Results from a self-assessment test related to problem gambling, offered on the Gambless app, revealed stark differences from one country to the next. The outcome, based on responses from 3,500 participants, shows that gamblers that speak English are at higher risk of developing harmful gambling behaviour.
Gambless is a gambling harm prevention app that has a global market reach. According to the study published in their first annual report, English-speaking players from the UK, USA, and Australia have the most concerning risk profiles. Punters’ answers indicate that this may have to do with different advertising regulations in the respective jurisdictions.
The test methodology incorporated closed-ended questions to limit the impact of selective forgetting, social desirability, and false memories. Gambless is one of the most trusted harm prevention apps in the world and its funding company, Mindspa, received the prestigious ORCHA-certification a couple of months ago.
Risk Scores and Contributors
English, Italian, and Russian are the languages for the app and punters who speak English showed a 57% higher Severity Score than Italians. Russian-speaking players scored 27% higher than Italians, who displayed the lowest risk levels in the test group.
Punters in the USA showed that land-based casinos pose the greatest temptation for them and referenced these with a much higher frequency than any of the other regions. With the rise of online gambling and the post-pandemic recovery, Gambless predicts this ratio will turn soon, as most states are now regulating sports betting and remote gambling. US problem-gamblers make up 23% of the users on the app.
Italy’s low percentages could be because of the country’s advertising ban for gambling ads. They put this in place during 2019, and the country’s regulator also cites aggressive CRM marketing material from UK-based platforms. At-risk Italian gamblers make up 15% of the client base for Gambless and highlighted two providers, namely PokerStars and Bet365, both British companies. Others pointed out by users were Sisal, Eurobet, and Goldbet.
Twenty-five per cent of the app’s client base lives in the UK and Ireland, and these gamblers pointed out five operators. Ladbrokes, which is an Entain subsidiary, Coral, bet365, William Hill, Skybet, and Betfair, all made the list. Ladbrokes also landed on the Australian list, with TAB, Sportsbet, Aristocrat, and Neds coming in ahead of them. Australia accounts for 10% of the demographic in the app user group.
The Gambless report stated:
“Not surprisingly, the above ranks are heavily influenced by the market size of the operators. However, they show that even those that – at least publicly – put responsible gambling at the top of their agenda are not doing enough to identify problem gamblers and signpost them towards supportive resources.”
Canada and Russia make up 4% and 3% of the client base and the rest of the world accounts for 20% of the database. The companies that received the most mention are among others, Flutter Entertainment, bet365 Group, Lottomatica, and Kindred Group.
Gambless Stands in the Gap
In 2020, the Mindspa Health start-up launched, and part of their mental wellbeing approach includes help with addiction. This paved the way for the Gambless app, where gamblers have access to resources that help them identify and treat gambling addiction. The founders of Mindspa and Gambless approached these ventures from the idea that everyone deserves access to mental health treatment. Therefore, the support they offer is from trained psychologists and health workers.
The quality of their work received international recognition when the world’s leading independent health evaluation and distribution organisation, ORCHA, certified them as a trusted health app. Only 20% of the health apps ORCHA reviews make the cut and they evaluate the mobile apps against more than 350 indicators like regulations, Clinical Assurance, Usability, and Data Privacy.
The self-assessment Gambless developed includes two experimental tests to further improve data on gambling addiction. A Risk Factors test focuses on behaviours like impulse control and risk-taking, whilst the Gambling IQ test evaluates the respondent’s knowledge of the game and signs of cognitive bias. The findings showed that 76% of the problem gamblers had no other hobbies, 85% had difficulty dealing with emotions, and 70% admitted that they don’t read terms and conditions.
How Can This Data Help?
With apps like Gambless and Mindspa, vulnerable citizens have access to the help they need and the data that these types of tests gather is invaluable to those who sincerely seek to eradicate gambling addiction.
Operators may publicly announce their dedication to identify and help problem gamblers, but this study shows how some of the biggest names still pose too much of a threat to at-risk players. The evaluation and application of this information pave the way to a more conscious approach.
