New foundation promotes greater understanding of gambling behaviour

The German Gambling Research Foundation was only established in March 2024 and recently issued a press statement outlining its objectives. Broadly speaking, the aim is to deepen understanding of gambling behaviour, promote consumer protection and, last but not least, support preventive measures against gambling addiction. The central means for this are prizes that are awarded for research that is particularly useful in terms of the objectives.

Studies and surveys on the German gambling landscape are undoubtedly a useful tool for understanding the market and identifying potential difficulties in terms of regulation and gambling behaviour. However, it is not uncommon for the data in question and the initiators to be viewed with reservations, such as in the case of the massive criticism of the 2021 Gambling Survey by renowned statistician Katharina Schüller.

With its work, the German Gambling Research Foundation is therefore active in an important, but highly controversial area. The foundation is led by experienced companies, namely Spielbank Bad Homburg v.d.H., Thüringer Staatslotterie AÖR, Tipico Technology Holding GmbH and Dr Daniel Henzgen, a member of the management team at Löwen Entertainment GmbH. The mission statement of the founders and the entire organisation is: "For evidence and excellence in consumer protection."

The declared main objective of the foundation is to promote independent, "innovative research that contributes to a better understanding and prevention of gambling addiction and to the improvement of consumer welfare". This is ultimately intended to support the core concerns of the State Treaty on Gambling. In this context, up to four research prizes totalling 630,000 euros and regular conferences are planned each year. An international advisory board is to provide helpful impetus.

Research prizes as a central means of gaining new insights

The German Gambling Research Foundation aims to contribute to a better gambling market for all sides with the help of new findings: this is the quintessence of the organisation's first public presentation. In detail, this means that up to three research prizes are awarded annually for work that provides such new conclusions or data on gambling in Germany and expands our understanding of it.

The foundation's website states in summary: "The selection includes work that explicitly analyses customer experience and/or customer acceptance. The submissions will be evaluated by an independent jury of scientific experts according to their innovative character and scientific quality."

Some further or more specific conditions are set, but in principle anyone can submit a "theoretical, empirical or methodological scientific paper".

1. The best contributions will be honoured with generous prize money. The main prize is the "German Innovation Prize for Gambling Research", which is to be awarded up to three times a year. The winners can look forward to 200,000 euros each (with the sum being split between the authors and their nominating institution).
2. In addition to the innovation prize, there will also be the "German Young Researcher Prize for Gambling Research", which is specifically aimed at student researchers. It will be awarded to an individual within 10 years of graduation. The prize money amounts to 30,000 euros.

The person responsible for management at the foundation describes the relevance of the awards as follows:

"The announcement of our innovation awards makes it possible for the first time to honour innovative and excellent gambling research in Germany that focuses on consumer behaviour in all dimensions."

Applications can be easily submitted online via the website of the German Gambling Research Foundation.

Stimulus from an international scientific advisory board

The founding bodies do not, however, organise the to-dos surrounding the awards on their own. A scientific advisory board made up of international experts is named as an important body. This group is primarily there to make suggestions and recommendations and should be consulted on all decisions.

However, the main task of the advisory board is to organise the application process for the research awards. This includes, in particular, the review process and the selection of award winners in the sense of an expert jury, according to the statement on the website.

None of the members are researchers from a German institution. Most of the scientists work at universities in the USA. This is surprising at first, but may be a measure to ensure that German market conditions are assessed as independently as possible.

Annual conference to uncover new opportunities

The press statement mentioned above also referred to the founding symposium, which is said to have taken place at the Science Congress Centre Garching. There, the organisers announced that an annual conference of the German Gambling Research Foundation was planned for the future.

This event would be used to exchange views on current scientific discourse in gambling research, but also to explore new possibilities and opportunities. Overall, the future of the sector should be shaped together.

Conclusion

Image source: Screenshot wissenschaftlicher Beirat Deutsche Stiftung Glücksspielforschung von https://deutsche-stiftung-gluecksspielforschung.de/