WHAT CHARACTERISTICS OF POKIES ARE ASSOCIATED WITH HIGHER RISK GAMBLING?
As part of the National Gambling Trends Study 2023 the Australian Gambling Research Centre has published a new research summary, covering time limits, mandatory 15-minute breaks, credit limits and closing times.
The report outlines:
Key messages Intervention based on poker machine gambling duration
- Several casinos have recently introduced time limits including mandatory 15-minute breaks after 3 hours of pokies gambling and limiting sessions to 12 hours within a 24-hour period.
- For NGTS respondents, who were all regular pokies gamblers, very extended pokies sessions were more common among individuals at higher risk of gambling harm than among those at lower risk.
- For those at high risk of gambling harm, the median duration of their most recent pokies session was 2 hours, and 1 hour for those at moderate risk. It was 45 minutes for those at low or no risk of gambling harm.
- Recent evidence, including the data in this report, suggests that an earlier intervention than 3 hours may strike a more appropriate balance between avoiding interruptions during gambling for people at lower risk of gambling harm and intervening for those at higher risk.
- Future research should explore the most effective moment to intervene to reduce gambling harm as well as the type of intervention, whether through mandatory breaks or other actions such as limiting total cumulative gambling time within a week or 24-hour period.
Load up limits on poker machines
- NGTS respondents who gambled regularly on pokies but were at lower risk of gambling harm tended to keep to smaller amounts of $50 or less when setting their load up limit. Load up amounts greater than $50 were more common among people at moderate and high risk of gambling harm.
- Lower load up limits of $20 or $50 would target spending behaviour relatively common among individuals at high risk of gambling harm in this study, while any impact on those at low or no risk would likely be minimal.
Mandatory closing times for venues with poker machines
- Gambling after midnight and during the early hours of the morning was more common among NGTS respondents who were regular pokies gamblers and at a higher risk of gambling harm, relative to those who gambled regularly on pokies but were not at risk.
- Introducing or extending mandatory venue closures to between midnight and 10 am (rather than 4 am to 10 am) would target gambling behaviour that is more common among individuals in this study at higher risk of gambling harm.
From The Drop Editor:
These studies are informing government bodies and lobby groups using academic peer-reviewed information and will lead discussions around regulatory changes in the industry. While not always accepted by government, it is important to understand where discussions are heading.
You can download a copy of the report summary here.
