Research funding in gambling studies: some further observations

Abstract

This brief commentary paper provides some further observations on research funding following the editorials by both Cassidy and Blaszczynski and Gainsbury. More specifically it examines (i) whether there is any fundamental difference between research funded by the gambling industry and consultancy funded by the gambling industry, (ii) the benefits of researchers working collaboratively with the gambling industry, (iii) where to draw the line between doing something that could be perceived by others (both inside and outside the gambling field) as the gambling industry has an influence on what we do, (iv) the publishing of multi-author research papers where some of the authors may have worked directly with a gaming company while others did not, and (v) the tension between an ‘ideal world’ philosophy and ‘real world’ pragmatism when it comes to the funding of gambling research.

Keywords::

• research funding
• funding of gambling research
• conflict of interest
• gambling consultancy
• gambling industry

Conflicts of interest

Funding sources: The authors did not receive specific funding support for this work. However, the first author has received funding for a number of research projects in the area of gambling education for young people, social responsibility in gambling and gambling treatment from the Responsibility in Gambling Trust, a charitable body which funds its research programme based on donations from the gambling industry.

Competing interests: Both authors undertake consultancy for various gaming companies in the area of social responsibility in gambling.

Constraints on publishing

There were no constraints on publishing.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Mark D. Griffiths

Mark Griffiths is a chartered psychologist and director of the International Gaming Research Unit. He has published over 500 refereed journal papers, 4 books and over 120 book chapters. He has won 14 national and international awards for his work including the John Rosecrance Prize (1994), Joseph Lister Prize (2004) and the US National Council on Problem Gambling Lifetime Research Award (2013).

Michael Auer

Michael Auer holds a masters degree in psychology and statistics. He is director at neccton ltd and completing his PhD at Nottingham Trent University with Dr Mark Griffiths. He is a regular speaker at gambling conferences and has published numerous peer-reviewed papers on player tracking and responsible gaming.