Joanne Lloyd is Reader in Cyberpsychology at the University of Wolverhampton. She has researched online gambling, loot boxes and problematic video game usage among other areas. In our conversation, she explains the motivations underpinning online gambling, the potential of online peer support networks and talks about her recent work on the pervasive issue of stigma around gambling harms.
When Joanne first began researching online gambling in 2007, she recognised the potential for transformative research using customer data. While there have been some promising developments, Joanne believes that this remains an underdeveloped area. ‘Gambling companies collect vast amounts of data, but researchers often don’t have access to it’, she says. This data could provide critical insights into gambling behaviours and inform harm-reduction strategies. For example, identifying patterns of at-risk behaviour could lead to targeted interventions. Yet, without sufficient access to this information, much of its potential remains untapped.
Despite new technologies and companies, online gambling products exploit the same motivations and emotions as traditional gambling—whether it is a yearning for escapism or the dream of a big win. According to Joanne, online companies are also increasingly replicating those motivations most closely associated with in-person gambling. ‘Webcams and live chat functions aim to replicate the social element of a traditional bingo hall’, she notes, ‘while loot box opening parties and social media communities add a social element to what might be traditionally considered a solitary pursuit’.
Much of Joanne’s time in recent months has been devoted to the topic of stigma and gambling, working in collaboration with colleagues from her university and NatCen among others. The findings point to a widespread and pervasive stigma around gambling addiction and problem gambling, despite gambling itself being quite readily socially accepted. This stigmatisation of harms is amplified by narratives that emphasise personal responsibility. Phrases such as ‘gamble responsibly’ or statements such as ‘the fun that can be had from a flutter on the horses’ both trivialise gambling harms and stigmatise those who suffer from harms as being ‘the odd ones out’. According to Joanne’s research, this kind of discourse simultaneously shifts responsibility for gambling harms to the individual, while allowing gambling companies to abrogate their responsibility for the harms they cause. This focus on individual responsibility is particularly hard felt among people with low incomes, for whom social stigma of gambling harms is especially pronounced.
The prevalence and ubiquity of such stigma matters because it has consistently been found to be a barrier to help seeking among people suffering gambling harms. People who suffer from a moderate level of harm are often dissuaded from seeking treatment because they do not want to be stigmatised in this way. Those who are in recovery but relapse are subject to very high levels of stigma for their perceived lack of willpower. Women with children may be reluctant to admitting to a gambling problem because of how society views them as caregivers and mothers. Many people in these situations could well benefit from some form of intervention, but in many cases the pervasive stigma surrounding gambling harms prevents them from seeking that help.
While there is no doubting the harms caused by online gambling, Joanne is interested in how the internet may be used to provide support to those suffering from or at risk of gambling harms. She is in the early stages of a project to examine the role that online peer support can play in supporting those suffering from gambling harms. ‘Anecdotally, we’ve heard some good things, but in truth there isn’t a lot of research on online peer support for gambling harms out there’, says Joanne. She is interested in how different people use such networks – from lurkers to regular posters – and how and when online peer support can best be used. ‘We need to understand what’s needed in terms of moderation and we need to understand that there are circumstances where it may not be ideal’, says Joanne. Still, the promise of online peer support and the potential opportunities it offers are exciting.
Finally, we come to the topic of the government’s recent announcement on the statutory levy and online slot stake limits. I ask Joanne what she thinks the priorities should be in terms of online gambling. ‘There are so many priorities, but I would like to see action on loot boxes given their similarity to online gambling’, says Joanne. The gamblification of gaming is a concern and she doesn’t want online gaming become online gambling by another name. She’s also keen to see more action on educating young people on gambling harms that don’t rely on individual responsibility and ‘gamble responsibly’ narratives. ‘We need to move away from education approaches that make young people feel guilty for experiencing gambling harms and instead focus on how gambling products and companies cause those harms in the first place.’
Academic Forum for the Study of Gambling 