GambleAware is seeking to fund a research project that will further develop an understanding of informal and self-directed tools and strategies for reducing, preventing or managing gambling harms in Great Britain.
The project will build upon the findings in the ‘Self-help strategies for reducing gambling harms: Scoping study’ published in August 2023, which highlighted that people experiencing gambling harm were likely to use self-guided options to reduce the harms they were experiencing, but there is a “lack of knowledge on the most effective types of strategies or modes of delivery for gambling harm reduction”.
In addition, the August 2023 research found a “significant gap in the evidence regarding the experience and preferences of people who engage in self-directed change, particularly those from marginalised groups”.
Granting £297,900 in funds over 18 months, GambleAware is using the term ‘self-directed tools and strategies’ in this research project to include “any self-directed treatment that provides individuals with access to information and support including self-help tools, thought processes and online self-directed interventions to control or manage their own change”.
Since self-directed treatment allows individuals to work at their own pace and may include little or no professional oversight, the charity has stated the research is essential to make sure those who want to reduce their gambling but don’t want formal support, are represented in behaviour change messaging and future treatment or prevention commissioning.
Research applicants must have previously undertaken research to “build knowledge and understanding of strategies or interventions for reducing and preventing gambling, demonstrated experience conducting research on issues of social exclusion, stigma and discrimination as barriers faced by marginalised communities accessing services, and exemplify a specific focus on centring the agency, self-determination, and empowerment of respondents and research participants”.
The deadline for proposal submission is 5pm on February 29.
Earlier this month, GambleAware announced that it is looking to fund a research project to better understand gambling harms in the LGBTQ+ community.