18 February 2022

Founder and Director of CNWL’s National Problem Gambling Clinic, Dr Henrietta Bowden-Jones, has contributed to a health policy paper calling for a 1% statutory levy on the gambling industry that could be administered by one of the UK’s main research funders.

The authors say that too little research is being conducted into problem gambling – and what research there is, is often funded by the gambling industry rather than by independent means.

Although many people gamble recreationally without undue negative effects, a sizeable number of people develop disordered gambling, which can lead to other mental health problems, relationship problems, bankruptcy, suicidality, and criminality.

The National UK Research Network for Behavioural Addictions (NUK-BA) was established to promote understanding of, research into, and treatments for behavioural addictions including gambling disorder.

Writing in The Lancet Psychiatry, they set out their priorities for tackling gambling disorder.

In their article, the NUK-BA sets out its top priorities for UK research into gambling disorder:

  • Conduct independent longitudinal research into the prevalence of disordered gambling (including gambling disorder and at-risk gambling), and gambling harms, including in vulnerable and minority groups
  • Select and refine the most suitable pragmatic measurement tools
  • Identify predictors – vulnerability and resilience markers – of disordered gambling in people who gamble recreationally, including in vulnerable and minority groups
  • Conduct randomised controlled trials on psychological interventions and pharmacotherapy for gambling disorder
  • Improve our understanding of the neurobiological basis of gambling disorder, including impulsivity and compulsivity, genetics, and biomarkers
  • Develop clinical guidelines based on the best contemporary research evidence to guide effective clinical interventions.

The paper can be read in The Lancet Psychiatry.