Gambling Research Group

The Gambling Research Group is a collective of researchers based at Glasgow who share a common interest in the social impacts of gambling, particularly its effects on vulnerable groups, and on the cultural and political context of the expansion of commercial gaming.

Our members are engaged in a range of interdisciplinary, policy-relevant, and theoretically informed projects funded by a range of organisations including the Economic and Social Research Council, National Institute for Health Research, Wellcome Trust, British Academy, and the Medical Research Council. 

Members

Current Projects

  • Hunt K, Wardle H, Critchlow N, Reith G, Purves R, Stead M, Dobbie F, Gray C, Bunn C, Donnachie C. Transitions to more harmful forms of gambling during Covid-19 pandemic: behaviours and targeted marketing in young people and bettors on sport. ESRC: £580,485. 1/6/20 – 30/11/21.

  • McGee D, Bunn C, Reith G, Udedi M, Yendork J, Franklin G. Leisure or Livelihoods? A Participatory Study of Youth Perspectives on Gambling and its Social, Economic and Health Impacts in Ghana and Malawi. British Academy: £299,189. 20/03/2020 – 20/9/22.

  • Reith G, Bunn C, Wardle H, Rooksby J, Deidda M, Philpott M, Graham F, Platt N, Greenlaw N, Gray C, Hunt K, Rogers R, Wyke S. Football Fans and Betting (FFAB): a feasibility study and randomised pilot trial of a group-based intervention to reduce gambling involvement among male football fans. National Institute for Health Research: £629,765.79. 01/01/20 - 31/12/21.

  • Dobbie F, Reith G, Purves P. PRoGRAM-A (PReventing Gambling RelAted Harm in Adolescents). MRC PHIND: £149,998. 2019-2020.

  • Wardle H. Humanities and Social Sciences Fellowship: Youth gambling behaviour and technological change. Wellcome Trust: £215,000. 

Selected publications

 

Wardle, H. et al. (2021) The impact of the initial Covid-19 lockdown upon regular sports bettors in Britain: findings from a cross-sectional online study.Addictive Behaviors, 118, 106876. (doi: 10.1016/j.addbeh.2021.106876)(PMID:33647707)

Wardle, H. and Zendle, D. (2021) Loot boxes, gambling and problem gambling among young people: results from a cross-sectional online survey.Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 24(4), pp. 267-274. (doi: 10.1089/cyber.2020.0299) (PMID:33103911)

Wardle, H. and McManus, S. (2021) Suicidality and gambling among young adults in Great Britain: results from a cross-sectional online survey. Lancet Public Health, 6(1), e39-e49. (doi: 10.1016/S2468-2667(20)30232-2)

Wardle, H. (2020) Games without Frontiers? Socio-historical perspectives on the gaming/gambling intersection. Palgrave MacMillan. (In Press)

Bunn C, Mtema O, Songo J, Udedi M. (2020) The growth of sports betting in Malawi: corporate strategies, public space and public health. Public Health, DOI: 10.1016/j.puhe.2020.03.022

Critchlow N, Moodie C, Stead M, Morgan A, Newall P, Dobbie F (2020). ‘Visibility of age restriction warnings, harm reduction messages, and terms and conditions: A content analysis of paid-for gambling advertising in the United Kingdom’ Public Health.  Volume 184, July 2020, Pages 79-88

Purves RI, Critchlow N, Morgan A, Stead M, Dobbie F (2020). Examining the frequency and nature of gambling marketing in televised broadcasts of professional sporting events in the United Kingdom. Public Health. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.puhe.2020.02.012

Wardle, H. et al. (2020) Open letter from UK based academic scientists to the secretaries of state for digital, culture, media and sport and for health and social care regarding the need for independent funding for the prevention and treatment of gambling harms. British Medical Journal, 370, m2613. (doi: 10.1136/bmj.m2613) (PMID:32611591)

Wardle, H. , John, A., Dymond, S. and McManus, S. (2020) Problem gambling and suicidality in England: secondary analysis of a representative cross-sectional survey. Public Health, 184, pp. 11-16. (doi: 10.1016/j.puhe.2020.03.024) (PMID:32409100)

Wardle, H. (2020) The Emerging Adults Gambling Survey: study protocol.Wellcome Open Research, 5, 102. (doi: 10.12688/wellcomeopenres.15969.1)(PMID:32596512) (PMCID:PMC7312251)

Wardle, H. , Petrovskaya, E. and Zendle, D. (2020) Defining the esports bettor: evidence from an online panel survey of Emerging Adults Gambling Survey.International Gambling Studies, 20(3), pp. 487-499. (doi: 10.1080/14459795.2020.1826559)

Hunt, K. et al. (2020) Protocol for a mixed-method investigation of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and gambling practices, experiences and marketing in the UK: the “Betting and Gaming COVID-19 Impact Study”.International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(22), 8449. (doi: 10.3390/ijerph17228449) (PMID:33203076)

Reith, G. , Wardle, H. and Gilmore, I. (2019) Gambling harm: a global problem requiring global solutions. Lancet, 394(10205), pp. 1212-1214. (doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(19)31991-9) (PMID:31443927)

Wardle, H. (2019) The same or different? Convergence of skin gambling and other gambling among children. Journal of Gambling Studies, 35(4), pp. 1109-1125. (doi: 10.1007/s10899-019-09840-5) (PMID:30852730)(PMCID:PMC6828622)

Wardle, H. , Bramley, S., Norrie, C. and Manthorpe, J. (2019) What do we know about gambling-related harm affecting migrants and migrant communities? A rapid review. Addictive Behaviors, 93, pp. 180-193. (doi: 10.1016/j.addbeh.2019.01.017) (PMID:30716593)

Newall, P. W.S., Moodie, C., Reith, G. , Stead, M., Critchlow, N., Morgan, A. and Dobbie, F. (2019) Gambling marketing from 2014 to 2018: a literature review. Current Addiction Reports, 6(2), pp. 49-56. (doi: 10.1007/s40429-019-00239-1)

Wardle, H. , Reith, G. , Langham, E. and Rogers, R. D. (2019) Gambling and public health: we need policy action to prevent harm. British Medical Journal, 365, l1807. (doi: 10.1136/bmj.l1807) (PMID:31068335) (PMCID:PMC6506754)

Ireland, R., Bunn, C. , Reith, G., Philpott, M., Capewell, S., Boyland, E. and Chambers, S. (2019) Game on: exploring the commercial determinants of NCDs in sport. Bulletin of the World Health Organization, 97(4), pp. 290-295.(doi: 10.2471/BLT.18.220087) (PMID:30940986) (PMCID:PMC6438257)

Wardle, H. (2019) Perceptions, people and place: findings from a rapid review of qualitative research on youth gambling. Addictive Behaviors, 90, pp. 99-106. (doi: 10.1016/j.addbeh.2018.10.008) (PMID:30384191)

Reith, G. (2018) Addictive Consumption: Capitalism, Modernity and Excess.Routledge: London. ISBN 9780415268264

Bunn C, Ireland R, Minton J, Holman D, Philpot M, and Chambers S. (2018) Shirt sponsorship by gambling companies in the English and Scottish Premier Leagues: global reach and public health concerns. Soccer and Society, (doi:10.1080/14660970.2018.1425682)

Wardle, H. (2018) Learning lessons: The need for effective evaluation of regulatory change. International Journal of Drug Policy, 53, pp. 123-124. (doi: 10.1016/j.drugpo.2018.01.006) (PMID:29358082)

Dobbie F, Reith G, McConville S. Utilising social network research in the qualitative exploration of gamblers’ social relationships. Qualitative Research. 2018;18(2):207-223. doi:10.1177/1468794117710323

Charles Livingstone, Peter Adams, Rebecca Cassidy, Francis Markham, Gerda Reith, Angela Rintoul, Natasha Dow Schüll, Richard Woolley & Martin Young (2018) On gambling research, social science and the consequences of commercial gambling, International Gambling Studies, 18:1,56-68, DOI: 10.1080/14459795.2017.1377748

Wardle, H. , Asbury, G. and Thurstain-Goodwin, M. (2017) Mapping risk to gambling problems: a spatial analysis of two regions in England. Addiction Research and Theory, 25(6), pp. 512-524. (doi: 10.1080/16066359.2017.1318127)

Wardle, H. (2017) The "re-feminisation" of gambling: social, cultural and historical insights into female gambling behaviour in Great Britain. In: Bowden-Jones, H. and Prever, F. (eds.) Gambling Disorders in Women: An International Female Perspective on Treatment and Research. Routledge. ISBN 9781138188310

May-Chahal, C., Humphreys, L., Clifton, A. et al. Gambling Harm and Crime Careers. J Gambl Stud 33, 65–84 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-016-9612-z

Graham, H., Hutchinson, J., Law, C., Platt, L. and Wardle, H. (2016) Multiple health behaviours among mothers and partners in England: Clustering, social patterning and intra-couple concordance. SSM - Population Health, 2, pp. 824-833. (doi: 10.1016/j.ssmph.2016.10.011) (PMID:28018962)(PMCID:PMC5165044)

Francis, K. L., Dowling, N. A., Jackson, A. C., Christensen, D. R. and Wardle, H.(2015) Gambling motives: application of the Reasons for Gambling Questionnaire in an Australian Population Survey. Journal of Gambling Studies, 31(3), pp. 807-823. (doi: 10.1007/s10899-014-9458-1) (PMID:24705633)

Kristiansen, S, Trabjerg, MC, & Reith, G (2015) Learning to gamble: early gambling experiences among young people in Denmark, Journal of Youth Studies, 18:2, 133-150, DOI: 10.1080/13676261.2014.933197

McAloney, K., Graham, H., Law, C., Platt, L. and Wardle, H. (2014) Inter-generational concordance of smoking status between mothers and young people aged 10–15 in the UK. Public Health, 128(9), pp. 831-833. (doi: 10.1016/j.puhe.2014.06.011) (PMID:25174665)

Wardle, H., Keily, R., Astbury, G. et al. ‘Risky Places?’: Mapping Gambling Machine Density and Socio-Economic Deprivation. J Gambl Stud 30, 201–212 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-012-9349-2

Barnard, M, Kerr, J, Kinsella, R, Orford, J, Reith, G, & Wardle, H (2014) Exploring the relationship between gambling, debt and financial management in Britain, International Gambling Studies, 14:1, 82-95, DOI: 10.1080/14459795.2013.842606

Reith, G. (2013), Techno economic systems and excessive consumption. The British Journal of Sociology, 64: 717-738. https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-4446.12050

Reith, G & Dobbie, F (2013) Gambling careers: A longitudinal, qualitative study of gambling behaviour, Addiction Research & Theory, 21:5,376-390, DOI: 10.3109/16066359.2012.731116

Blanco, C. et al. (2013) Assessment tool to measure and evaluate the risk potential of gambling products, ASTERIG: a global validation. Gaming Law Review and Economics, 17(9), pp. 635-642. (doi: 10.1089/glre.2013.1797)

Orford, J., Wardle, H. and Griffiths, M. (2013) What proportion of gambling is problem gambling? Estimates from the 2010 British Gambling Prevalence Survey. International Gambling Studies, 13(1), pp. 4-18. (doi: 10.1080/14459795.2012.689001)

Reith, G. (2012), Beyond addiction or compulsion: the continuing role of environment in the case of pathological gambling. Addiction, 107: 1736-1737. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1360-0443.2012.03669.x

Reith, G & Dobbie, F (2012) Lost in the game: Narratives of addiction and identity in recovery from problem gambling, Addiction Research & Theory, 20:6, 511-521, DOI: 10.3109/16066359.2012.672599

Planzer, S. and Wardle, H. (2012) What we know about the impact of advertising on disordered gambling. European Journal of Risk Regulation, 3(4), pp. 588-594. (doi: 10.1017/S1867299X00002518)

Planzer, S. and Wardle, H. (2012) What we know about the comparative effectiveness of gambling regulation. European Journal of Risk Regulation, 3(3), pp. 410-416. (doi: 10.1017/S1867299X00002312)

Wardle, H. , Griffiths, M. D., Orford, J., Moody, A. and Volberg, R. (2012)Gambling in Britain: a time of change? Health implications from the British Gambling Prevalence Survey 2010. International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction, 10(2), pp. 273-277. (doi: 10.1007/s11469-011-9319-4)

Sims, M., Mindell, J. S., Jarvis, M. J., Feyerabend, C., Wardle, H. and Gilmore, A.(2012) Did smokefree legislation in England reduce exposure to secondhand smoke among nonsmoking adults? Cotinine analysis from the Health Survey for England. Environmental Health Perspectives, 120(3), pp. 425-430. (doi: 10.1289/ehp.1103680) (PMID:22169225) (PMCID:PMC3295343)

Reith, G & Dobbie, F (2011) Beginning gambling: The role of social networks and environment, Addiction Research & Theory, 19:6, 483-493, DOI: 10.3109/16066359.2011.558955

Reith, G. (2011) Regulating harm – gambling technology and the challenges for Great Britain. Addiction, 106: 9-10. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1360-0443.2010.03220.x

Forrest, D. and Wardle, H. (2011) Gambling in Asian communities in Great Britain. Asian Journal of Gambling Issues and Public Health, 2(1), pp. 2-16. (doi: 10.1186/BF03342121)

Griffiths, M., Wardle, H. , Orford, J., Sproston, K. and Erens, B. (2011) Internet gambling, health, smoking and alcohol use: findings from the 2007 British Gambling Prevalence Survey. International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction, 9(1), pp. 1-11. (doi: 10.1007/s11469-009-9246-9)

Wardle, H. , Moody, A., Griffiths, M., Orford, J. and Volberg, R. (2011) Defining the online gambler and patterns of behaviour integration: evidence from the British Gambling Prevalence Survey 2010. International Gambling Studies, 11(3), pp. 339-356. (doi: 10.1080/14459795.2011.628684)

Griffiths, M., Wardle, H. , Orford, J., Sproston, K. and Erens, B. (2010) Gambling, alcohol, consumption, cigarette smoking and health: findings from the 2007 British Gambling Prevalence Survey. Addiction Research and Theory, 18(2), pp. 208-223. (doi: 10.3109/16066350902928569)

Orford, J., Wardle, H. , Griffiths, M., Sproston, K. and Erens, B. (2010) The role of social factors in gambling: evidence from the 2007 British Gambling Prevalence Survey. Community, Work and Family, 13(3), pp. 257-271. (doi: 10.1080/13668803.2010.488101)

Roth, M. A., Aitsi-Selmi, A., Wardle, H. and Mindell, J. (2009) Under-reporting of tobacco use among Bangladeshi women in England. Journal of Public Health, 31(3), pp. 326-334. (doi: 10.1093/pubmed/fdp060) (PMID:19561042)

Griffiths, M., Wardle, H. , Orford, J., Sproston, K. and Erens, B. (2009) Sociodemographic correlates of internet gambling: findings from the 2007 British Gambling Prevalence Survey. CyberPsychology and Behavior, 12(2), pp. 199-202. (doi: 10.1089/cpb.2008.0196) (PMID:19072080)

Orford, J., Griffiths, M., Wardle, H. , Sproston, K. and Erens, B. (2009) Negative public attitudes towards gambling: findings from the 2007 British Gambling Prevalence Survey using a new attitude scale. International Gambling Studies, 9(1), pp. 39-54. (doi: 10.1080/14459790802652217)

Zaninotto, P., Head, J., Stamatakis, E., Wardle, H. and Mindell, J. (2009) Trends in obesity among adults in England from 1993 to 2004 by age and social class and projections of prevalence to 2012. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 63(2), pp. 140-146. (doi: 10.1136/jech.2008.077305)(PMID:19074182)

Moodie, C & Reith, G (2009) Responsible gambling signage on electronic gaming machines, before and after the implementation of the United Kingdom Gambling Act: an observational study, International Gambling Studies, 9:1, 5-17, DOI: 10.1080/14459790802652183

Reith, G (2007) ‘Gambling and the contradictions of consumption: a genealogy of the ‘pathological’ subject’ American Behavioral Scientist 50 (13) pp1-23

Reith, G (2007) ‘Situating Gambling Studies’ in G.Smith, D. Hodgins and R.Williams Research and Measurement Issues in Gambling Studies, New York: Elsevier, pp1-28

Reith, G (2007) ‘Living with Risk: Chance, Luck and the Creation of Meaning’ in J. Welchman The Aesthetics of Risk, Zurich: JRP Ringier.

Reith, G (1999) The Age of Chance: Gambling in Western Culture; London, Routledge (Winner of the British Sociological Association Philip Abrams Memorial Prize 2000)

 - 2nd Edition, 2002
 - Korean translation, 2006 [Translated by Youngsun Kim]

Reith, G (2006) The Social Impacts of Gambling, Edinburgh: Scottish Executive, pp1-117

Reith, G (2006) ‘The pursuit of chance’ in J. Cosgrave (Ed) The Sociology of Risk and Gambling Reader, New York: Routledge, pp125-143

Reith, G (2006) ‘The experience of play’ in J. Cosgrave  (Ed) The Sociology of Risk and Gambling Reader, New York: Routledge, pp255-291

Moodie, C. & Finnigan, F. (2006).  Prevalence and correlates of youth gambling in Scotland, Addiction Research and Theory, 14, pp365-385.

Moodie, C. & Finnigan, F. (2006), Association of pathological gambling and depression in Scotland, Psychological Reports, 99, pp407-417.

Reith, G. (2005) Consumption: Regulation and Excess. Routledge: London, UK. ISBN 9780415268264

Reith, G (2004) 'Consumption and its discontents: addiction, identity and the problems of freedom', British Journal of Sociology 55 (2) pp283-300

Abbott, M; Volberg, R; Bellringer, M & Reith, G (2004) A Research Review of Aspects of Problem Gambling,  London: Responsibility in Gambling Trust, pp1-290

Reith, G (Ed). (2003) Gambling: Who Wins? Who Loses? New York, Prometheus Books.    

Reith, G. (2003). 'For fun or profit? The controversies of the expansion of commercial gambling', in Gambling: Who Wins? Who Loses? New York, Prometheus Books, pp1-9.  

Reith, G (2002) 'The national lottery and the individualisation of gambling in Britain' E-Gaming Pro, September, pp1-8

Reith, G (2002) 'Winning isn’t everything', Topic, Vol 2, pp34-38