How to assess the risk of different games and products

The brief discusses research approaches to assess product risk and their pros and cons, noting challenges in basing policy on high-quality evidence.

Categories

The research explores how different gambling products and features contribute to player risk, and how product-level characteristics—such as speed of play or volatility—can elevate the likelihood of harmful gambling behavior. Key findings:

• Nine Risk Assessment Methods Identified: The study outlines nine distinct approaches to evaluating product risk, including theory-driven analysis, player and expert dialogue, lab experiments, A/B testing, and historic play data analysis—each with unique strengths and limitations.
• Challenges in Causal Inference: Seven key challenges were identified when using historic play data to assess product risk, including issues with causality, data linkage, sample selection, and confounding factors.
• No One-Size-Fits-All Method: Each method has trade-offs; therefore, a pluralistic and cautious approach is recommended, combining multiple methods for robust conclusions.
• Context Matters: Product risk is not universal—it varies by demographic, jurisdiction, and time. What is risky in one setting may not be in another.
• Call for Higher-Quality Research: The brief emphasizes the need for fewer but more rigorous studies, warning against overconfidence in findings from lower-quality or methodologically limited research.

These insights support the development of evidence-based, context-sensitive strategies for assessing and mitigating product risk in gambling. For full details, please refer to the complete document.