GREAT Projects
Gambling Harm in the Military
Centre for Military Gambling Research (MilGAM)
Researchers: Glen Dighton, Sam Treacy.
MilGAM is a multi-disciplinary centre of excellence for all aspects of military-related research on gambling harm. The aim of MilGAM is to coordinate and direct the growing body of research evidence on military gambling research and to advance evidence-based knowledge generation and dissemination.
Veterans’ HABIT Study
Researchers: Dana Dekel, Adanma Ekenna.
The Veterans’ HABIT Study adopts a mixed-methods approach to better understand veterans’ pathways to gambling harm. HABIT is conducted in partnership with Anglia Ruskin University and AnonyMind.
Look Back to Move Forward (LBTMF)
Researchers: Chloe Rayner.
The Look Back to Move Forward (LBTMF) project aims to create a timeline-based gambling assessment and treatment monitoring tool for veterans. The project aims to benefit veterans, their families, charities, policymakers, clinicians, academics, and the public by providing validated tools, guidelines, and awareness of the difficulties faced by veterans. LBMTF is conducted in partnership with Adferiad Recovery and Anglia Ruskin University.
Further Research Themes
Gambling-related Suicide and Data Linkage
Researchers: Pippa Boering.
Harm from gambling is often recorded in settings using routinely collected data (RCD) such as national registries and healthcare services. The linking of existing large datasets of RCD affords numerous opportunities for policy-led research on gambling harm and early intervention. The GAMLINK project links RCD from primary and secondary care settings to identify people who are at risk of suicide and who may be experiencing gambling harms. We utilise the Secure Anonymised Information Linkage (SAIL) Databank and other nationally representative linked datasets to individual pathways and trajectories from healthcare settings to mortality.
Digital Health Intervention for Gambling Harm
Researchers: Jess Williams, Conor Heath.
The ACTIVATE study seeks to evaluate the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of a new smartphone app based on the third-wave therapy Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) called ACT Vet for military veterans with comorbid PTSD and gambling harm.
Gambling Advertising in the UK
Research theme lead: Jamie Torrance.
Gambling advertising in the UK is pervasive, employing a wide range of psychological strategies to persuade consumers. Our work on gambling advertising is therefore broad in scope, ultimately aiming to reduce the harms associated with such promotions. Through a wide range of empirical research, we focus on its presence, impacts, and regulation. Moving forward, the GREAT Centre aims to better understand the evolution of gambling advertising into new domains alongside developing public-health informed interventions to mitigate the associated harms.
Gambling, Learning and Conditioning
Research theme lead: Martyn Quigley.
Reward-related cues, such as the sights and sounds of a slot machine win or celebratory gambling ads, are pervasive in gambling environments and help sustain gambling behaviours. Our work seeks to better understand the learning and conditioning processes involved in the acquisition and unlearning of gambling reward-relayed cues. For example, the GamPIT project tests a gambling Pavlovian-Instrumental Transfer task (GamPIT) to assess whether sensitivity to reward-related cues can predict gambling harm. Understanding this link will provide valuable insights into the mechanisms underlying gambling harm and inform harm-reduction strategies.
Gambling, Big Data and Social Media
Research theme lead: Simon Dymond, Scott Houghton at Northumbria University.
This theme harnesses the potential of big data, such as online searching, social media engagement, and sports betting to better understand early signs of gambling harm. We apply machine learning methods to predict harmful patterns of play or consumption and use this to highlight opportunities for early intervention.