Senet Group release research report on gambling behaviour

The UK gambling sector’s responsible gambling association Senet Group has published a qualitative independent research report examining gambling behaviours in the context of personal control.

The research, conducted by independent agency Revealing Reality, sets out the elements required for a behaviour change approach to tackling problem gambling, where an understanding of why and how people behave as they do can help to identify opportunities to influence and change behaviour for the better.

The research reveals that regardless of their risk profile, all gamblers want to stay in control and that this control is critical to their enjoyment of gambling.

“As a result, people set boundaries to their gambling which they look to maintain through a variety of formal and informal management strategies.”

The report surmises that the challenge for gambling operators is to help and support gamblers in setting and adhering to those boundaries, by both reinforcing their motivation to stay in control but also by providing the tools to make it easier.

Commenting on the research, Gillian Wilmot, Chairman of the Senet Group, said:

“This research report provides some practical insights into how people manage their gambling on a day to day basis, and how the gambling industry might support their enjoyment of gambling by helping them stay in control.”

“The gambling industry can do a great deal more to develop and promote tools and techniques which assist gamblers in understanding the positive benefits of control, but more importantly how they can keep track of their gambling, whether that’s through the amount they are spending or the time they devote to playing.”

The research findings will be used to inform the next generation of Senet’s player messaging campaign, ‘When the Fun Stops, Stop’ which, according to the research, has reached around 82 percent of regular gamblers since its launch.

Damon De Ionno, Managing Director of Revealing Reality, added:

“This research provides a clear summary and examples of many ways that operators can actively help their customers stay in control of their gambling – and make sure they don’t undermine their attempts to do so.”

The ‘In Control’ research report employed a combination of ethnographic interviews and shadowed observation of 25 participants, selected by PGSI scores to be representative of the low, medium and high-risk gambling categories.

The sample was recruited to reflect a variety of demographic backgrounds, including a spread of age, gender, ethnicity and employment status.

Read the full report findings here.