Safer Gambling Messages Often Fail to Reach Women: New Study Reveals Gaps

The way the gambling industry communicates about player protection often misses the reality of many women's lives. This is the conclusion of a study by Singapore-based consultancy Growth Exposed. Researchers evaluated 23 specific decisions made by 13 adults in the UK who attempted to increase or decrease control over their gambling behavior. The results show that a warning only lands when players feel the message is directly addressed to them. Many of the women interviewed stated that they perceived the notices as a bureaucratic exercise by the companies rather than a help offer for their personal situation.

Stigmatization of seeking help is particularly striking. For example, one participant reported that she saw help as reserved for severe cases, mostly involving older male gamblers. Since she did not classify her own problem as that serious, she feared taking scarce charity resources away from others who needed them more. Her perception only changed when she encountered stories from other mothers talking about their gambling problems. Suddenly, the intervention felt relevant, credible, and safe enough to act upon. This illustrates that generic messages often fail because they offer no figures for identification.

"I didn't think that's aimed at me. I thought that's aimed at everyone." - Lily, UK research participant (pseudonym)

Numbers and facts

The study by Growth Exposed was based on 23 reconstructed decisions regarding gambling control. The researchers identified five recurring contexts in which players try to adjust their behavior. These include putting a safety net in place before getting carried away, taking a reset to return to enjoying sports, and seeking stronger external barriers after personal limits have failed. Neil Burge, founder of Growth Exposed, emphasizes that there is no universal journey towards a problem gambler identity. Instead, people are trying to solve very different problems. Some just want a little more control, while others feel that sports are no longer the focus of their interest due to betting.

"The industry understandably spends a lot of time asking whether players have seen a safer-gambling message. Our interviews suggest another question matters first: did the player recognise that the message was speaking to someone like them?" - Neil Burge, Founder of Growth Exposed

Background

Previous research has already shown that stigma and the perception of gambling problems as a purely male phenomenon represent major barriers for women. However, the current investigation by Growth Exposed approaches the topic from a new perspective by analyzing the actual timelines and motivations behind individual control decisions. It became clear that female players often view safety warnings as something companies are required to show, rather than evidence of personal relevance. The loss of control is often only admitted when the messages are conveyed by people who are similar to the players.

Why it matters for German players

For German players, this topic is highly relevant as the State Treaty on Gambling 2021 (GlüStV 2021) sets strict requirements for player protection. In Germany, measures such as the cross-operator deposit limit of 1,000 euros per month and the central LUGAS supervisory system are legally anchored. However, the study suggests that technical hurdles alone are not enough if the psychological appeal fails. If German licensees of the Gemeinsame Glücksspielbehörde der Länder (GGL) only display standardized warning texts, these could be ignored by female target groups just as observed in the British study. The 1 euro stake limit per spin for slots and the mandatory display of profit and loss statistics are helpful tools, but they must be supplemented by target-group-specific communication to increase the acceptance of help offers.

What it means for GGL-licensed casinos

German casinos with a GGL license face the challenge of making their prevention work more effective. It is not enough to formally meet the whitelist requirements. To truly fulfill the legal mandate for addiction prevention, providers should diversify their communication. This means that marketing and player protection messages must not only show the stereotypical player. Providers that use real stories or diverse avatars for safety messages on their portals could achieve a higher success rate in the early detection of problematic gambling behavior. The strict regulation by the GGL provides the legal framework for this, but operational implementation requires a deeper understanding of the different types of players, as called for by the Growth Exposed study.