Pop-up messages on electronic gaming machines in New Zealand: experiences and views of gamblers and venue staff

Abstract

In New Zealand, a pop-up message feature that interrupts gambling is mandatory on all electronic gaming machines (EGMs) in all venues. The present research documented the views and experiences of pop-up messages from a range of gamblers and gambling venue staff. A series of focus groups was held with 40 gamblers (ranging from infrequent gamblers to current/former problem gamblers), and 19 staff from casino and non-casino venues. Most participants thought that pop-up messages were ineffective as a harm-minimization measure. Venue staff participants viewed pop-up messages much more negatively than gamblers, who were generally accepting of their existence and sometimes described them as useful. Venue staff participants were also very negative about the additional hassles and confusion they believed to be caused by pop-up messages, and a range of problems they perceived with their accuracy. Nonetheless, there was a consistent although less prevalent view that pop-up messages were useful in reducing gambling harm and potentially bringing harmful gamblers to the attention of others. Participants raised some possibilities for enhancing their effectiveness; these were generally consistent with the evidence base developed since the introduction of pop-up messages in the New Zealand gambling environment.

Keywords:

• Electronic gaming machines
• problem gambling
• pop-up messages
• harm-minimization
• New Zealand

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the participants for generously giving their time to share their experiences, and the New Zealand Ministry of Health for funding this project.

Conflicts of interest

Funding sources: This research was funded by the New Zealand Ministry of Health under contract numbers 334040/00 and 01.

Competing interests: The funder had no influence on the research design/conduct and no potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Constraints on publishing

There are no constraints on publishing the results.

Additional information

Funding

This research was funded by the New Zealand Ministry of Health under contract numbers 334040/00 and 01. The funder had no influence on the research design/conduct and there are no constraints on publishing the results.