CNBC reports billionaires John and Laura Arnold are offering more than $2 million in research grants to universities to study the risks of online sports betting.
The grants will help researchers “look at the effect of gambling on financial well-being, household formation, mental health and consumer behavior.”
Thanks to internet gambling, placing a bet is now as easy as sending a text.
Researchers say more than half of men ages 18 – 49 now have an active sportsbook account online. Arkansans wagered a record $86.5 million in March alone this year.
But experts and policymakers are raising serious concerns about the impact this type of gambling may be having on our society.
A study published last month found gambling disorder diagnoses have risen more than 60% in states that legalized sports betting. Researchers said the largest increase in gambling disorders was found among young adults ages 18 – 29.
People who gamble on sports are at an increased risk of suffering from gambling problems. When sports betting happens online or on a smartphone, the rate is even higher.
Mobile sports betting apps use addictive technology to hook people — especially young adults. A recent report from mental health professionals at Baptist Health South Florida found that internet gambling platforms are engineered to keep people engaged, using instant rewards and near-misses to trigger the same brain chemistry as other addictions.
Bankruptcy attorneys across the country say online sports betting is driving a surge in personal bankruptcies — especially among young men in their 20s and 30s — and researchers at UCLA estimate that online sportsbooks are linked to an increase of roughly 30,000 more bankruptcies per year nationwide.
Experts are also sounding the alarm over “prediction markets” that they say are not regulated under state gambling laws, but are still just as addictive as other forms of online gambling.
Maybe all of this is part of the reason why polling now shows most Americans do not believe sports betting has been good for society or good for sports.
Arkansas families need to understand that sports betting isn’t harmless entertainment — it’s predatory, and it’s growing.
As powerful corporations try to make gambling part of everyday life, it’s important for Arkansas to protect its citizens and families from predatory gambling. Otherwise, gambling addiction will simply continue wrecking lives and hurting families in our state.
Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.
