Online social gambling not harmless: study

They may seem harmless but popular free-to-play online gambling games could trigger a desire to gamble for real money, a study by Southern Cross University’s Centre for Gambling Education and Research has found.

An Exploratory Study of Interrelationships Between Social Casino Gaming, Gambling and Problem Gambling, published in The International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction, found online social casino games can act as a trigger for problem gamblers, while for others the games can act as a useful distraction.

Southern Cross University researcher Sally Gainsbury said the research showed there was an overlap between social casino gamers and gamblers, with about 13 per cent of gamblers also playing social casino games.

These gamblers were more likely to be younger and gamble online, and were also more likely to have gambling problems.

“The convergence of social media, gaming and gambling is very new and we do not understand what impact this is having on people and their health, as well as their wallets,” Dr Gainsbury said.

“Not only are people lying in bed at night playing imaginary slot machines, a fair few of them are paying for more ‘coins’ to play.

“Social casino games are among the most profitable social games genre and are expected to generate US$4.4 billion by 2015.”

For the study 10 social casino game players were recruited for in-depth interviews, six male and four female.

Only one participant, a problem gambler, said her experience with social casino games led her to gambling, describing how ongoing engagement with the games led her to seek out real gambling opportunities.

Other participants who were already experiencing gambling problems reported social casino games and online ads were a constant reminder of gambling.

Participants reported being flooded with “relentless” ads and messages every time they used Facebook, with several participants offered free credits to start playing.

“These constant cues can trigger gambling and make it difficult for people trying to cut back to control their gambling urges,” Ms Gainsbury said.

“The online ads and social messages do appear to be working. Participants reported they were most likely to start playing social casino games in response to invitations from their friends and family via social media.

“These social connections were important in motivating players, which is similar to a social motivation often cited by gamblers to start gambling.

“Some reported using the games to learn about gambling as a ‘training ground’ before transitioning to gambling.”

For some participants, however, the social casino games were a way to enjoy gambling without having to stake any money and were a low-risk activity.

Some participants reported they played the games to ‘control my urge to gamble real money’.

Several participants reported playing the games as a substitute for gambling, either when they were short of funds, or to cut down their gambling.

A larger online study is now under way, which aims to better understand how social media, social casino games and gambling intersect.


The research in this article was undertaken by the Centre for Gambling Education and Research and commissioned by Gambling Research Australia, a partnership between the Commonwealth, state and territory governments.
Photo: Dr Sally Gainsbury