Casino Games Research Articles

The Study on the Effect of Casino Tourism Policy : Focused on the Casino Tourists Service in Macau Area

Purpose - This study is regarding customer service environment in casino marketing under a study on the factors affecting casino tourist satisfaction based on casino tourists' various needs. Research design and methodology - The study of casino tourism policy factors is proceeded by interviewing tourists of Macao casino. A total of 220 copies were distributed and 193 copies were collected, but 13 copies were not conceded due to insincere responses, and a total of 180 cases were analyzed for this study. Based on the analysis results, the casino tourism policy factors were derived through satisfaction level of casino tourist service as follows. Results - Firstly, the casino tourist satisfaction is a positive influence on casino visits, so efforts should be made to enhance tourist satisfaction when establishing cultural experience programs and casino marketing strategies. Casino culture for tourist should be matured to develop casino tour. In order to increase the satisfaction level of revisiting casino resorts, various cultural products such as clean environment should be developed to enhance the satisfaction level of casino visitors in the future. Secondly, a positive impact of cultural, experiential visits and psychological motivations affect to tourists' psychological stability through cultural experiences as well as casino games. Thirdly, casino tourist satisfaction has been shown to provide a positive impact on behavior intention. Conclusions - Based on the results of this research, the marketing of casino tour is to identify tourists' needs and increase satisfaction.

Validation of the problematic social casino gaming scale

ABSTRACT Few investigations have focused on problematic social casino gaming. Social casino games are a type of video game that feature gambling elements. Unlike gambling machines, social casino games present with a number of added interactive features that render them more like video games. Therefore, problematic social casino gaming may present with symptoms that reflect both problem video gaming and problem gambling. To investigate the overlap, this study examined a new measure – the Problematic Social Casino Gaming Scale (PSCGS) – in 436 social casino game players. Exploratory factor analysis revealed a single-factor structure that was further supported by confirmatory factor analysis. The PSCGS demonstrated high internal consistency. The latent profile analysis of the PSCGS classified participants into three groups, representing different levels of problematic social casino gaming. Players classified as high severity played social casino games more frequently, were more likely to spend money on social casino games, and evidenced greater severity of problem video gaming and problem gambling than other players. Collectively, results provide initial evidence of the psychometric properties of the PSCGS and characteristics of problematic social casino gaming. Such findings could inform future research into the etiology, nature, and course of problematic social casino gaming.

Adolescent Land-Based and Internet Gambling: Australian and International Prevalence Rates and Measurement Issues

This review summarizes recent studies of adolescent gambling in Australia and overseas. Its purpose is to examine variations in participation in gambling activities, including land-based and Internet gambling, and in measurement approaches to studying gambling-related problems. Between 15 and 80% of young people report past-year gambling participation, typically involving scratch cards, lotteries, card games and sports betting. Around 5% report past-year Internet gambling. Estimates of problem gambling among adolescents vary, with Australian figures generally between 1 and 5%, and studies in the USA, Canada, UK, Italy and Finland generally reporting rates of 1 to 7%. Simulated gambling involvement (e.g., gambling-like apps, social casino games) appears more prevalent but its relationship to monetary gambling and problem gambling risk requires further research. Youth gambling and exposure to gambling-like activities via digital technologies is a global phenomenon that warrants continuing research. Research is required at the conceptual level, for example, to identify relevant harms and map links to other risk behaviours, and at the methodological level to identify optimal measurement approaches. This includes considering respondents’ level of involvement in reported gambling (active vs passive), recall issues and clearly distinguishing monetary from simulated gambling. Understanding youth gambling is particularly relevant as new digital technology-based gambling activities and promotions become more prevalent and available to young people with the means to access them.

The convergence of play: interrelations of social casino gaming, gambling, and digital gaming in Finland

ABSTRACT This study provides an overview of the interactions between the playing of digital games, gambling activities and Social Casino Games (SCG) in the Finnish context. Earlier studies of SCG playing have predominantly focused on US and Australian markets, and have not included digital gaming in examinations. This study uses cross-tabulation to analyze data from a nationally representative survey (n = 946). SCG play was found to be associated with lower levels of educational attainment, younger males, increased digital game play, gambling in digital games, increased use of free-to-play (F2P) games, and microtransactions. Finally, positive associations were found to exist with established forms of gambling, both online and offline. The findings of this research contribute to the understanding of growing convergence between digital gaming and gambling as it is the first to consider digital game play, SCG play and participation in gambling holistically. It found stronger associations between digital game play and SCG play than between gambling consumption and SCG play, thereby highlighting the importance of context in relationships between digital game consumption and gambling. Furthermore, younger generations of Finns are likely to experience convergent gambling-gaming elements in digital gaming platforms and online environments before engaging in traditional gambling activities.

Gambling Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic Among European Regular Sports Bettors: An Empirical Study Using Behavioral Tracking Data

The novel coronavirus-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has had major impacts on most societies worldwide including the cancelation and postponement of sports events. This has had a major impact on the sports betting industry. The present study is first to investigate the behavior of a sample of online sports bettors before and after COVID-19 measures were put in place by European governments. The authors were given access to the player data by a large European online gambling operator comprising players from Sweden, Germany, Finland, and Norway. The behavioral change of the sports bettors before March 7 and after March 7 (2020) was computed. All sports bettors who placed at least one wager in at least 5 calendar weeks out of the 10 possible calendar weeks between January 1 and March 7 (n = 5396) were included in the analysis. Results showed statistically significant reductions among sports bettors wagering in online casinos. This indicates that there was no conversion of money spent from sports betting to online casino games, at least for this particular online gambling operator. The findings suggest that there was a significant decrease in the amount of money wagered by sports bettors during the COVID-19 pandemic (compared with before it) and that sports bettors did not switch to playing more online casino games and that there was also a significant reduction in playing online casino games among sports bettors.

Do EGMs have a Stronger Association with Problem Gambling than Racing and Casino Table Games? Evidence from a Decade of Australian Prevalence Studies

Although it is often assumed that electronic gaming machines (EGMs) are associated with the highest level of risk, it has proved difficult to find reliable evidence in support of this proposition. In this paper, we analysed statistics from major Australian community prevalence studies for the period 2011-2020 to investigate whether EGMs (in comparison to racing and casino table games) have a stronger association with problem gambling. All prevalence studies reviewed used telephone sampling and the Problem Gambling Severity Index to assess problem gambling. In this paper, we examine the principal hypothesis using several lines of evidence, including whether problem gamblers are more likely to gamble and gamble regularly on EGMs as opposed to racing and casino games and if the EGM-problem gambling association was maintained after controlling for other forms of participation. Results showed that of all gambling activities, EGMs do appear to have the strongest association with problem gambling. Despite having a disproportionately higher level of participation on racing and casino games as compared with other gamblers, problem gamblers are more likely to report regular or weekly participation in EGM gambling and this may be the reason why this activity emerges most strongly as a predictor of problem gambling in multivariate models. This finding is particularly salient, given the very high prevalence of EGM participation, compared to other risky gambling forms. The findings underscore the importance of survey reporting that presents results in a form that can inform policy relevant research relating to the potential impact of different gambling activities.

Equivalent gambling warning labels are perceived differently.

Background and AimsThe same information may be perceived differently, depending on how it is described. The risk information given on many gambling warning labels tends to accentuate what a gambler might expect to win, e.g. ‘This game has an average percentage payout of 90%’ (return‐to‐player), rather than what a gambler might expect to lose, e.g. ‘This game keeps 10% of all money bet on average’ (house‐edge). We compared gamblers’ perceived chances of winning and levels of warning label understanding under factually equivalent return‐to‐player and house‐edge formats.DesignOnline surveys: experiment 1 was designed to test how gamblers’ perceived chances of winning would vary under equivalent warning labels, and experiment 2 explored how often equivalent warning labels were correctly understood by gamblers.SettingUnited Kingdom.ParticipantsUK nationals, aged 18 years and over and with experience of virtual on‐line gambling games, such as on‐line roulette, were recruited from an on‐line crowd‐sourcing panel (experiment 1, n = 399; experiment 2, n = 407).MeasurementsThe main dependent variables were a gambler's perceived chances of winning on a seven‐point Likert scale (experiment 1) and a multiple‐choice measure of warning label understanding (experiment 2).FindingsThe house‐edge label led to lower perceived chances of winning in experiment 1, F (1, 388) = 19.03, P < 0.001. In experiment 2, the house‐edge warning label was understood by more gamblers [66.5, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 60.0%, 73.0%] than the return‐to‐player warning label (45.6%, 95% CI = 38.8%, 52.4%, z = 4.22, P < 0.001).ConclusionsHouse‐edge warning labels on electronic gambling machines and on‐line casino games, which explain what a gambler might expect to lose, could help gamblers to pay greater attention to product risk and would be better understood by gamblers than equivalent return‐to‐player labels.

Over-Indebtedness and Problem Gambling in a General Population Sample of Online Gamblers.

BackgroundOnline gambling has increased in recent years, including online casino games and live sports betting which constitute rapid gambling activities with significant potential for gambling-related harm. There is a paucity of research examining whether specific gambling patterns are related to problem gambling and over-indebtedness, when controlling for psychological distress, gender, and other risk factors.MethodsA general population-based web panel of 1,004 online gamblers were examined in an online survey addressing problem gambling symptoms (the PGSI), psychological distress (Kessler- 6), past 30-day gambling activities, past 30-day gambling losses, history of subjective over-indebtedness and expected over-indebtedness in the near future, as well as socio-demographic data.ResultsIn logistic regression analyses, problem gambling was associated with psychological distress, recent online casino gambling, and recent combined online casino gambling and live sports betting. History of over-indebtedness was associated with recent combined online casino gambling and live sports betting, and expected over-indebtedness was associated with online casino gambling. Problem gambling, and a history of having borrowed money for gambling, were markedly higher in online casino gamblers, compared to subjects not reporting this gambling activity. Problem gambling was markedly more common in women, but was not associated with gender in the adjusted analysis.ConclusionsIn online gamblers, high rates of problem gambling and over-indebtedness were seen, and online casino gambling (alone or in combination with live sports betting), was associated with remarkably increased risk. Gender distribution of problem gamblers was clearly in contrast to that found in previous problem gambling literature. These findingsa suggest regulations in the market of online casino gambling, and prevention of over-indebtedness in gambling-related borrowing, in consumer credit counselling and in mental health care. In particular, female gender may need to be addressed as a stronger risk factor than previously described.

확장된 계획행동이론(ETPB)을 활용한 카지노딜러의 도박행동의도에 관한 연구

This study aims to analyze the effects of casino employees and dealers on game behavior intentions based on the theory of planned behavior and to empirically analyze the expanded behavior by applying the irrational gambling belief variables according to the job characteristics of dealers. The results of the study were as follows: First, attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control, which are independent variables of the theory of planned behavior, had a significant effect on irrational gambling beliefs. Second, the attitude and subjective norms except perceived behavioral control among the theory of planned behavior had a significant effect on casino game behavior intention. Third, irrational gambling belief had a significant effect on game behavior intention. Therefore, it is necessary to continuously monitor and support casino dealers in the management level so that they can participate in gambling addiction prevention and healing programs and create a healthy casino culture in the workplace.

Connection Between Poker Playing and Problem Gambling with Sociodemographic Factors and Other Gambling Activities.

Many variables predisposing to gambling and problem gambling are already known. Yet, little is still known about the factors associated with poker, which is one of the most popular and the fastest growing areas of gambling, especially among young people. The aim of our study was to identify the relationship of selected sociodemographic factors with playing poker and problematic gambling. The other gambling activities was also included. The results of the regression analysis demonstrated that the following variables were connected with playing poker: place of residence (p < 0.001), mother's education (p = 0.004) and that of father (p = 0.046), material status, both of family of origin and current, and financial independence (p < 0.001). The risk of problem gambling is higher in case of players with low assessment of their own current material status (p = 0.028) and those who are financially dependent (p = 0.046). The risk level of problem gambling is also associated with the poker players' involvement in: slot machine games, sports betting, Totalizator Sportowy (Lotto) games, casino games (for all variables, the significance level is p < 0.001). The acquired data helped us to identify the groups most exposed to playing poker and excessive involvement in the game and may contribute to the development of appropriate prevention programs to protect persons belonging to the risk group.

Disrupting Unwanted Habits in Online Gambling Through Information Technology

The instant access to gambling anytime, anywhere, has made online gambling highly habitual for some people. As a result, some online gamblers choose to volitionally enable the website-provided disruptive information technology (IT) features to control their gambling routines. The objective of this study is to examine the role of these features in regulating online gambling behavior. It is worthwhile to note that in this research, we do not make the assumption that habitual or regular online gambling is a bad thing; nor does the development of our conceptual framework — which focuses on the effect of disruptive IT features and moderating roles of individual regularity and game type in modifying gambling routines — depend on such an assumption.Drawing on theories of habitual automaticity and habit disruption, the conceptual framework theorizes the efficacy and mechanism of disruptive features while taking into account heterogeneity in individual regularity and game type. We tested the model using data collected over 10 years from 3,526 users of a gambling website. First, we found that individuals’ repetitive gambling patterns weakened as the duration of exposure to disruptive features increased. Second, the behavior of more regular gamblers was more resistant to the disruptive features, because more regular gamblers exhibited a stronger habitual pattern. Third, disruptive features were less effective on sports games compared with casino games, because sports gamblers tended to exhibit stronger gambling routines. Overall, the present study contributes to the information systems (IS) literature by clarifying how simple IT features may disrupt unwanted and difficult-to-break online gambling habits as judged by the gamblers. Our findings are likeliest to apply to broader areas of online services in which the application in question is integrated into everyday life and the system can offer a disruptive mechanism.

LIVE Baccarat calculations: Macau machine gambling and the production of the post-socialist subject

ABSTRACT Following Portugal’s return of Macau to the People’s Republic of China in 1999, and the subsequent liberalization of the city’s 150-year-old casino monopoly, Macau was transformed into the world’s most lucrative site of casino gaming. Today Macau attracts more than 30 million annual tourists, the majority of whom are from mainland China. This article analyzes an electronic casino game called LIVE Baccarat, which was created by a Hong Kong biopharmaceutical company, and designed to appeal to Chinese gamblers in Macau. Drawing on the work of Michel Callon and Michel Foucault, I explore the ways in which the LIVE Baccarat gaming machine ‘economizes’ the game of baccarat by introducing novel betting functions which require gamblers to engage in various forms of financial calculation, including calqulation, hedging, arbitrage, and portfolio management. LIVE Baccarat is a biopolitical apparatus of subjection of a post-socialist Chinese homo economicus, a form of ‘human capital’ which Foucault might call an ‘entrepreneur of the self.’ This subject not only plays a remunerative role in Macau’s gaming industry, but conforms to China’s macroeconomic goals to engender ‘quality’ citizens equipped to support a domestic consumer market which may supplant the unsustainable production-for-export regime that drove the country’s initial post-reform development.

Structural or dispositional? An experimental investigation of the experience of winning in social casino games (and impulsivity) on subsequent gambling behaviors.

Background and aimsIn the present research, we experimentally investigated whether the experience of winning (i.e., inflated payout rates) in a social casino game influenced social casino gamers’ subsequent decision to gamble for money. Furthermore, we assessed whether facets of dispositional impulsivity – negative and positive urgency in particular – also influenced participants’ subsequent gambling.MethodsSocial casino gamers who were also current gamblers (N = 318) were asked to play a social casino game to assess their perceptions of the game in exchange for $3. Unbeknownst to them, players were randomly assigned to one of three experimental conditions: winning (n = 110), break-even (n = 103), or losing (n = 105). After playing, participants were offered a chance to gamble their $3 renumeration in an online roulette game.ResultsA total of 280 participants (88.1%) elected to gamble, but no between-condition variation in the decision to gamble emerged. Furthermore, there were no differences in gambling on the online roulette between condition. However, higher levels of both negative and positive urgency increased the likelihood of gambling. Finally, impulsivity did not moderate the relationship between experience of winning and decision to gamble.ConclusionThe results suggest that dispositional factors, including impulsive urgency, are implicated in the choice to gamble for social casino gamers following play.

Gambling involvement, type of gambling and grade point average among 18-29-year-old Finnish men and women.

Aims:This study explores the associations between gambling involvement, type of gambling, at-risk and problem gambling (ARPG) and register-based grade point average (GPA), among Finnish people aged 18–29 years (N = 676). It is assumed that high gambling involvement and engaging in certain types of gambling are linked to ARPG, and that low school achievement is positively associated with these measures.Methods:A nationwide cross-sectional random sample was collected in 2015. The data were weighted based on gender, age and region. Analyses were carried out using logistic regression models.Results:Frequent gambling, playing several game types, online gambling and ARPG were more common among men than women. Those with low GPA played fast and low-paced daily lottery games and used online casinos significantly more often than men and women with average/high GPA. Men with a low GPA were also more likely to gamble on a weekly basis and played casino games and online poker more often. For women with a low GPA online gambling and playing slot machines were more common than for women with an average/high GPA. When controlling for sociodemographic variables and gambling involvement, men’s participation in daily lottery games and online poker was significantly associated with a low GPA, but among women none of the game types remained statistically significant. Among women, playing several different game types was linked with a low GPA.Conclusions:It seems that poorer school achievement is associated not only with frequent gambling, a large number of game types played and online gambling, but also, to some extent at least, with game type preferences.

Gambling on Big Data: Designing Risk in Social Casino Games

Since 2007, a surge of new gambling opportunities, often referred to as social casino gaming, has emerged on social media platforms and mobile apps. At the present time, the social casino gaming industry is unregulated and challenges our conventional understanding of gambling and risk. Currently, the minimum age requirement to create a profile on Facebook and engage in social casino games is 13 years of age. The emergence of this new gambling frontier, and its low barrier to entry, inevitably adds a new layer of risk and raises several ethical considerations for public health and risk regulation professionals, particularly to developers’ use of game mechanics and advanced data analytics. Using findings from a virtual ethnographic case study focusing on Zynga Poker (ZP), this article will call attention to potential ethical and risk concerns about game mechanics and the use of big data to personalise players’ gameplay to optimise player engagement and monetisation.

Demand forecasting model development through big data analysis

This study aims to predict the visit rate of game customers in order to efficiently deploy dealers to for table games in foreign-only casinos. The goal is to predict the number of customers visiting each casino game event by date and business hour, and ultimately, to predict the number of game tables necessary per game. Once the number of game tables has been decided upon, the number of game dealers going into the game will be decided, thus enabling efficient dealer operation. The number of games at the casino in question is nine, and the hours of operation are divided into three sections per day. The data used in the analysis are data on customer game history from January 2013 to December 2015 in certain areas of foreigner-only casinos in Korea, and external environment data such as holidays per country, exchange rate information, and weather conditions were utilized as well. In addition, the correlation between variables was analyzed and the key derived variables were utilized. As an analytical tool, SAS’s Big Data analysis tool was used. The prediction shows that some games have a 10–16.2% prediction error based on MAPE. Further, by MAE, there are no more than five absolute errors. Further research could result in more accurate predictions if data such as customer’s gaming preferences, environmental variables of casino businesses, and national situations were added to the analysis.

POSSIBLE LEGAL COURSE OF ACTION UPON THE TERM EXPIRATION OF THE MACAU SAR CASINO CONCESSIONS AND CASINO SUB‐CONCESSION CONTRACTS VIS‐À‐VIS THE MACAU GAMING LAW

POSSIBLE LEGAL COURSE OF ACTION UPON THE TERM EXPIRATION OF THE MACAU SAR CASINO CONCESSIONS AND CASINO SUB‐CONCESSION CONTRACTS VIS‐À‐VIS THE MACAU GAMING LAW

Substance Use and Gambling Patterns Among Adolescents: Differences According to Gender and Impulsivity.

Although alcohol, tobacco and cannabis are the most prevalent drugs used by adolescents, gambling is a growing concern due to its increasing popularity. To date there have been few studies exploring the existing patterns of concurrent use of drugs and gambling in adolescents. This study aims to identify subpopulations of adolescents using different substances and gambling activities, to explore gender differences and to examine impulsivity as a predictor of class membership. A cross-sectional survey was carried out in 22 high-schools, and 1644 adolescents were assessed (54.1% males; mean age = 15.21years, SD=.75). Participants reported their last-year frequency of using alcohol, tobacco and cannabis, as well as bingo, poker, other casino games, sports betting, lottery, scratch tickets and electronic gaming machines. Problem drinking was evaluated with the Rutgers Alcohol Problems Index, and gambling severity with the South Oaks Gambling Scale for Adolescents. Impulsivity was assessed using a Delay Discounting task, the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale and the Impulsive Sensation-Seeking Scale. Based on a latent class model of drugs and gambling activities, four subpopulations of males and five of females were found. General impulsivity and sensation seeking were the most consistent predictors of class membership. These novel findings support the need to consider specific groups of adolescents engaging in different patterns of addictive behaviors when implementing selective prevention strategies.

National survey on lifestyles and gambling in Serbia: gambling participation and problem gambling in adult population

ABSTRACTThe aim was to examine the association of socio-demographic and lifestyle characteristics with gambling severity level. The study was a part of the National Survey on Lifestyles in Serbia: Substance Abuse and Gambling, in 2014. The sample consisted of 5385 individuals. Based on the Problem Gambling Severity Index (PGSI) score participants were divided into non-problem gambling, low-/moderate-risk gambling and problem gambling. Prevalence of problem gambling was 0.5%, which was associated with having poor self-perceived financial status, having moderate or high risk for psychological distress, playing sports betting, casino games and slot machines. Low/moderate gambling was associated with having poor self-perceived financial status, number of drinking days per year, using any illicit drugs in the last 30 days, playing sports betting, slot machines, and online betting. Programmes of early detection of problem gambling should be developed, and regulation of availability of slot machines and sports betting.

Factors associated with social casino gaming among adolescents across game types

BackgroundWith the proliferation of social casino games (SCGs) online, which offer the opportunity to gamble without monetary gains and losses, comes a growing concern regarding the effects of these unregulated games on public health, particularly among adolescents. However, given the limited research pertaining to SCG use, little is currently known about the manner in which adolescents engage with this new gambling medium. The present study aims to identify the factors that characterize adolescent social casino gamers, and to determine whether these factors differ by SCG type. Moreover, the study examines the extent to which social casino gaming is associated with monetary gambling and problem gambling in this cohort.MethodData were obtained from students in Grades 9 to 12 (n = 10,035) residing in the Canadian provinces of Ontario, Saskatchewan, and Newfoundland and Labrador. Participants completed the Youth Gambling Survey (YGS), which is a supplementary instrument administered alongside the Canadian Student Tobacco, Alcohol and Drugs Survey (CSTADS). Logistic regression was used to assess the factors associated with SCG play.ResultsOverall, 12.4% of respondents reported having participated in SCGs in the past three months. Compared to adolescents who did not report playing SCGs, SCG players were typically more likely to participate in monetary gambling activities, and were more prevalently classified as problem gamblers of low-to-moderate severity or high severity. Although profiles of SCG players differed across SCG game types, factors significantly associated with the playing of SCGs were gender, weekly spending money, having friends and parents who gamble, and screen time. It was also shown that current smokers were significantly more likely to participate in simulated slots online relative to adolescents who did not play SCGs.ConclusionSignificant associations exist between SCG play, monetary gambling, and problem gambling among adolescents. Gambling intervention efforts directed at this population should aim to identify personal and environmental factors associated with social casino gaming, and should be tailored to different types of SCGs.