NSW supports additional gambling research with academic grants

The New South Wales (NSW) Office of Responsible Gambling has upped its commitment to gambling research after releasing the details for new academic research grants which will ‘help build capability and capacity in gambling research.’

The funding, which will come from the Australian state’s Responsible Gambling Fund, will help support PhD scholarships, post-doctoral fellowships and study grants. It is hoped that the academic research grants will be used to ‘improve the quality, diversity and impact of Australian gambling research in communities across the nation.’

Natalie Wright, Director of the Office of Responsible Gambling said these grants will bridge the gap between research, policy and service delivery to increase the influence of research on gambling harm prevention and minimisation and achieve better outcomes.

“We are committed to providing up-and-coming researchers with an opportunity to dedicate their careers to gambling studies and have a real impact in our community,” Wright explained.

“Research is crucial because it provides the evidence base for responsible gambling policy, interventions and programs, and it is important to encourage our brightest minds to stay in or move into the gambling research field.

“We encourage collaborative partnerships, cross-disciplinary approaches and applications from a diverse range of disciplines, to build knowledge and develop innovative approaches to working towards zero-gambling harm.”

The submission round for the PhD scholarships and post-doctoral fellowships opened yesterday (19 November) and will run to 31 January 2020.

Earlier this year, the NSW Office of Responsible Gambling took a number of steps into developing new responsible gambling initiatives, after investing AU$1.3m (£715,712) into player protection measures.

The initiatives included the launch of a new website, developed by the University of Sydney Gambling Treatment and Research Clinic, which gives punters the chance to self-exclude from gambling venues across the state.