Strategies for encouraging responsible gambling outlined

Michelle Swafford

Wednesday, Sept. 17, 2003 | 10:58 a.m.

Gambling regulators in Nova Scotia, Canada, are using pop-up screens in all of the province's 3,200 slot machines that tell gamblers how long they've been playing and how much money they have spent per session to raise awareness of responsible gambling.

They also launched a responsible gaming awareness week, which includes education seminars and a mass media campaign.

Now, the regulators want to share their findings with U.S. casino operators and other attendees of the Global Gaming Expo this week at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

Las Vegas casino operators aren't using Nova Scotia's strategies because there is little evidence of what works, they say.

About 1 percent of Nova Scotia's adult population are problem gamblers and the province wants to be proactive and promote responsible gambling, said Stephen MacDonald, director of operations for the Nova Scotia Gaming Corp.

The slot machines, or video lottery terminals as they're called in Nova Scotia, provide a clock to show players the duration of gambling time per session. Pop-up screens tell gamblers when they have played for 60 minutes, 90 minutes and 120 minutes. After two and one-half hours a pop-up screen tells gamblers they have to cash out. The machines also show bets in terms of money instead of credits, which is designed to help people budget better.

Nova Scotia regulators surveyed gamblers who used the new strategies and found mixed opinions. The clock had little effect on how long people played or how much money they gambled.

However, the 60-minute pop-up screen had a small, yet significant reduction in session length and expenditure among high-risk players, MacDonald said.

The 90-minute and 120-minute pop-up screens had little effect in helping gamblers manage their money, he added.

The mandatory cash-out requirement was disliked by most players and was considered ineffective, MacDonald said.

The new features are permanent, but recommendations were made to further promote responsible gambling, MacDonald said.

In November, Nova Scotia gamblers will be able to voluntarily set time limits on slot machines in lieu of pop-up screens and the mandatory cash-out requirement.

Other recommendations that could be considered later include a receipt that shows how much money was deposited, how much was cashed out and duration of play; pop-up screens with responsible gambling messages and buttons that provide additional information on odds of winning, help resources and guidelines on playing responsibly.

Last year was the first year Nova Scotia held a responsible gaming awareness week, which was well received by 82 percent of those surveyed. Calls to the problem gambling help line increased by 100 percent, mostly because of 220,000 brochures distributed to Halifax residents. The awareness campaign also included billboards and radio advertisements. More than 900 gambling employees were educated about responsible gambling.

Alan Feldman, spokesman for Las Vegas-based casino resort giant MGM MIRAGE and a board member of the National Center for Responsible Gaming, said slot machines in Las Vegas do not have the devices being used in Nova Scotia.

"I don't think there's ever been a discussion of it," he said. "We're all struggling right now to know what to operationalize based on what we're learning scientifically. No one is quite certain what is going to work."

"The people who are most affected will stop at nothing," Feldman said. "Their behavior is so outside the bounds of normality."

The National Center for Responsible Gaming collects money from casinos through memberships and uses it for gambling research. MGM MIRAGE has committed $1 million over five years, Feldman said.

Local casinos have responsible gambling signage and brochures, Feldman said.

Also, many of the local gambling employees are trained through the Nevada Council on Problem Gambling, which also operates a hot line.

Ken Winters, associate professor of psychiatry at the University of Minnesota Medical School, told G2E attendees that more education about responsible gambling needs to be available in schools.

High school students are at high-risk for gambling addiction because they commonly engage in sports betting, card games and charitable bingo.

"You can be a problem gambler without using any of the legal, formal games," Winters said.

Of the 39 states with legal lotteries, 37 states make it legal for 18-year-olds. Also, 31 states have casinos or slot machines and 20 of them allow 18-year-olds to gamble. In 22 states, 16-year-olds can play charitable bingo.

Also presenting was Frank Biagioli, executive director of the Iowa Gambling Treatment Program. He said his group spent about $293,000 in fiscal year 2002 on television advertisements and education about problem gambling and Iowa's help line.

"The TV component is so important in connecting people to the treatment providers," Biagioli said.

Of those who sought gambling education and counseling, 74 percent were abstaining six months later and 85 percent reduced the amount of money lost per week, he said.

The Iowa treatment program gets some funding from lottery sales and casino receipts, which equals about $2 million annually.