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. 2023 Mar 14;13(3):e065400.
doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2022-065400.

Social norms and goal-setting interventions to promote responsible gambling in low-to-moderate online gamblers: protocol for a four-arm randomised controlled feasibility study

Emily Arden-Close  1 , Sarah Thomas  2 , Reece Bush-Evans  3 , Ruijie Wang  3 , Elvira Bolat  4 , Sarah Hodge  3 , Keith Phalp  5 , John McAlaney  3
Affiliations

Social norms and goal-setting interventions to promote responsible gambling in low-to-moderate online gamblers: protocol for a four-arm randomised controlled feasibility study

Emily Arden-Close et al. BMJ Open. .

Abstract

Introduction: Gambling is increasingly recognised as an important public health issue. Problem gambling is associated with highly negative impacts on physical, psychological and social well-being, not only for those who gamble but also for those around them. There has been a rapid expansion of internet gambling and attributes such as continuous play and instant rewards, and enhanced privacy may lead to a greater likelihood of gambling-related harms. In this randomised controlled feasibility study, we are testing (1) the acceptability and feasibility of three online responsible gambling interventions targeting people with low-to-moderate risk of online problem gambling and (2) the feasibility of a future full-scale randomised controlled trial (RCT) to test their effectiveness and cost-effectiveness.

Methods and analysis: Four-arm randomised controlled feasibility study with qualitative substudy. One-hundred and forty UK residents with low-to-moderate risk of online gambling recruited via gambling operators and social media will be randomised (1:1:1:1) to either (1) goal setting, (2) descriptive norms messages (challenge perceptions of peer behaviours), (3) injunctive norms messages (challenge perceptions of peer attitudes) and (4) control (delayed intervention). Interventions will be delivered over 6 weeks and individually tailored. Outcomes, administered online, will be measured at baseline, 7 weeks, and 3 and 6 months post randomisation (including gambling risk behaviours and cognitions, anxiety and depression, quality of life, health use and productivity). Analyses will be descriptive, focusing on feasibility and acceptability of the interventions and study procedures. Telephone/online interviews, with a subsample of approximately 30 participants, will elicit experiences of participating in the study. Prespecified progression criteria will guide decisions around whether to progress to a definitive RCT.

Ethics and dissemination: Ethical approval obtained from Bournemouth University Research Ethics Committee (reference number 33247). Participants will be given a participant information sheet plus a 'Key Facts' summary and will provide informed online consent. Findings will be published in peer-reviewed journals and presented at conferences and public engagement events.

Trial registration number: ISRCTN37874344.

Keywords: Clinical trials; PREVENTIVE MEDICINE; PUBLIC HEALTH.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests: Authors are coinvestigators or employed research staff on the EROGamb 2.0 project funded by GambleAware for which this feasibility study is a work package. JM is a member of the Gordon Moody Board of Trustees and Chair of the Clinical Governance Committee (unpaid role) and is the principal investigator. JM and SH are cosupervisors of an MRes student with match funding from the Gaming Innovation Group. KP, SH, EA-C and EB are coinvestigators on ‘GamInnovate’, a research project which explores transparency and responsible gambling funded by the International Centre for Responsible Gaming, USA. SH and EA-C are supervisors of a PhD student with match funding from the Kindred Group. SH is the principal investigator of Mindful Resilience, a research project funded by Playtech, which supports the education of gaming and gambling in children and young people, and received funding from the Gaming Innovation Group (GiG) to give a presentation in Malta in 2019. RB-E is the principal investigator on a research project entitled ‘Gambling, Personality and Wellbeing’, funded by the Academic Forum for the Study of Gambling (AFSG) and has received funding from the AFSG for conference attendance and from Aspire Global to give a presentation in Malta in 2021.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials diagram. PGSI, Problem Gambling Severity Index.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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