Young People’s Perceptions of the Effects and Value of Sports Betting Inducements

Abstract

AbstractRecent research has focused on investigating the impact of sports betting inducements on individuals' gambling behaviour. Younger people are an important demographic, as they exhibit higher rates of sports betting engagement and are at a formative stage of life where they may be more vulnerable to potential harm. This study investigates how young people perceive the impact of four different types of betting inducements on betting behaviour. These inducements included sign-up, bonus bets, increased odds and stake-back offers. We recruited 130 participants (71.5% male) aged between 18 and 24 to complete an online survey. Participants were presented with four betting inducements that resembled social media betting advertisements. Participants were subsequently asked about how likely they were to place a bet and if they would be more likely to engage in higher-risk betting had they received each inducement. They also reported their perceived value of each inducement. The findings indicate that sign-up and bonus bet inducements were perceived to have a stronger influence on increasing betting behaviour and engaging in higher-risk gambling compared to stake-back and increased odds inducements. These inducements were also seen as having greater promotional value. Those who experience gambling problems were found to be more inclined to believe that incentives could motivate them to engage in riskier gambling behaviours. The study provides needed data on the effects of exposing participants to purposely designed promotions for betting inducements. The findings suggest that implementing policies to restrict inducements for sports betting could help mitigate gambling-related harm among young people. This appears especially true for incentives that lower the cost of betting or offer free bets.