Digital gambling is the fastest growing form of gambling in the world (Reilly & Smith, 2013a). Technological advancements continually increase access to gambling, which has led to increased social acceptance and uptake (Dragicevic & Tsogas, 2014) with Roulette being among the most popular games played both online and on Electronic Gaming Machines. In response, gambling stakeholders have drawn on the structural characteristics of gambling platforms to develop and improve Responsible Gambling (RG) devices for casual gamblers. Many RG data-tracking systems employ intuitive ‘traffic-light’ metaphors that enable gamblers to monitor their gambling (e.g. Wood & Griffiths, 2008), though uptake of voluntary RG devices is low (Schellinck & Schrans, 2011), leading to calls for mandatory RG systems. Another area that has received considerable RG research focus involves the use of pop-up messages (Auer & Griffiths, 2014). Studies have examined various message content, such as correcting erroneous beliefs, encouraging self-appraisal, gambling cessation, and the provision of personalised feedback. To date, findings have been inconsistent but promising. A shift towards the use of personalised information has become the preferred RG strategy, though message content and timing/frequency requires improvement (Griffiths, 2014). Moreover, warning messages are unable to provide continuous feedback to gamblers. In response to this, and calls for a ‘risk meter’ to improve monitoring of gambling behaviours (Wiebe & Philander, 2013), this thesis tested the impact of a risk meter alongside improved pop-up warning messages as RG devices for within-session roulette gambling. The thesis aimed to establish the optimal application of these devices for facilitating safer gambling behaviours. In support of the aims of RG research to evaluate the impact of devices on gambling attitudes and behaviours, the Elaboration Likelihood Model was identified as a suitable framework to test the proposed RG devices (Petty & Cacioppo, 1986). Both the interactive risk meter and pop-up messages were developed based on existing methods and recommendations in the RG literature, and examined via a series of laboratory-based roulette simulation experiments. Overall, results found the risk meter to be most effective when used as an interactive probability meter. Self-appraisal/Informative pop-up warnings were examined alongside expenditure-specific and hyrbid warnings. Findings showed that hybrid messages containing both types of information to be most effective, with optimal display points at 75%, 50%, 25% and 10% of remaining gambling credit. The final study tested both optimised devices (probability meter and hybrid messages). Results showed that using both RG devices in combination was most effective in facilitating reduced gambling risk and early within-session gambling cessation. Findings support the use of personalised, interactive RG devices using accurate context-specific information for the facilitation of safer gambling. The ELM was shown to be an effective model for testing RG devices, though findings suggested only temporary shifts in attitude change and a lack of impact on future gambling intentions. Overall, support for the implementation of RG devices that facilitate positive, temporary behaviour change that do not negatively impact on broader gambling attitudes or gambling enjoyment. Implications for theory, implementation, and RG frameworks are discussed, alongside recommendations for future research.

A lot of people like gambling. Even though it brings excitement, it has its dark sides as well. Problem gambling is a disease that destroys lives every day. As gambling are entering the digital domain, phenomenon such as E-sport has made it easier than ever to gamble. Therefore it is important to minimize the risk of gambling addiction among the users. At present time, as an attempt to make this possible, legislators have started to implement different rules on how companies need to deal with responsible gambling. A trend, that has become a problem, is that gamblers tend to not read warning messages that they get when they have been playing for a long period of time. This thesis is about producing recommendations for how to design these modal windows so that users actually take the time to read the information they receive. The methods used in this thesis are connected to the 6 phases of the design thinking process produced by Nielsen Norman Group and they were literature studies, interviews, prototyping and user testing. It was found that people with a previous gambling addiction wanted to see information about how much money they had spent in total on their account. That could also show more clearly how serious one's playing habits are. One cannot stop everyone from developing a gambling addiction, but one can give everyone a chance to become healthy.

The purpose of this study was to better understand the goal-striving process in the context of non-problem gambler’s responsible gambling. More specifically, the primary aim of this study was to elucidate the hierarchical structure of goals, the role of the motivational phase of the goal-striving process, and the influence of cognitive evaluation and affective regulation on the goal-striving process. In the first part of the study, a conceptual model is proposed, in which the intrinsic factors used to predict non-problem gamblers’ intentions to gamble responsibly are delineated and tested according to the extension of the theory of planned behavior (Ajzen, 1985, 1991), the model of action phases (Gollwitzer, 1990, 1993), the model of goal-directed behavior (Perugini & Bagozzi, 2001; Perugini & Conner, 2000), and the model of effortful decision making and enactment (Bagozzi, Dholakia, & Basuroy, 2003; Dholakia, Bagozzi, & Gopinath, 2007). Four cognitive factors explain the motivational phase of the goal-striving process, and were incorporated in the current study. One factor explains the goal-oriented behavior at abstract level (i.e., goal feasibility), and the other three explain implementation of action-oriented behavior at concrete level (i.e., attitude toward implementing the actions necessary to achieve the goal, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control). In addition, two ways of emotional regulation were incorporated to explain the goal-oriented behavior at abstract level. That is, prefactual emotional valence factors related to the success and failure of future goal attainment (anticipated positive and negative emotions) affect goal desire. To sum up, this study anticipated that the proposed antecedent constructs (two anticipated emotions, goal feasibility, attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control) were strong indicators of how non-problem casino patrons would strive to achieve the goal (i.e., maturing or developing responsible gambling behavior) through a goal-striving process, where the motivational phase plays a critical role in explaining intention to gamble responsibly. A secondary goal of the study was to explore how responsible gambling strategies implemented by the gambling industry influence non-problem casino customers’ goal-directed behavior in a responsible gambling setting. Given the ongoing controversy about the effectiveness of responsible gambling strategies, the focus in the second part of the current study was on how situational arousal factors (i.e., psychological reactance) with regard to external interventions (i.e., compulsory and supplementary responsible gambling strategies) would affect implementation intention, based on the psychological reactance theory (J. W. Brehm, 1989; S. S. Brehm & Brehm, 1981). In other words, situational arousal factors were incorporated herein to explain the extrinsic part of the goal-striving process model. This study was designed to facilitate an understanding of how and why external interventions may fail to deliver the intended effect in the responsible gambling context. In order to take into account the varying effectiveness of responsible gambling strategies, an effort was made to discern between the different effects of each responsible gambling strategy type and to understand in greater detail how these effects were moderated by individual disposition, and especially the strength of the individual’s desire for control. A clear understanding of the moderating effect enables a richer understanding of the effectiveness of responsible gambling strategies with regard to responsible gambling behavior by non-problem casino patrons. Insight gained from the study through analysis of the results is discussed, and important theoretical and practical implications and future research agendas presented in the conclusion. / Tourism and Sport

2019 reviderades Sveriges spellag, vilket betydde att nya spelbolag kunde söka licens för att verka på den svenska spelmarknaden. Revideringen tillkom i hopp om att de spelbolag som tidigare riktat sig mot svenska konsumenter istället skulle söka licens för att verka på den svenska spelmarknaden. I maj 2020 finns 71 licensierade spelbolag på den svenska spelmarknaden. Studiens syfte är att undersöka hur spelbolag på den svenska spelmarknaden arbetar med spelansvar samtidigt som de har ett stort vinstintresse, samt se om det sker en löskoppling av spelansvar till följd av detta.    Studiens forskare har genom dold deltagande observation undersökt 30 av 71 licensierade spelbolag i deras arbete med spelansvar. Därtill har tre semistrukturerade intervjuer genomförts med anställda på spelbolagen Svenska Spel, ATG och Unibet med syfte att få bättre förståelse för dess spelansvarsarbete. Studiens forskare har även intervjuat Anders P Håkansson i egenskap av extern part med övergripande förståelse för spelbranschen.    Studiens empiriska data från nämnda metoder analyseras med hjälp av teorier inom Corporate Social Responsibility och etik. Studien bidrar med en generaliserbar bild av den svenska spelmarknaden efter revideringen av spellagen 2019. Empirin påvisar att det förekommer löskoppling av spelansvaret på den svenska spelmarknaden. Den empiriska datan vittnar också om skillnader mellan hur utlandsbaserade och svenskbaserade spelbolag arbetar med sitt spelansvar. / In 2019, the swedish government revised the gambling law, which led to new gambling companies to enter the swedish market and to apply for a swedish gambling license. The revision was the effect of many years of foreign gambling companies operating illegally. In may 2020 there was 71 licensed gambling companies on the swedish market. The purpose of this study is to investigate how gambling companies operate with responsible gambling while they want to be as profitable as possible, and to see if they use decoupling as a consequence of that.   The researchers of the study have through hidden participation observation investigated 30 of 71 licensed gambling companies and how they work with responsible gambling. In addition. three semi-structured interviews has been conducted with employees of the gambling companies Svenska Spel, ATG and Unibet with the purpose to get a better perception how they work with responsible gambling. Furthermore has the researchers of this study interviewed a scientist in responsible gambling as an external part with an overall perception of the gambling industry.   The study's empirical data from the methods mentioned above has been analyzed using theories in Corporate Social Responsibility and Ethics theories. The study contributes with a generalizable picture of the swedish gambling market following the revision of the gambling law in 2019. The result demonstrates that there is decoupling of responsible gambling on the swedish gambling market. Additionally the result indicates differences in how foreign-based and swedish-based gambling companies handles responsible gambling.

Syftet i studien är att finna likheter och skillnader i casino- och spelföretagens redovisade sociala ansvarstagande. Urvalet är svenska spelföretag som är noterade på Stockholmsbörsen. De studerade företagen är LeoVegas, Evolution AB, Betsson AB och Kindred Group PLC. Metoden grundar sig i en innehållsanalys med komparativ och longitudinell design. Studien har undersökt kategorierna “Kontroll”, “Åtgärd”, “Ansvarsfullt spelande” och “Spelproblem” i företagens hållbarhetsredovisningar för åren 2017-2021. Antalet meningar som innehåller kategorierna har studerats för att finna likheter och skillnader. Resultatet visar att kategorin “Ansvarsfullt spelande” tillämpats mest samt att “Spelproblem” tillämpats minst bland företagen. Resultatet visar även att Kindred Group PLC använt kategorierna mest i sin hållbarhetsredovisning och att Evolution AB har nämnt kategorierna minst. Resultatet kopplas bland annat till teorier om ansvarstagande, användning av ramverk och “greenwashing”. Slutsatserna som dras är att det är svårt att definiera konkreta likheter och skillnader, att företagen generellt har utvecklat sina hållbarhetsrapporter samt att det finns skillnader i användandet av icke-obligatoriska verktyg. Jämförbarheten mellan hållbarhetsredovisningarna är låg, däremot har företagen olika grad av transparens. Studien visar en tendens att hållbarhetsrapportering kopplat till spelproblem har ändrats under Covid-19 pandemin. Utöver detta kan vi konstatera att företagen använder sig av “greenwashing” i sin hållbarhetsrapportering och att det är en fördel för företag att följa GRI:s ramverk vid upprättandet av en hållbarhetsrapport. / The purpose of the study is to find similarities and differences in the reported social responsibility of casino and gambling companies'. The selection of companies is Swedish gambling companies that are listed on the Stockholm Stock Exchange. The companies studied are LeoVegas, Evolution AB, Betsson AB and Kindred Group PLC. The method is based on a content analysis with comparative and longitudinal design. The study has examined the categories “Control”, “Action”, “Responsible Gambling” and “Gambling Problems” in the companies' sustainability reports for the years 2017-2021. The number of sentences that use these categories and the content of the sentences that contain these categories have been studied to find similarities and differences. The results show that the category “responsible gambling” is the most used category among the companies, while the category “gambling problems” is the least used. The results also show that Kindred Group PLC uses the categories the most in its sustainability report and that Evolution AB mentions the categories the least. The results had relevance to the theories about responsibility, the use of frameworks and "greenwashing". The conclusions drawn are that it is difficult to define concrete similarities and differences, that companies have a general method to develop their sustainability reports, and that there are differences in the use of non-mandatory tools. Comparability between the sustainability reports are low, but the companies have different degrees of transparency. The study shows a change of tendency regarding the sustainability reports connected to gamble addiction during the covid-19 pandemic. In addition, we can state that companies use “greenwashing” in their sustainability reporting and that it is an advantage for companies to follow GRI's guidelines when preparing a sustainability report.

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is one important response to the increasing amounts of criticism levelled at corporations. A number of studies have focused on CSR in a range of industries; however, some contentious industries, e.g. the gambling industry, remain unexplored. Mobilizing CSR in a novel setting not only enhances the knowledge of CSR and gambling, but also provides an overview of this industry itself. This thesis attempts to investigate three questions: to what extent does the gambling industry disclose CSR-related data, how is CSR understood in this industry and why does the gambling industry engage in CSR? This thesis provides a general overview of the international gambling industry and an in-depth investigation of Macao's gambling industry. The research design of the thesis employs mixed methods: content analysis and semi-structured interviews. The principal research is based on 49 interviews. This thesis advances three main arguments. First, it will be argued that there are relatively low volumes of Corporate Social Disclosure (CSD) and Responsible Gambling (RG) disclosure in the international gambling industry, which can be viewed as a legitimising strategy. Second, in Macao's gambling industry, it is argued that organisations in this industry tend to place a greater emphasis on positive social impacts, while obscuring such negative impacts as gambling addiction and health-related issues. Third, this thesis holds that organisations in Macao's gambling industry engage symbolically, rather than substantively, with CSR and RG in order to manage stakeholders' perceptions in an attempt to gain different sources of legitimacy and in turn to enhance its economic interests. In conclusion, the gambling industry does not entirely conform to the institutional environment, which poses a challenge to the organisational legitimacy literature. This thesis introduces a necessary caution into the discussions about the extent of CSD, CSR, and RG in this industry more generally.

The objectives of this study were to provide a detailed biopsychosocial description of the characteristics of a sample of 100 individuals screened and referred by the National Responsible Gaming Programme helpline for their outpatient treatment programme over an eighteen month period, and, importantly, to measure the success of this specific treatment programme at set intervals, up to a one year follow-up period. While 80% of the sample did not relapse during the six-week treatment programme, the number of treatment seekers without any gambling relapses during each follow-up period declined, and those falling back into gambling increased as time went on. After one year 47% of treatment seekers managed not to revert back to gambling – total abstinence. A further 28% reported having relapsed once or twice or that their gambling was controlled. 25% of treatment seekers reported that they reverted back to gambling fulltime which leaves the success rate of the treatment at 75%. Treatment seekers reported an overall reduction in gambling participation, debt and expenditure and an overall improvement in social and vocational functioning. There is evidence in this study to support the perspective that pathological gambling is a multidimensional disorder and that certain sub-groups of gamblers have distinct gambling behaviour. / Psychology / M.Soc.Sc.

Gamification kan enklast beskrivas som tillämpningen av speldesignselement i en kontext orelaterad till spel. Gamification-mekaniker används inom nätkasinobranschen som ett medel för att engagera slutanvändarna och skapa interaktion mellan användaren och systemet. Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka hur spelmekanikerna inom nätkasinobranschen kan användas utan att vara motstridig till svensk lagstiftning, samt vilka konsekvenser som appliceringen skulle kunna få på användarnas upplevelse. Metoderna för studien var litteraturgenomgång och en fallstudie. Resultatet tyder på att det finns spelmekaniker som inte bryter mot svensk lagstiftning, till exempelvis erfarenhets- och inlösningsbara poäng. Avslutningsvis presenteras förslag på hur de identifierade spelmekanikerna som går emot svensk lagstiftning kan användas och vilka åtgärder spelföretag kan ta för att minimera risker för att spelare, genom diverse spelmekaniker, utvecklar riskfaktorer för problemspelande.

The objectives of this study were to provide a detailed biopsychosocial description of the characteristics of a sample of 100 individuals screened and referred by the National Responsible Gaming Programme helpline for their outpatient treatment programme over an eighteen month period, and, importantly, to measure the success of this specific treatment programme at set intervals, up to a one year follow-up period. While 80% of the sample did not relapse during the six-week treatment programme, the number of treatment seekers without any gambling relapses during each follow-up period declined, and those falling back into gambling increased as time went on. After one year 47% of treatment seekers managed not to revert back to gambling – total abstinence. A further 28% reported having relapsed once or twice or that their gambling was controlled. 25% of treatment seekers reported that they reverted back to gambling fulltime which leaves the success rate of the treatment at 75%. Treatment seekers reported an overall reduction in gambling participation, debt and expenditure and an overall improvement in social and vocational functioning. There is evidence in this study to support the perspective that pathological gambling is a multidimensional disorder and that certain sub-groups of gamblers have distinct gambling behaviour. / Psychology / M.Soc.Sc.