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Flipping the iceberg on gambling harm reduction and prevention: Challenges, opportunities, and pathways to policy reform

New Content ItemGuest Editor: Maria Bellringer, PhD, PGDipHSc (Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand)

Samantha Thomas, PhD, Section Editor for Gambling (Centre for Population Health Research, Deakin University, Australia)


Editor-in-Chief: Prof Nick Crofts

Gambling is now a well recognized public health issue. Gambling products are readily accessible and available, open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with individuals able to gamble, and lose more money on high intensity products than ever before. While some countries have adopted a public health approach to gambling, many harm reduction policies focus on ‘responsible gambling’, rather than addressing the range of individual, socio-cultural, environmental, industry, and political factors that may contribute to harmful gambling.

This thematic series of Harm Reduction Journal aims to understand the range of factors that may be contributing to gambling harm, and strategies to ensure that comprehensive policies are implemented to reduce, and ultimately prevent this harm. In particular, the series seeks to understand the challenges facing gambling harm prevention and reduction, and to provide a range of strategies to prevent and reduce gambling harm.

  2. In recent years, greater emphasis has been placed on gambling venues to identify potential problem gamblers, respond appropriately and refer to treatment. In seeking the perspectives of problem gamblers, venue...

    Authors: Ben J. Riley, Simone Orlowski, David Smith, Michael Baigent, Malcolm Battersby and Sharon Lawn
    Citation: Harm Reduction Journal 2018 15:49
    Content type: Research Published on:

  3. Severe economic difficulties are common among younger generations who currently have an easy access to consumer credit and payday loans in many Western countries. These accessible yet expensive short-term loan...

    Authors: Atte Oksanen, Iina Savolainen, Anu Sirola and Markus Kaakinen
    Citation: Harm Reduction Journal 2018 15:45
    Content type: Research Published on:

  4. Women’s participation in, and harm from gambling, is steadily increasing. There has been very limited research to investigate how gambling behaviour, product preferences, and perceptions of gambling harm may v...

    Authors: Simone McCarthy, Samantha L. Thomas, Melanie Randle, Amy Bestman, Hannah Pitt, Sean Cowlishaw and Mike Daube
    Citation: Harm Reduction Journal 2018 15:22
    Content type: Research Published on:

  5. Previous research has shown that government and industry discussions of gambling may focus on personal responsibility for gambling harm. In Australia, these discussions have largely excluded people with lived ...

    Authors: Helen E. Miller, Samantha L. Thomas and Priscilla Robinson
    Citation: Harm Reduction Journal 2018 15:16
    Content type: Research Published on:

  6. Harmful gambling has been identified as an important public health issue that affects individuals, families and the broader community. One gambling product, electronic gambling machines (EGMs), has been associ...

    Authors: Amy Bestman, Samantha L. Thomas, Melanie Randle, Hannah Pitt and Mike Daube
    Citation: Harm Reduction Journal 2018 15:15
    Content type: Research Published on: