (1-4) o Least Eective Venue Modications by Key Inormant Group 54

TABLE 30 Quartile Ranking (1-4) o Select Venue Modications by Key Inormant Group 55

TABLE 31 Venue Modication Thematic Mean Eectiveness Scores (Total Sample) 56

TABLE 32 Community Accessibility Modication Eectiveness and Perceived Evidence Strength (Researchers) 57

TABLE 33 Community Accessibility Modication Eectiveness and Perceived Evidence Strength (Specialists) 58TABLE 34 Community Accessibility Modication Eectiveness (Counsellors) 59

TABLE 35 Community Accessibility Modication Eectiveness (Problem Gamblers) 59

TABLE 36 Item Ranking o Community Accessibility Modications by Key Inormant Group 59

TABLE A1 Rank Order o Mean Importance Scores: EGM Contributors (Researchers and Specialists) 93

TABLE A2 Rank Order o Mean Importance Scores: Venue Contributors (Researchers and Specialists) 94

TABLE A3 Rank Order o Mean Importance Scores: Community Accessibility Contributors (Researchers and Specialists) 94

TABLE A4 Rank Order o Mean Eectiveness Scores: EGM Modications by Key Inormant Group 95

TABLE A5 Rank Order o Mean Eectiveness Scores: Venue Modications by Key Inormant Group 97


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Electronic Gaming Machines and Problem Gambling

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

BACKGROUND

In Februry 2006, the Ssktchewn Liquor nd Ging

Authority (SLGA), the orgniztion which regultes ll video

lottery terinls (VLs) nd slot chines, de coit-

ent to review its policies regrding electronic ging -

chines (EGMs) nd proble gbling. o inor their re-view, SLGA sked the Responsible Gbling Council (RGC)

to conduct brod-bsed explortion o Key Inornt opin-

ions regrding best prctices in the ngeent o EGMs.

As non-prot orgniztion whose ndte includes inves-

tigtion nd disseintion o best prctices, RGC not only

greed to conduct the reserch on behl o the SLGA, it lso

greed to contribute nncilly to the inititive.

Te reltionship between EGMs nd proble gbling is

soewht biguous. Tere is reserch to suggest tht the

speed o proble gbling onset is ster or EGM plyers

thn or gblers who engge in other ors o gbling.

Tis is corroborted by clinicl studies tht hve shown tht

EGM gbling tends to be the ost coon or o g-

bling engged in ong individuls seeking tretent or

proble gbling. However, EGMs re ong the ost c-

cessible nd predoinnt or o gbling. Tus, it hs been

rgued tht the greter nuber o EGM players cretes the

ppernce o concoitnt greter nuber o EGM prob-

lem gamblers. Te RGC nlyzed their 2005 prevlence dt

on gbling nd proble gbling in Ontrio nd ound

tht EGM ply ws the strongest independent predictor o

proble gbling, nding tht is supported by severl oth-

er studies. Tus, while there y be inconclusive evidence sto whether or not EGMs leadto proble gbling, there is

consensus in the literture tht EGM use nd proble g-

bling re strongly relted.

Nuerous studies hve ttepted to shed light on the n-

ture o the reltionship between EGMs nd proble g-

bling. For the purpose o this report, the vribles tht hve

been exined in ny o these studies re clssied into

three generl res: 1) EGM etures, 2) venue etures, nd

) counity ccessibility etures. Using these three res

s its rework, the present study ssesses, vi the opinion

o vrious Key Inornts, which etures re ost likely to

contribute to proble gbling, nd which odictions to

these etures re ost likely to reduce EGM-relted prob-

le gbling risk. Te report consists o literture review

o vilble reserch on the three rework res, survey

o Key Inornt opinion, ocus groups with EGM proble

gblers, discussion o ndings nd liittions, nd, lstly,

sury nd conclusion.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Tere is growing body o reserch tht hs exined the

structurl chrcteristics o EGMs tht y be ssocitedwith proble gbling. Tese chrcteristics include the -

chines speed o ply, sensory eects (e.g., lights nd sounds),

pyent ethods (e.g., bill cceptors, direct electronic und

trnsers), pyout ethods (e.g., tickets, tokens), betting op-

tions (e.g., iniu nd xiu bet sizes), EGM-bsed

induceents (e.g., ner-isses, prize dvertiseents), ge

vilbility (e.g., type nd nuber o ges), progred

ging etures (e.g., win requency, pyout rte), nd EGM-

bsed responsible gbling etures (e.g., chine RGFs,

tie nd oney liits).

In ddition to the etures directly ssocited with EGMs,soe hve hypothesized tht the reltionship between EGMs

nd proble gbling y be prtly due to etures o the

venues tht house the chines. Tt is, proble gbling

could be ssocited with the type o venue in which one

gbles (e.g., hotel versus csino), ones ccess to EGMs

(which is ected by the nuber o EGMs in the venue, the

hours o opertion, etc.), conveniences oered by the venue

(e.g., ccess to oney nd/or lcohol), the venues design nd

dvertising cpigns, nd the hr iniiztion strtegies

undertken by the venue to itigte proble gbling.

Lstly, t the brodest level, third EGM-relted re tht hsbeen identied s being ssocited with proble gbling is

counity ccessibility. Fetures tht hve been discussed

in the literture tht pertin to counitys overll ccess

to EGMs include the nuber o EGM venues, proxiity o

EGM venues, EGM cps, nuber o EGMs per cpit, nd

EGMs in low incoe res.


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KEY INFORMANT QUESTIONNAIRE

Key Inornts ro Cnd nd brod were invited to

coplete questionnire on EGM-relted proble gbling.

Inornts consisted o proble gbling Researchers,iden-

tied through the published literture nd/or personl reer-rl; ging nd proble gbling Specialists (i.e., helth

nd proble gbling proessionls, regultors, oper-

tors), identied through gbling governing bodies nd/or

personl reerrl; proble gbling Counsellors, recruited

through ddiction gencies nd/or personl reerrl; nd

EGM Problem Gamblers theselves, recruited through prob-

le gbling services.

Te questionnire ws divided into two in sections. Section

A looked t the contributors to proble gbling, nd sked

Reserchers nd Specilists to indicte their thoughts on the

iportnce o select EGM etures, venue etures, nd over-ll counity ccessibility etures s contributors to prob-

le gbling. Section B looked t odictions nd sked

ll Key Inornts to indicte their opinions on how eective

select odictions to the bove etures would be in reduc-

ing the risk o proble gbling. Reserchers nd Specilists

were lso sked to indicte their opinion on the strength o

the evidence supporting ech odiction.

FOCUS GROUPS

wo ocus groups with EGM Proble Gblers were

conducted or this study: one in Regin, Ssktchewn, the

other in Ajx, Ontrio. Prticipnts were rst sked bout

their experiences with gbling nd proble gbling.

Tey were then sked, using the three rework res s

guide, wht they think it is tht contributes to EGM-relted

proble gbling, nd wht they think could be done to

reduce EGM-relted proble gbling risk.

DISCUSSION

In reviewing the literture nd synthesizing the opinions o

cross-section o Key Inornts or the present study, nu-ber o ndings eerged which identied potentil EGM-re-

lted contributors to proble gbling, s well s possible

odictions to reduce proble gbling risk.

EGM Features that Contribute to Problem Gambling

With respect to EGM etures, the Reserchers nd Specilists

regrded st speed o ply, direct electronic und trnsers

(which llow ptrons to ccess bnk or credit crd unds di-

rectly while sitting t n EGM), the ppernce o ner-iss-es, nd bill cceptors s the ost iportnt contributors to

proble gbling. Te iportnce o these ites ws sup-

ported by thetic nlysis which showed tht etures tht

speed up ply (e.g., short tie intervls between bet nd out-

coe), involve pyent ethods (e.g., bill cceptors), nd

give the ppernce o ner-isses were rted uch higher

in iportnce thn other EGM etures.

EGM Modications to Reduce Problem Gambling

Consistent with the nding tht Key Inornts identied

direct electronic und trnsers nd bill cceptors t EGMs

s ong the ost iportnt contributors to proble g-

bling, the eliintion o these etures ws rnked ong the

odictions ost likely to be eective in reducing proble

gbling risk.

Key Inornts lso endorsed ndtory plyer registrtion,

the use o srt crds, the optionl or (preerbly) ndto-

ry setting o pre-deterined spending liits, nd on-screen

running csh totls o the ount spent during n EGM ses-

sion. Tere is little doubt tht the Key Inornts were very

optiistic bout the potentil o srt crd technology to

ddress proble gbling. However, this endorseent needs

to be ssessed within soe liittions o the present study.

Since no denition o srt crd technology ws provided

to Key Inornts, it is not possible to know wht specic

spects o the technology they were endorsing. Srt crd

is to soe degree globl ter, which cn incorporte v-

riety o etures such s crd-bsed ccess controls, plyer-

controlled sel-liits, provider-controlled sel-liits, nd

sel-exclusion.

Fro broder perspective, the thetic nlysis indicted

tht Key Inornts believed tht odictions ied t

liiting the ount o oney spent nd restricting pyent

ethods were ost likely to reduce proble gbling risk.

However, lthough the Reserchers rted speed o ply nd

the ppernce o ner-isses s iportnt contributors to

proble gbling, they did not consider reducing the speed

o ply or the ppernce o ner-isses s eective s reduc-

ing the potentil or overspending. Overll, Key Inornts

were ore supportive o odictions to spending nd c-


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cess to unds, rther thn in odictions tht ight dp-

en the eotionl experience nd exciteent o plying on

EGMs.

Venue Features that Contribute to Problem GamblingAccording to the Reserchers nd Specilists in this study, the

ost iportnt venue-relted contributors to proble g-

bling were hving AMs locted either on the ging oor

or close to chines, 2-hour ccess to EGMs, nd rket-

ing tht ws trgeted directly to the EGM plyer. Overll, esy

ccess to oney in venues (speciclly vi AM chines)

ws considered key contributor to proble gbling.

Venue Modications to Reduce Problem Gambling

Te venue odictions tht Key Inornts considered to

be ost eective in reducing proble gbling risk were

prohibiting ccess to unds ro credit crds t AMs, dis-

llowing cheque-cshing t venues, nd reoving AMs

ro venues. As n lterntive to reoving AMs, Key

Inornts expressed strong support or introducing other

AM restrictions, such s iposing tighter controls over

withdrwl liits, point tht is lso supported by reserch

in the literture.

Community Accessibility Features that Contribute to

Problem Gambling

Overll, the Counity Accessibility etures tht Key

Inornts believed would be reltively ore iportntcontributors to proble gbling were those relted to EGM

distribution; tht is, wide dispersion o EGMs throughout

the counity, lrge nuber o counity venues housing

EGMs, nd convenient loctions o EGM venues (e.g., close

proxiity to high residentil popultions).

Community Accessibility Modications to Reduce

Problem Gambling

Regrding odictions to counity ccessibility e-

tures, there ws considerble vrition ong the our Key

Inornt groups such tht there ws no single ite tht ll

groups greed would be the single ost eective odic-

tion. However, the Key Inornts s group greed tht re-

ducing the nuber o EGM cilities nd centrlizing EGMs

to one or ew loctions (preerbly wy ro residentil

res) would likely be the ost eective counity cces-

sibility odictions.

SUMMARY & CONCLUSIONS

In brod sense, Key Inornts believed tht certin e-

tures intrinsic to EGMs, such s the speed o ply nd p-

pernce o ner-isses, contribute to the risk o proble

gbling. With respect to potentil odictions, ll KeyInornt groups supported chnges tht did not directly

involve the unctioning o EGMs, but ocused insted on the

ngeent o oney, pre-coitent, the use o srt

crd technology, nd restricting counity ccess.

Te Management o Money

Te ngeent o oney eerged s n iportnt issue

relted to proble gbling, s ny o the highest rnked

ites nd the thetic nlysis ocused on the on-screen dis-

ply o oney, ccess to oney through AMs, cheque-csh-

ing, direct electronic und trnsers, nd the setting o spend-

ing liits. One o the ost consistent opinions to eerge

ro this study regrding eective odictions pertined

to liiting plyers ccess to unds. Key Inornts elt tht

restricting direct electronic und trnsers ro credit nd

debit crds would be benecil in reducing the risk o prob-

le gbling.

Pre-commitment

Pre-coitent constitutes the cretion o pre-set spending

or tie liits tht re estblished prior to the strt o g-

bling session. Tere ws considerble support ong Key

Inornts or the cretion o pre-coitent inititivesor gblers, speciclly or sel deterined, pre-set liits

concerning the ount o oney gblers could spend in

given EGM session. It should be noted tht Key Inornts

lso elt tht the concept o pre-coitent would be ore

eective in prctice i it were to be ndtory requireent

or gblers rther thn optionl.

Te Use o Smart Card echnology

Te ndtory registrtion nd use o srt crds ws one o

the studys ost highly endorsed odictions or reducing

proble gbling risk. While the questionnire did not pro-vide n extensive opportunity or Key Inornts to elborte

on the type o srt crd syste tht they hd in ind, the

Inornts ppered to understnd tht it involved univer-

sl registrtion syste nd requireent to hve crd or

chine ccess. Given tht srt crd systes cn vry sig-

nicntly in nture (e.g., by their tie nd oney spending


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liits, optionl/ndtory etures, types nd levels o en-

orceent), Key Inornts would likely hve vrying views

on the bredth nd coprehensiveness o such systes.

Restricting Community AccessIn ters o counity ccessibility, lthough there ws

reltively strong support or ll the odictions exined,

the study seeed to suggest tht the Key inornts over-

ll preerred restrictions on the nuber o EGM venues nd

the centrliztion o chines within counity s the

ost eective odictions or reducing the risk o proble

gbling.

Other Notable Observations

Aong the Key Inornts, Reserchers nd Specilists were

sked to ssess the strength o evidence or ech EGM, ven-

ue, nd counity ccessibility odiction ite. Overll,

there were low levels o condence in the strength o the cur-

rent evidence bse. Tere ws lso little connection between

the Key Inorntsperception o evidence strength, nd the

strength o the evidence ound in the literture.

Implications and Future Directions

Te literture reviewed or this study deonstrted tht the

current knowledge bse regrding wys to reduce EGM-relt-

ed proble gbling is liited nd incoplete. Most work-

ing in the eld gree tht strong reltionship exists between

proble gbling nd EGMs. Less cler is the question o

how best to ddress this reltionship. While reserch on the

echnics o EGMs provides insight into chine dynics

nd plyer behviour, such reserch oers less guidnce s

to wht cn be done to reduce proble gbling risk. Tis

study gthers the opinions o soe o those who hve helped

dene the eld nd knowledge bse in order to provide inor-

tion tht will be o ssistnce to policy-kers responding

to the diles posed by EGMs. In order or the ndings

o this study to be useul, however, they ust be interpreted

within given jurisdictions socio-politicl, geogrphic, nd

econoic context.


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INTRODUCTION

In Februry 2006, the Ssktchewn Liquor nd Ging

Authority (SLGA), the orgniztion which regultes ll video

lottery terinls (VLs) nd slot chines, de coit-

ent to review its policies regrding electronic ging -

chines (EGMs) nd proble gbling.i o inor their re-

view, SLGA sked the Responsible Gbling Council (RGC)

to conduct brod bsed explortion o Key Inornt

opinion bout best prctices in the ngeent o EGMs.ii

As non-prot orgniztion whose ndte includes inves-

tigtion nd disseintion o best prctices, RGC not only

greed to conduct the reserch on behl o the SLGA, it lso

contributed nncilly to the inititive.

BACKGROUND

Controversy nd debte hve surrounded EGMs or the lst

1 yers.,5 Te genesis o the controversy stes ro Dr.

Robert Hunter, psychologist t Ls Vegs Chrter Hospitl,

who clied tht plyers o EGMs (prticulrly video poker)

i EGMs such s VLs nd slot chines re technologicl ly coplex, butsiple to use chines chrcterized by st speed o ply, bright colours,usic, lshing lights, nd rndo pyout schedules. Wheres slot -chines used to py out in the or o csh, they now, siilr to VLs, ypy out in the or o tickets or tokens.1 While in the pst slot chinesoperted echniclly, tody both slot nd VL chines hve electronicopertions. he only rel dierence reining between the two typeso chines sees to be the wider dispersl o VLs in the counitycopred to slots, which re typiclly ssocited with csinos. Given theirsiilrity nd the ct tht there does not pper to be ny substntivereserch tht dierentites between the two types o chines in terso proble gbling outcoes,2, no distinction ws de bet ween VLnd slot chines in the present report. Moreover, it is expected tht thedeinition o wht constitutes n EGM will be expnded in the uture schines grow together.

ii It is iportnt to note t the outset o this report tht the cuses oproble gbling re coplex. hey involve set o interctions betweenindividul plyers, the ge they re plying, nd the environent theyre plying in. Ultitely, the belies, ttitudes, nd behviours o the in-dividul plyer re the priry deterinnts o trouble-ree gbling.However, the providers o gbling, like the providers o ny product,

bottoed out ore quickly thn those who plyed ore

trditionl ges. Tis ssertion ws supported epiriclly

by two studies which ound tht, ong proble gblers,

the speed o proble gbling onset ws ster or EGM

plyers copred to plyers o other ors o gbling

(such s crds, dice, horses, dogs, bingo nd scrtch crds).

Te uthors o these studies speculted tht the ssocition

between EGMs nd proble gbling ws due to the rpid,

continuous nd repetitive nture o EGMs.6, Clinicl studies

lso show tht ong proble gblers seeking tretent,

use o EGMs tend to be the ost coon or o gbling

engged in.8-1

However, EGMs re lso ong the ost ccessible nd

predoinnt or o gbling.15 In Cnd, there re over

80,000 chines vilble cross the country, generting by

r the gretest revenue over ll other ors o gbling.16

Tus, it hs been rgued tht the greter nuber o EGM

players in the popultion kes it see tht there is con-

coitnt greter nuber o EGMproblem gamblers. However,

it y be tht there re proportionlly ewer EGM proble

gblers copred to proble gblers who engge in oth-

er ors o gbling.1 Te RGC nlyzed their 2005 prev-

lence dt on gbling nd proble gbling in Ontrio

nd ound tht EGM ply ws the strongest independent pre-

dictor o proble gbling, even er controlling or gender,

eduction, nd other ors o gbling.2 Siilrly, results o

n epideiologicl study ro Prince Edwrd Islnd ound

tht ong gbling ctivities VL ply hd the strongestunique reltionship to proble gbling.18 EGM ply, in

coprison to other ors o gbling, ws lso ound to

be ost highly relted to proble gbling in Brzil, with

EGM plyers not only displying the gretest coitent to

gbling, but lso the ost distress.1

Tus, even though there is equivoction in the epiricl evi-

dence s to whether EGMs led to proble gbling, there is

consensus in the literture tht EGM use nd proble g-

bling re strongly relted. Nuerous studies hve ttepted

to shed light on the nture o the reltionship between EGMs

nd proble gbling. For the purpose o this report, the

hve responsibility to tke ction to liit ny potentil buse or hrtht y be relted to the use o t heir product. he present report ocusesexclusively on the inored opinion o best prctices or the provisiono EGM gambling, rther thn on the best prctices or the individual

gambler.


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8


vribles tht hve been exined in ny o these studies

y be clssied into three generl res: 1) EGM etures,

2) venue etures, nd ) counity ccessibility etures.1,

20-2 Using these three res s rework, the present study

seeks to deterine which etures re seen s ost likely

to contribute to proble gbling, nd which odic-

tions to these etures y reduce EGM-relted probles.

owrds tht end, the study reviews the vilble literture

in the three res nd gthers the opinions o cross-section

o Key Inornts; speciclly, gbling nd proble g-

bling Reserchers, Specilists (i.e., helth nd proble g-

bling proessionls, regultors, opertors), proble gbling

Counsellors, nd EGM Proble Gblers theselves. Te

report consists o the ollowing sections:

A literture review o the three EGM re-

work res tken ro cdeic reserch,governentl reports, nd policy docuents

t both the ntionl nd interntionl level

(Chpter 1);

A description o the questionnire tht ws d-

inistered to Key Inornts long with the

questionnires ndings (Chpter 2);

Te ethod nd results o the ocus groups

tht were conducted with Proble Gblers

(Chpter );

A discussion o the studys in ndings nd

liittions (Chpter ); nd nlly,

A sury nd conclusion (Chpter 5).

o ensure the qulity, objectivity nd integrity o the reserch,

the present study ws reviewed by n expert pnel consisting

o Dr. Hrold Wynne (Wynne Resources Liited, Albert),

Dr. Nigel urner (Centre or Addiction nd Mentl Helth,

Ontrio), nd Mr. Michel ONeil (South Austrlin Centre

or Econoic Studies, South Austrli). RGC ssues ull

responsibility or the nl content nd conclusions o the

report.


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1 LITERATURE REVIEW

EGM FEATURES

In the literture, there is growing body o reserch tht hs

looked t the structurl chrcteristics o EGMs tht y be

ssocited with proble gbling.iii Structurl chrcteris-

tics reer to etures such s n EGMs speed o play, sensory

eects, payment methods, payout methods, betting options,EGM-based inducements, game availability, programmed

gaming eatures, nd EGM-based responsible gambling ea-

tures (RGFs). Te reserch literture ound on ech o these

etures is discussed in turn below.

Speed o Play

Speed o ply on n EGM reers to the tie intervl between

successive plys on chine. Te shorter the tie intervl,

the ore requently events (bets) cn occur. EGMs re chr-

cterized s hving n event every ew seconds. Tis diers

signicntly ro the lottery, or exple, tht occurs onceor twice per week. It hs been suggested tht the ster the

event requency, the ore likely it is tht gbling ctivity

will led to probles.21 EGM speed cn be broken down into

two sub-etures: reel spin speed nd stop buttons. Tey re

ech discussed in turn.

Reel Spin Speed

Denition. Reel spin speed, esured in seconds, is the

length o tie elpsed or slot chines reels to coplete

round o spinning. It reects the tie between the onset o

bet nd its nl outcoe on single round o ply.

iii A nuber o ters hve been used in the literture to describe prob-le gbling. Aside ro the ter proble gbling itsel, soe o theseters include compulsive gambling, pathological gambling, probable path-ological gambling, and disordered gambling. For the ske o siplicity, theterproblem gamblingwill be used throughout this report.

Association with problem gambling. Severl studies in the

literture hve explored how reel spin speed ects g-

bling. One study conducted in Austrlin hotels nd clubs

with proble gblers nd non-proble gblers ex-

ined the ipct tht certin EGM odictions, including

reduced speed o ply, hd on plyer stisction, enjoyent,

behviour, nd expenditure. Results reveled tht both the

non-proble nd proble gblers rted lower levels o en-

joyent nd stisction with the slower 5-second reel spin

speed (lowered ro .5 seconds). Rpid speed o ply (i.e.,

.5 seconds) ws not ound to hve ny positive or negtive

ipct on ny o the preters o ply (i.e., tie spent ply-

ing, nuber o bets, net loss), nor ws it ound to be relted

to proble gbling sttus, the severity o probles, or the

ount o oney spent. Notwithstnding these ndings, it

is not possible to tell ro this study whether reductions in

speed o ply would be dierentilly eective or problegblers s copred to non-proble gblers, s there

were insucient nubers o proble gblers in the re-

serch.2, 25

A second study exining nipultion o speed o ply

ws conducted in lbortory setting with non-proble

nd proble VL gblers. Tis study sought to deterine

prticipnts sel-reported rections to the cobined nip-

ultions o speed nd sound under three conditions: 1) de-

cresed speed/no sound, 2) stndrd speed/stndrd sound

(control condition), nd ) incresed speed/stndrd sound.

Results reveled tht reduction in the speed o ply nd thereovl o sound ltogether decresed rtings o enjoyent,

exciteent, nd tension-reduction in the proble gblers

s copred to the non-proble gblers. However, the lb

setting, the sll sple size, the relince on sel-report, nd

the conoundingiv o sound nd speed o ply in the study

liit the conclusions tht cn be drwn ro the reserch.22

Finlly, in our review o the literture, nother lbortory

study ws ound which investigted the eects o VL speed

o ply ong counity sple (N = ). Te prticulr

purpose o the study ws to see i vritions in speed o ply

hd n ipct on plyer concentrtion, otivtion to ply,loss o control, nd nuber o ges plyed. Prticipnts

were rndoly ssigned to ply either high-speed (5-sec-

iv In reserch, conounding occurs when vribles o interest re notproperly controlled or. his results in the resercher being unble to de-terine the ipct o ny one vrible on the observed result, therebyliiting their bility to drw conclusions bout cuse nd e ect.


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ond) chine (the typicl speed tht VLs re plyed in the

counity where the study took plce) or low-speed (15-

second) chine. Results reveled tht gblers who plyed

the high-speed chine, s copred to those who plyed the

low-speed chine, plyed ore ges nd underestited

the nuber o ges plyed. However, speed o ply did not

see to hve n ipct on plyer concentrtion, otivtion,

or loss o control over tie or oney spent. Te uthors o

the study concluded tht speed o ply does not see to hve

n ipct on occsionl VL gblers, nd tht speed re-

strictions re not n iportnt hr iniiztion strtegy.26

However, it should be recognized tht there re soe signi-

cnt liittions to the studys generlizbility. First, the study

ws conducted in lbortory setting nd thus y not p-

ply to ctul gbling venues. Second, given the bsence o

proble gblers in the study, the ndings cnnot be used to

predict wht ipct speed o ply y hve on ctul prob-le gblers behviour.

Stop Buttons

Denition. Stop buttons re eture ound on ny types

o EGMs tht llow gblers to terinte the spinning o

the chines reels rther thn wit until they hve run their

ull course. By controlling how long the reels spin, the g-

bler is in sense controlling the chines speed o ply. For

instnce, i the nturl spinning durtion o the reels is ve

seconds but the gbler presses the stop button er two,

the ge will end three seconds erlier thn it would hveotherwise. While this y not hve uch o n ipct on

speed o ply er single bet is de, it could hve signi-

cnt ipct i the stop button is pressed consistently er two

seconds over many sequential bets. Eventully, ore ges

would be plyed within the se unit o tie thn would be

plyed hd the reels stopped on their own.

Association with problem gambling. While stop button l-

lows plyers to inuence to soe extent their length o ply-

ing tie, soe plyers y istkenly believe tht, through

the stop button, they y inuence their chances o winning.

A study looking t the eect o the stop eture ong occ-

sionl, non-proble, VL gblers deonstrted tht ply-

ers developed the illusion tht their chnces o winning were

iproved when the stop eture ws used. Speciclly, 8%

believed tht stopping the reels would bring dierent sybols

on the screen, 5% believed tht they could control ges

outcoe, nd 26% believed tht they could enhnce their

probbility o winning when using the device. Conversely,

those who plyed on chine without stop eture did

not develop the illusion o control to the se extent. Tey

lso plyed signicntly ewer ges. 2 Since this study only

ocused on occsionl, non-proble gblers, however, the

observed eects cnnot be generlized to proble gblers.

A second lbortory study, though, did explore the eect o

stopping the reels on VL ply with both proble nd non-

proble VL gblers. Results reveled tht irrespective o

gbling sttus, plyers were bothered when they could not

stop the reels nd were ore likely to choose to ply ge

in which they could.22

Tere is lso reserch ro Nov Scoti tht hs looked t the

eects o disbling the stop button eture s well s reduc-

ing speed o ply. (It lso exined two other odictions

ipleented in two seprte phses: reduced VL hours o

opertion nd the reovl o VLs ltogether ro certin

venues). Rndo sple surveys were conducted with the

generl dult popultion (N = 0) nd VL plyers speci-

clly (N = 865) t ech phse o the study to scertin the e-

ect o these inititives. Te uthors o the study reported tht

disbling the stop button nd reducing speed o ply resulted

in reduction o spending or 1% o the totl VL plyer

bse, with proble gblers decresing their spending by

n verge o $21 per week. VL plyers lso reduced their

plying tie on the chines by n verge o 211 inutes

per week, with proble gblers reducing their tie spent

plying by n verge o 6 inutes per week. Te studylso ound tht 8% o VL plyers shied gbling ctivities

s result o the disbled stop button/reduced speed o ply

inititive, nd tht 0% were in vour o the stop button re-

ovl/reduced speed o ply inititive.28 It should be noted,

however, tht becuse odictions were ipleented t the

se tie in this study, it is dicult to know which one, or

whether their cobintion, led to the observed outcoes.

Sensory Efects

Sound Eects

Denition. Sound eects re progred noises tht EGMske. Tey cn include nrrtion, bckground usic, usi-

cl tunes er win, nd relistic noises such s the sound

o coins lling into try.20, 2

Association with problem gambling. It hs been suggested in

the literture tht certin etures o usic y be ssoci-


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ted with gbling behviour. For exple, the qulity o the

usic tht n EGM plys y be closely tied to the qulity o

the chine, which y be the priry reson why g-

bler ight select it to ply on. Te ilirity o the usic

y represent soething specil to the gbler, which y

inuence persevernce in the ce o ge coplexity. Te

distinctiveness o the usic y ke the ge ore e-

orble to the plyer, which y cilitte urther gbling.

Finlly, the sounds ssocited with winning ight crete the

illusion tht winning is ore coon thn losing, since los-

ing is not identied by usic.0, 1

A nuber o studies ound in our review looked t the rel-

tionship between chine sound eects nd proble g-

bling. In the rst study, prticipnts (N = 82) rnked 1

structurl chrcteristics (e.g., sound, grphics, bckground/

setting, ge durtion, rte o ply, etc.) or their iportnce

to video ge enjoyent. Results showed tht lost two-

thirds o the sple sid tht relistic sound eects were the

ost iportnt eture relted to ge enjoyent. For the

purposes o this report, however, there re two noteworthy

liittions to this study. First, it ocused solely on video

ges, which re not n exct proxy or EGMs. Second, it did

not report ndings ro proble, or even high requency,

plyers. Tt sid, the uthors o the study rgued tht the

structurl etures o EGMs nd video ges re essentilly

the se, especilly since ny EGMs now use video ge

technology. Te uthors recognized, however, tht the conse-

quences o high requency gbling re certinly greter thnthe consequences o high requency video ge plying.2

Te second study ound in our review ocused on dolescent

gblers. In this study, respondents (N = 50) were surveyed

to nd out which slot chine etures were ost ttrc-

tive to the. Findings indicted tht 0% o respondents elt

tht the ur o slot chines (their usic, lights nd noise)

ws one o their ost ttrctive etures. Furtherore, those

identied s proble gblers in the study reported eeling

signicntly ore ttrcted to the ur o the chines thn

non-proble gblers2. A liittion o this study, however,

is tht the independent eect o ech structurl chrcteristicws not ssessed.

Another epiricl study exined the eects o sound on

persistence o EGM ply. Te reserchers tested the length

o tie tht prticipnts spent plying n EGM siultor

when sound eects de it pper tht other gblers were

winning in the next roo. Results reveled tht those who

herd the sound eects nd perceived tht other plyers were

winning gbled or longer periods o tie nd spent ore

oney doing so. Tese ndings suggest tht sounds do in

ct inuence, or encourge, extended nd/or continuous

ply ong EGM plyers. No ention ws de in this

study, however, o whether the ipct o sound eects would

be ore pronounced or proble gblers s copred to

non-proble gblers.

In ters o the ipct tht modiying EGM sound eects

ight hve on proble gbling, the lbortory study re-

viewed erlier, which looked t rection to speed nd sound

odictions with proble nd non-proble VL gblers,

is relevnt.22 Results o tht study showed tht reduction in

speed o plyandthe reovl o sound ltogether decresed

rtings o enjoyent, exciteent, nd tension-reduction in

proble gblers s copred to non-proble gblers.

Note gin, however, tht speed o ply nd sound were con-

ounded in this study, so one cnnot know i the ndings re

due to one ctor over the other or cobintion o the two.

No other studies exploring the independent eects o reduc-

ing sound volue or reoving sound ltogether ro EGMs

were ound.

Visual Eects

Denition. Visul eects on EGMs cn include shing lights,

priry colours, urnishings nd iconology.5, 20

Association with problem gambling. Te literture on visuleects is quite liited nd hs not chnged uch in the lst

1 yers.1 One epiricl study looking t the eect o co-

loured lighting on gbling behviour ound tht non-prob-

le gblers plced ore bets nd lost ore oney when

they were exposed to red, s copred to blue, lighting (pre-

subly becuse red lighting is ore rousing). However,

there ws no inerence s to whether this nding would be

observed ong proble gblers s well. Interestingly, it

hs been noted tht gbling venues in the USA nd UK re

oen decorted with colours tht tend towrd the red end

o the colour spectru (i.e., blck, red, purple).1, It hs

lso been suggested tht priry colours nd shing lightscontribute to the ir o un nd exciteent o plying on n

EGM.,5

In ddition to the bove observtions, one other study cn

be entioned here. It is the oreentioned questionnire

study o dolescent gblers which ound tht 0% o the


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sple clied tht the ur o slot chines (their usic,

lights nd noise) ws one o their ost ttrctive etures.

Moreover, those identied s proble gblers in the study

reported being signicntly ore ttrcted to the ur o

EGMs s copred to non-proble gblers.2 Recll, how-

ever, the liittions o this study: Due to the ct tht the

seprte structurl etures o EGMs (e.g., their usic, lights,

nd noise) were not investigted seprtely, it is dicult to

deterine which one ws ost ttrctive to respondents.

Payment Methods

Bill Acceptors

Denition. Mny EGMs re equipped with bill cceptors

which llow dollr bills to initite ply, in ddition to coins

or tokens.

Association with problem gambling. Bill cceptors on EGMs

re convenient becuse they do not require gblers to con-

tinully insert coins or tokens into the chines, or to hve

the exct ount o chnge or tokens to ply. However, the

insertion o bill into chine converts the ull onetry

vlue o tht bill into ge credits, thereby enbling ster,

ore continuous ply. Indeed, one study ws ound in our

review showing tht coinless chines cn speed up ply-

ing tie by 15%, due to ewer breks being tken to obtin

proper chnge nd less downtie being spent relling coin

hoppers.6 Te risk o proble gbling potentilly increses

with lrger denointion bill cceptors becuse they eec-tively llow lrger ounts o oney to be converted into

credits t one tie.v

While not speciclly reerring to proble gbling, the link

between gbling expenditures nd bill cceptors hs been

noted by policy nlyst, Michel ONeil. He observed posi-

tive reltionship between the two vribles in two Austrlin

sttes: Victori, where bill cceptors re llowed, nd South

Austrli, where they re not. While recognizing tht there

re ny ctors involved in deterining EGM gbling

losses, ONeil reported tht there ws signicnt dierence

between the two Austrlin sttes in this regrd: In Victori,net EGM gbling losses were over $A0,000 per chine,

while in South Austrli, they were over $A50,000.

v Reserch on bill cceptors sees to be ocused only on the reltion-ship between denointion size nd expenditure. No reserch ws oundin our review tht explored liittions to preloding bill cceptors (e.g.,inserting ultiple bills t one tie).

Te direct link between proble gbling nd bill cceptors

ws identied in dierent Austrlin study which showed

tht over 65% o proble gblers oen or lwys used

bill cceptors, s opposed to 2% o non-proble g-

blers. Te uthors o the study stted tht the bill cceptors

decrese the need or breks, nd thus the opportunity to

reect on gbling ctivity.8 Siilrly, counity sur-

vey (N = 55) ound strong reltionship between being

regulr or sel-identied proble gbler nd requent use

o EGM bill cceptors: copred to recretionl gblers,

the jority o regulr nd proble gblers lwys used

bill cceptors. Tey lso tended to use bill cceptors o lrger

denointions.

A study exploring the ipct o liiting EGM bill cceptors

to $20 ws conducted in Queenslnd, Austrli. wo eth-

ods o dt collection were used. Te rst involved interviews

with study prticipnts (N = 5); the second involved n

nlysis o EGM revenues generted during the experientl

period. Results reveled tht 61% o those interviewed p-

proved o the $20 liit, 28% believed tht the liit should

be reduced urther, nd pproxitely 20% reported chnges

in their behviour, especilly i they were t high risk or

proble gbling (0-0% o high-risk proble gblers

reported chnge in behviour). Speciclly, those who sid

they chnged their behviour reported spending less tie

nd oney gbling, reducing their bet size, nd visiting

the ging venue less requently. Interestingly, however, the

concoitnt revenue nlysis indicted tht ipleent-tion o bill cceptors did not led to signicnt loss o EGM

ernings. Te uthors o this study recognized tht the two

sets o results were counterctul, nd suggested tht either

there ws discrepncy between prticipnts reported nd

actualbehviour, or tht estites suggesting tht proble

gbling contributes signicntly to gbling revenues re

inted.0

A second study ws ound looking t the ipct o odiy-

ing EGMs in nuber o wys, including liiting bill ccep-

tors to xiu o $20. Te study sple included recre-

tionl nd proble gblers requenting clubs nd hotels.Te results reveled tht while liited denointion bill c-

ceptors (i.e., $20) reduced overll chine expenditure, rec-

retionl nd proble gblers did not dier in their rtes o

expenditure reduction. Moreover, though proble gblers

seeed to preer using chines with higher denointion

bill cceptors, the uthors o the study concluded tht the use


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o high denointion bill cceptors ws not independently

ssocited with proble gbling sttus, severity o proble

gbling, ount o oney lost, or persistence o ply when

tking into ccount other ctors such s ge, gender, credits

wgered per bet, nd ply rte. Tis conclusion ws consis-

tent with necdotl reports obtined ro proble gblers

in ocus groups who indicted tht liiting the denoin-

tion o bill cceptors would be unlikely to led to chnges in

their ptterns o ply.2, 25

A nl study coes ro Nov Scoti, which hs 15 yers o

experience with bill cceptor equipped VLs. An evlution

o ptrons opinions bout bill cceptors nd VLs ound tht

non-proble nd proble gblers viewed bill cceptors s

n eective ethod to ssist with the ngeent o tie

nd oney spent on EGMs, especilly or plyers who set

budgets or ply.1

Direct Electronic Fund Transers

Denition. Direct electronic und trnsers llow ptrons to

ccess bnk or credit crd unds directly while sitting t n

EGM. Tis cpbility kes ccessing unds r ore con-

venient thn the lterntive, which is to step wy ro the

EGM to obtin oney ro soe other source (e.g., nerby

AM).

Association with problem gambling. When New Jersey reg-

ultors in 16 greed to let csino ptrons use credit nd

debit crds to purchse gbling chips nd slot tokens, prob-le gbling experts sounded lr bells, stting tht such

technology would wrek hvoc with soe proble gblers.

Tey lso rgued tht it would ke even csul gblers

lose ore thn they hd originlly plnned.2 However, no

epiricl reserch ws ound in our review tht explored

the ctul iplictions o plcing direct debit technologies

t EGMs. As well, no epiricl reserch ws ound explor-

ing the eectiveness o eliinting direct electronic und

trnsers ro chines. Te pprent bsence o this type

o reserch y be due to the ct tht direct electronic und

trnser technology is new nd not yet widely prcticed.

Credit Displays/Credit Conversions

Denition. Credit displys/credit conversions re not ctu-

lly ethods o pyent; rther, they reer to wht hppens

to pyent ieditely er it is inserted into n EGM.

Becuse they re tied to pyent, however, they re included

in the Pyent Methods section o our review.

When oney is inserted into n EGM, it is usully converted

utoticlly into credits tht re displyed on the chine

nd used to gble. For exple, i $5 were entered into

chine tht operted with 2 cent credits, there would be

totl o 250 credits displyed nd de vilble. Te dis-

ply o oney wgered in the or o credits is lso clled

tokenization.2

Association with problem gambling. While the bility to in-

sert oney into chine to obtin credits y be con-

venient eture (i.e., it sves the gbler ro hving to ex-

chnge oney or tokens), it hs been hypothesized tht this

could contribute to ster speed o ply, since the gbler

essentilly hs running credit on the chine. It hs lso

been hypothesized tht credit disply insted o csh cn

contribute to isjudgeents bout how uch oney one is

ctully spending nd, ultitely, increse the risk o prob-

le gbling.20 Aside ro converting oney into credit,

EGMs cn lso convert wins into dditionl ge credits,

eture which could urther prolong ply nd, gin, increse

the risk tht probles will occur.1

While our literture review did not nd ny epiricl evi-

dence to support the bove hypotheses, our relted studies

were ound. Te rst two, conducted in the 160s, ound

tht gblers tended to ke ore cutious decisions

bout wgers when they gbled with rel oney s op-

posed to credits. Te ipliction o these studies is tht n

ction, such s tokeniztion, which concels the true vlue

o oney y lso contribute to reduced cution in wger-

ing decisions., Te third study ound in our review showed

tht er tokeniztion ws introduced in New South Wles,

Austrli, the lrgest nnul increse in EGM expenditure

ws observed.2 Finlly, study o plyers wreness o, nd

ttitudes towrds, odictions to VLs ound tht plyers

rted displying csh totls insted o credits to be highly

eective odiction or ssisting the in keeping trck o

how uch oney they were spending. No dierences were

observed in this study, however, between non-proble nd

proble gblers.1

Payout Methods

Tickets or Tokens

Denition. Te ens o receiving ones pyout or winnings

ro n EGM is entirely dependent on the design o the

chine. Soe chines (e.g., those with icket-In icket-


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Out (IO) technology) deliver the pyout or winnings in

the or o ticket tht ust be redeeed by cshier or

chine. Tis technology is rpidly becoing the industry

nor. Pyouts cn lso be delivered in the or o tokens

tht ust be redeeed by cshier. Te dierence between

ticket nd token pyout ethods is tht the ltter y be

seen s ore csh-like since tokens re physiclly siilr to

coins.

Association with problem gambling. It hs been hypothesized

in the literture tht pyouts in the or o tickets or tokens

insted o csh cn distort plyer perceptions o win size.20

No evidence could be ound in our review, however, to sup-

port this hypothesis. Siilrly, no reserch could be ound

tht ddresses the potentil ipct tht odictions to py-

out ethods could hve on proble gbling.

Cheques

Denition. Te pyout intervl on n EGM reers to the dely

in tie between when plyer wins ge nd when they

receive their winnings. One ethod o extending the pyout

intervl is to deliver the plyers winnings (when the win-

nings re reltively lrge) by cheque. I winnings re pid out

to the gbler this wy, they cnnot be cshed in or ore

tokens or credits t the ging venue, which is believed to be

helpul tool in iniizing hr.

Association with problem gambling. wo studies were ound

tht investigted the eect o cheque pyents on the behv-iour o EGM plyers. Te rst study involved interviews with

sel-identied proble gblers (N = 16), recretionl g-

blers (N = 5), ging ngers (N = 60), counity rep-

resenttives, counsellors, nd expert nlysts. It looked t the

ipct o pying ptrons with cheque or winnings greter

thn $1,000. While 55% o club ngers, 66% o recretion-

l gblers, nd 2% o proble gblers ll red tht

the eort ws n eective strtegy to prevent gblers ro

spending their winnings, ll groups clied tht ny, i not

ll, gblers would ply down their winnings on chines

or would csh out their winnings beore reching $1,000 to

void receiving cheque.6

Te second study looked t EGM plyers (N = 18) ttitudes,

wreness, belies, perceptions, chllenges nd behviours re-

lted to nuber o hr iniiztion strtegies, including

pyent o winnings by cheque. Results reveled tht % o

EGM plyers thought tht pyent by cheque or winnings

in excess o $2,000 would be n eective hr iniiz-

tion strtegy. Proble gblers, however, were ore likely

thn ll others in the sple (25% versus 16%, respectively)

to sy tht cheque pyent would notbe n eective hr

iniiztion esure. Seventy-two percent o the sple

thought tht plcing restrictions on cshing winning cheques

t ging venues would be n eective hr iniiztion

strtegy.5

Betting Options

Bet Size (Amount/Lines)

Denition. Bet size is deterined by nuber o ctors, in-

cluding the denointion o the chines (the vlue o ech

credit), the nuber o lines one cn bet on, nd the nu-

ber o credits plyed. For exple, sll bet size cn result

ro betting on one line or one credit (ech credit vluedt 5 cents) or xiu bet size o 5 cents. Conversely,

lrge bet size cn result ro betting on 10 lines or 10 credits

(ech credit vlued t 10 cents) or xiu bet size o $1.

(Note, however, tht in the ltter exple, gbler does

not need to bet the xiu possible ount. He or she

could bet on ll 10 lines but choose to use ewer credits (i.e.,

10 credits ech vlued t 5 cents, which would ount to

50 cent bet)). In generl, the higher the bet, the higher the

pyout when one is presented with winning cobintion

o sybols.

Association with problem gambling. A sel-report studyconducted in the lbortory with proble nd recretionl

gblers deonstrted tht proble gblers tend to use

the xiu credit unction nd tht recretionl gblers

do not.Cited in 22 Other studies hve shown tht copred to

non-proble gblers, proble gblers re ore likely to

plce bets over $1, nd tht when the xiu possible bet

size is reduced, so is both gbling (i.e., durtion, requency,

expenditure, losses), nd other behviours oen ssocited

with it (e.g., soking nd lcohol consuption).22,2

A study conducted in Austrlin hotels nd clubs with prob-

le gblers nd non-proble gblers exined the i-pct o certin chine odictions, including llowing

or $10 versus $1 bet size option, on plyer stisction nd

enjoyent, behviour, nd expenditure. While only sll

percentge o the sple reported wgering with bets gret-

er thn $1, proble gblers were three ties ore likely

thn recretionl gblers to wger with the lrger ount.


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Moreover, the odied chines llowing or $1 bets s

copred to $10 bets were ssocited with plyers gbling

or shorter periods, king ewer bets, losing less oney, nd

soking/drinking less. Te uthors o the study concluded

tht the reduction in xiu EGM bet size ro $10 to $1

ight be n eective hr iniiztion strtegy or sll

proportion o plyers.2, 2

EGM-based Inducements

Near-misses

Denition. A ner-iss on n EGM occurs when one p-

pers to coe close to, but does not ctully succeed t, win-

ning prize. For exple, in the cse o three-reel slot -

chine where winning jckpot is represented by three cherry

sybols, ner-iss would occur i the plyer received two

cherries nd str. However, in relity, ner-iss is lwys coplete iss becuse it hs no rewrd.

Association with problem gambling. A potentil proble

with ner-isses is tht they could give the gbler lse

sense tht win is iinent nd, s result, propt urther

ply.,8 Tis possibility ws explored in study conducted

with sple o non-proble gbling university students

( N = 2). In this study, the experientl group ws exposed

to 2% ner-isses, while second, control group, ws ex-

posed to none t ll. Results reveled tht those exposed to the

ner-isses plyed % ore ges thn the control group.

While this study ws conducted with sple o universitystudents s opposed to proble gblers, it does suggest

tht, in generl, the perception o ner-isses y be linked

to gbling persistence in the ce o onetry loss.

A second study, using n unspecied sple, exined

three rtes o ner-iss presenttion--0%, % nd 6%--on

gbling persistence using coputerized roulette ge. A

ner-iss ws opertionlly dened s n outcoe with ew-

er thn three nubers wy ro the nuber tht hd been

chosen or the wger. Results reveled tht hl o the pr-

ticipnts in the % condition de dditionl bets during

the ree-choice period, while none o the prticipnts in theother conditions did., 50 One interprettion o this nding is

tht too ny ner-isses decrese plyers expecttion o

win, but when ner-isses re interittent, the plyer con-

tinues to believe tht subsequent wins re likely. 51 Given tht

the uthors o this study did not describe the proble g-

bling sttus o their sple, however, it is ipossible to know

whether the ipct o ner-isses on gbling persistence

would be ore or less relevnt or proble gblers.

A third study, conducted with sple o undergrdute stu-

dents (N = 180) in the lbortory, exined three rtes o

ner-iss presenttion--15%, 0% nd 5%--on EGM g-bling persistence. Persistence ws dened s the nuber o

trils plyed er the ner-iss condition ws presented over

the course o 50 plys. Results reveled tht the 0% ner-

iss condition led to greter persistence thn did the 15% or

5% conditions. As in the previous study, the uthors o this

study concluded tht when there re too ny ner-isses,

prticipnts no longer view the s indictors tht win is

close t hnd.8 However, siilr to the previous study, we

do not know ro this reserch whether ner-isses di-

erentilly ect proble gblers. It should lso be noted

tht the rtes o ner-iss presenttion used in this study do

not reect rel-lie gbling settings, where ner-iss y

occur only % to 20% o the tie, depending on the prize

size tht the sybols represent. (For exple, ner-iss

representing lrge prizes will occur r less requently thn

ner-isses representing sller prizes). Due to this incon-

sistency, the externl vlidity o this study is liited.

Reel Display

Denition. Soe EGMs re progred to prolong the pre-

senttion o bets nl outcoe nd thereby increse ntici-

ption. For exple, in the cse o three-reel slot chine,

ech reel will stop spinning t dierent ties so tht the rstreel stops spinning rst, the second stops next, nd the third

stops lst.

Association with problem gambling. A study with university

students (N = 28) who were occsionl VL plyers nd not

considered to be proble gblers explored the eects o in-

stntneous versus sequentil sybol presenttion (i.e., ech

sybol stops individully) o bet outcoes. Results indicted

tht sequentil presenttion encourged prolonged ply,

nding theorized to result ro the genertion o sustined

winning expectncy or nticiption.52 No other reserch on

this topic ws ound in our literture review.

Prize Advertisements

Denition. Tere re two ors o prize dvertiseents on

EGMs. Te rst involves obvious prize dvertiseents plced

on the EGM itsel, such s signge indicting the size nd

ethod o win. Te second involves prize sybols plced


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on the EGMs reels, which re viewed by the plyer s the

reels spin during ply.

Association with problem gambling. No reserch ws ound

on the reltionship between EGM prize dvertiseents nd

proble gbling in our review.

Game Availability

Type o Games

Denition. Te type o ge vilble on n EGM cn vry

ro line ges (e.g., slot-like ges), to crd ges (e.g.,

poker), to keno (e.g., lottery).

Association with problem gambling. No evidence ws ound

in the literture indicting tht the vilbility o ny one

type o ge on n EGM is ore or less probletic thn

nother.

Number o Games

Denition.Soe EGMs re equipped with ultiple ges,llowing the plyer ore options nd potentilly incresingtheir durtion o ply on given chine.

Association with problem gambling. It is possible tht switch-

ing between ges on n EGM could increse the ount o

tie spent on tht chine. A chine tht hs nuber o

dierent ges y lso ppel to ore people, thereby po-

tentilly incresing chine trc. 5 No reserch ws ound

in our literture review, however, bering on the reltionshipbetween EGM ge nuber nd proble gbling.

Bonus Features

Denition. Bonus etures on EGMs, such s ree ges,

re dded to ke plying on the chines ore exciting,

engging, nd to ke plyers think tht they re getting

soething or nothing.0 In ters o the exciteent ctor

o bonus rounds, study ws conducted looking t requent-,

inrequent- nd non- gblers (N = 6) exciteent levels (s

esured by utonoic rousl) during EGM ply. Findings

showed tht in ddition to wins, bonus rounds did indeed

increse exciteent (i.e., they elicited n increse in rousl)

or ll three groups.5

Association with problem gambling. Tere is soe evidence

to suggest tht bonus etures, speciclly ree ges, re po-

tent reinorcers or regulr EGM plyers.55 In one study, the

strtegy o gblers (N = 220) ws observed during EGM

ply. Results showed tht plyers oen opted or strtegy o

plying xiu nuber o lines with low bets becuse

this incresed their chnce o winning bonus rounds; how-

ever, this lso resulted in ore oney being spent on EGM

ply. Unortuntely, the dt presented could not spek to

whether the eect o bonus rounds hd dierentil eect

on proble gblers.55

Programmed Gaming Features

Prize Levels and Game Outcomes

Denition. Te voltility o ge cn be deterined by

the level or gnitude o prizes (e.g., sll, ediu, lrge),

nd the nuber o winning cobintions required to win

prizes t ech level (e.g., one versus ultiple). For exple,

in slot chine setting, i only one cobintion o sybols

cn bring bout win t ech prize level, there would conse-quently be only three ethods o winning; however, in situ-

tion tht cn increse the voltility o the ge, there ight

be ve dierent cobintions tht bring bout sll prize,

two dierent cobintions tht bring bout ediu prize,

nd only one cobintion tht bring bout lrge prize, re-

sulting in eight dierent ethods o winning. Te incresed

vribility o the nuber nd level o prizes ipcts on the

ount o risk nd unpredictbility inherent in ge ply.

Association with problem gambling. As the nuber o pos-

sible winning cobintions increses or ech prize level, the

probbility o winning increses s well, which in turn yect gbling behviour. However, little reserch could be

ound in our literture review on the reltionship between

prize levels nd proble gbling. One study ws identi-

ed tht looked t single- versus ultiple- prize ges using

siulted EGMs ong sple o university students (N

= 80). In the single-prize ge condition, prticipnts could

ke reltively se bet or ore risky one by gbling to

win either 1) ,000 tokens with probbility o .001, or 2) zero

tokens. In the ultiple-prize ge condition, prticipnts

could ke se bet or gble to win 1) ,000 tokens with

probbility o .0001, 2) 5 tokens with probbility 0.15, or )

zero tokens. Results indicted tht the verge gbling rtesin the ultiple-prize ge were signicntly higher thn the

verge gbling rtes in the single-prize ge (8% versus

2%, respectively). However, this dierence in gbling rtes

only eerged er the rst 80 rounds o ply. Te uthors

concluded tht rewrd structure coprised o requent e-

diu prizes y prolong tie spent gbling.56


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Payout Rate

Denition. Pyout rte reers to the verge rte o return

on given EGM over tie.vi For exple, i the pyout rte

is 85%, gblers would receive bck 85% o the ount o

oney inserted into n EGM. Tis is long-run expected re-turn, however, nd is unlikely to be relevnt or given g-

bling session. Tt is, the chine does not sel-correct in

order to intin the required return in given ge. Since

higher pyout rte is ssocited with higher likelihood o

winning, it is ssocited with n increse in the ges excite-

ent vlue.55 Gbling venues norlly set their own py-

out rte, usully bsed on the jurisdictions rules.5

Association with problem gambling. A study exploring the

ssocition between pyout rte nd proble gbling ws

conducted with college students (N = 6) who did not dis-

ply syptos o proble gbling. Using lbortory slotchine siultor, study prticipnts were exposed to three

percentge pybck vlues rnging ro reltively poor, to

reltively good, rte o return (i.e., ro 5%, to 8%, to

5%). Results reveled tht the gblers behviour did not

vry s unction o the pybck percentge.58 Although this

nding hs not been conred by other reserch, it is possi-

ble tht the prticipnts were not sensitive to the experien-

tl conditions due to the liited ount o tie they were

llowed to ply the chines (i.e., xiu 15 inutes).

Win Frequency

Denition. Win requency reers to how oen wins occur

within given EGM plying session.

Association with problem gambling. ypiclly, sll wins

(e.g., $20) occur ore requently thn do lrge wins (e.g., >

$100).5 It y be the cse tht sll EGM wins serve to keep

the plyer engged in the ge. wo studies in our review

were ound tht looked t the ipct o sll wins on g-

bling behviour. Te rst, lbortory study, ssessed high

requency gblers (N =10) behviour with respect to win

gnitude on EGMs. Although this study did not look t the

requency o sll wins, it did exine the eects o sll

versus lrge win on behviour. Results deonstrted tht

plyers tended to increse their rte o ply when sll wins

occurred, while lrger wins cused brek in their rte o

ply.60 Te second study, conducted with regulr (N = 18) nd

vi Mchines cn lso be networked so tht the pyout rte is clcultedcross nuber o chines.

occsionl (N = 21) gblers, replicted these ndings in

rel gbling venue: Gblers disrupted their ply when re-

ceiving lrger wins, wheres gbling behviour ws in-

tined with sller wins.61

EGM-based Responsible Gambling Features (RGFs)

Denition. With regrd to EGMs, responsible gbling e-

tures (RGFs) re odictions de to chines to help

plyers keep trck o their tie nd/or oney expenditures.

Reserch suggests tht such RGFs y be useul becuse

proble gblers, s copred to non-proble gblers,

re less likely to budget their tie nd oney when g-

bling. Tey re lso less likely to dhere to their budgets when

they do set the.6 Responsible gbling etures on EGMs

y include chine RGFs (e.g., on-screen clocks, displys

o betting ctivity in csh ounts insted o credits), tie

nd oney liits (e.g., crd-bsed technologies), breks inply, nd responsible gbling essges. Ech o these e-

tures is discussed below. (Note, however, tht even though

tie nd oney expenditures re seprte vribles, becuse

ll RGF evlutions to dte hve used both s outcoe e-

sures, they re reported on together in the discussion tht

ollows).

Machine RGFs

Association with responsible gambling. In 2001, Nov Scoti

bece the rst province in Cnd to incorporte our re-

sponsible gbling odictions into their VLs. Teseincluded: 1) pernent on-screen clocks denoting tie o

dy, 2) displys o betting ctivity in csh ounts insted

o credits, ) pop-up reinders o the totl tie spent ply-

ing (occurring t 60-, 0-, nd 120- inute intervls), nd )

ve-inute csh-out wrnings (t 15 inutes, with n-

dtory csh-out t 150 inutes). A concoitnt nlysis ws

conducted with non-proble nd proble VL plyers ex-

ploring the eccy o these responsible gbling odic-

tions. Te evlution included pre- nd post- odiction

ssessent o plyers wreness o the new etures, chnges

in their behviour, perceptions nd ttitudes, nd reco-

endtions or urther iproveents to the odictions.

Findings reveled tht, overll, wreness o the odied

VLs rnged ro 2% t the beginning o the study, to %

by the third phse o the study. Te eture ost preerred

by ll plyers ws the onscreen clock (60%). Te etures

lest preerred by ll plyers were the pop-up reinders nd


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ndtory csh-outs. ken together, the odictions were

ssocited with reduced length o ply. However, it should

be noted tht the verge expenditure on ech chine

did not chnge, ening tht due to the shortened period

o tie plying, the rte o expenditure ctully incresed.

Te behviourl chnges ssocited with the odictions

included decline in the requency o losing trck o tie

nd oney while plying, nd decline in the requency o

spending ore tie plying thn intended. Tere were lso

ssocited iproveents reported in the control o expendi-

ture. Displying csh totls insted o credits ws the odi-

ction rted s ost eective in ters o helping plyers

keep trck o oney, lthough no dierences were observed

between non-proble nd proble gblers in this regrd.

Pop-up reinders were seen to be ineective, since proble

gblers tended to csh out t lest once during their VL

ply (beore they could be exposed to the pop up reinders),thereby reducing this odictions utility.1

In 200/0, Nov Scoti ssessed, using in-person rket

tests with regulr VL plyers, the ipct o three new VL

odictions: 1) tie-liit option, 2) 0-inute pop-

up essge indicting the totl tie spent plying, nd )

ndtory response requireent to continue ply. Te evl-

ution included pre- nd post- odiction ssessent o

plyers wreness o the new etures, chnges in their be-

hviour, perceptions nd ttitudes, nd recoendtions

or urther iproveents to the odictions. Findings

indicted tht or optionl tie liits, 2% o plyers werewre o the eture, but 8% o those who were exposed to

the eture during ply did not eel it would help the n-

ge their budget. In ters o the 0-inute pop-up essge,

5% o plyers were wre o the eture, but 8% o those

exposed to it during ply thought it would hve no ipct

on their behviour. Finlly, in regrd to the on-screen clock,

61% o plyers were wre o the eture, but 1% o those

exposed to it during ply elt tht it would hve no ipct on

their behviour.6

A study ws lso conducted in Albert tht evluted the

eectiveness o new responsible gbling etures instlledon VLs. A qusi-experientl design ws used to exine

the wreness, knowledge, ttitudes, nd behviour o ply-

ers exposed to VLs with responsible gbling etures. Te

etures included: 1) tie clocks, 2) pop-up tie reind-

ers, ) oney counters (displys tht showed the ount

o oney spent during ply), nd ) scrolling 1-800 bnner

ds. Findings reveled tht while the etures were noticed

by plyers, the jority o plyers indicted tht they never

used the etures to liit the ount o tie or oney spent

on gbling. Interestingly, though, jority o plyers be-

lieved tht the clock nd oney counters were t lest soe-

wht eective in helping the keep trck o how uch tie

nd oney they spent. Additionlly, jority o plyers

believed tht the oney counter ws t lest soewht eec-

tive in helping the decide whether to csh out or stop ply-

ing. However, there ws no dierence ound in the ount o

oney spent by plyers beore nd er instlltion o VLs

with responsible gbling etures. Finlly, the odic-

tions did not hve dierentil eect on proble gblers

s copred to non-proble gblers. Te uthors o the

study concluded tht, overll, it could not be rgued tht the

responsible gbling etures led to reduction in requency

or durtion o VL ply.6

Time and Money Limits (Card-based Technologies)

Denition. In ddition to odiying EGMs with RGFs, it hs

been suggested tht one wy to reduce proble gbling is

to enble the gbler to ke resoned decisions bout their

oney nd tie expenditure liits prior to gbling nd

wy ro the ging oor.5 Tis is generlly reerred to

in the literture s pre-coitent, nd is pririly op-

ertionlized in the or o srt or pre-coitent

crds.65 Te crds re linted product siilr to credit

crds tht llow ptrons to ipose spending nd other re-strictions on their ply, such s setting the durtion o ply

nd/or budget or given tie period.8, 66

Association with responsible gambling. Srt crds re seen s

n RGF becuse once pre-ply liits hve been progred

onto the crd, the plyer cnnot chnge their ind during the

set period.65 Moreover, becuse ptrons ust register with the

venue to receive these crds, there is n ssocited reduction

in nonyity which y serve to increse ccountbility.66

o dte, however, we could only nd two studies tht directly

evluted the RGF eectiveness o srt crds.

Te rst study, still in progress in Nov Scoti, evlutedthe usbility nd useulness o srt crds in encourging

responsible ply ong sple o non-proble nd prob-

le VL gblers. Findings reveled tht 50% o study pr-

ticipnts thought tht the crds would be useul i they were

de ndtory. Moreover, irrespective o gbling sttus,

8% o prticipnts supported or strongly supported hving


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the crds de ndtory or nyone wnting to ply VLs

in Nov Scoti.6

A second, questionnire-bsed study ong ptrons o two

Austrlin clubs (N = 1), ssessed consuer responses to

nuber o RGFs including the use o srt crds66 Teuthor o the study reported tht the jority o gblers

did not believe tht the crds would help the nge

their spending, lthough they did believe tht plyer ctiv-

ity stteent (generted ro the srt crd) ws useul

eture. Notwithstnding this, there ws evidence to suggest

tht proble gblers were not generlly inclined to use this

ltter eture, thus the uthor recoended tht other p-

proches be explored. Te uthor lso concluded tht ore

requent plyers (i.e., ore t-risk gblers) y be ttrct-

ed to the crds on the bsis o their useulness nd ese with

which they cn be used cross chines. Tis in turn ight

ctully encourge spending nd cilitte the developent

o proble gbling in t-risk plyers. However, this con-

cern is potentilly oset by the lck o nonyity tht cco-

pnies the crds use in Austrlin gbling venues (s ny

gblers indicted tht they preerred to rein nonyous

while gbling). 66 In nother exintion o these dt, the

uthor concluded tht it is currently uncler whether crd-

bsed technologies would work s n eective RGF.68

Breaks in Play

Denition. Breks in ply reer to the teporry suspension

or stoppge o ply on n EGM er certin period o tie.It is ied t liiting lengthy, continuous plying sessions.

Association with responsible gambling. Reserch suggests

tht proble gblers nd it especilly dicult to stop ply-

ing EGMs once gbling session hs begun.1 Tis lck

o control is conred with gblers who re considered

to be high requency plyers (i.e., they ply once per week

or ore).65 Given these ndings, soe hve suggested tht

EGMs be outtted with technology tht would enorce session

breks; however, others hve rgued tht this y not be n

eective RGF.5 Only one reserch study bering on this issue

ws ound in our review nd it supports the ltter rguent.Te study ws conducted in Victori, Austrli nd involved

survey o 1) EGM plyers, 2) venue opertors, ngers

nd st, nd ) industry nd counity stkeholders. Te

purpose o the study ws to ssess the eectiveness o vri-

ous hr iniiztion strtegies, including breks in ply.

Results reveled tht lost ll EGM plyers initite breks

in ply theselves (e.g., coee breks, soke breks, etc.),

but they still think tht EGM technology inititing urther

breks in ply would be n eective RGF. However, venue

ngers disgreed bout the eectiveness o such strtegies,

rguing tht there is no wy o deterining whether the per-

son plying given EGM t the tie o brek is the se

person who hs been plying the EGM or prolonged periods

prior to the brek. Moreover, plyers cn siply switch to

nother EGM during the brek, rendering this RGF ore o

n inconvenience thn deterrent.5

Responsible Gambling Messages

Denition. Mny gblers hold lse belies bout gbling

nd the extent to which they cn control or predict gbling

outcoes.6, 0 Tey lso y lose trck o how uch tie

nd oney they re spending while gbling. As result,

providing inortion to gblers during ply tht trgetstheir lse belies nd kes the ore wre o their tie

nd oney expenditures hs been recoended s RGFs.

Association with responsible gambling. wo studies were

ound tht evluted the eects o responsible gbling es-

sges during ply on gbling behviour. Te rst, lbo-

rtory study, ssessed the eectiveness o wrning essges

intended to id in controlling gbling. University students

(N = 120) who hd previous experience with gbling were

recruited. All prticipnts plyed coputerized roulette

ge with iginry oney nd received eduction discuss-

ing irrtionl belies expressed by gblers. Tose in the ex-perientl condition viewed brie essges tht ddressed

irrtionl gbling belies while plying the ge; those in

the control condition received the eductionl coponent

without ny essges. Results reveled tht prticipnts in

the experientl (wrning-essge) condition reported sig-

nicntly ewer irrtionl belies nd spent signicntly less

oney thn did those in the control condition.1

A second study, conducted in Sydney, Austrli, explored the

eectiveness o 10 hr iniiztion essges with regulr

nd proble gblers using questionnires nd ocus groups.

Te in objective o the study ws to identiy essges thtwould hve the gretest potentil to trigger gblers to con-

sider chnging their gbling behviour nd/or cll prob-

le gbling helpline. Results reveled tht or both regulr

nd proble gblers, three essges were thought to be

ore eective thn the other seven. Tese included: ) Hve

you spent ore oney on gbling thn you intended?


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b) Are you gbling longer thn plnned? nd c) Hve

you ever elt bd or guilty bout your gbling? Te g-

blers reported tht these essges y hve the potentil

to encourge responsible gbling behviour nd tht they

y lso cuse plyers to re-evlute their gbling ctiv-

ity. However, the second hl o ll 10 essges included the

tg line, I gbling is concern or you cll (the helpline),

which ws ound to be both exclusionry nd extree (since

it pertined only to proble gblers). It thereore did not

resonte well with prticipnts. Te uthors o the study con-

cluded tht one needs to dierentite between regulr nd

proble gblers when developing hr iniiztion

essges nd pproches in order or the to be eective or

their intended udience.2

VENUE FEATURESIn ddition to the etures directly ssocited with EGMs,

soe hve hypothesized tht the reltionship between EGMs

nd proble gbling y be due in prt to the etures o

the venues tht house the c

Documents

Egm and Problem Gambling Dec 2006