education

From a new video series to an extraordinary amount of funding for cutting-edge research, the NCRG has many accomplishments to celebrate in 2013. The NCRG staff compiled a few of the highlights from the past year.

Once again, the NCRG Conference on Gambling and Addiction continued its partnership with Global Gaming Expo (G2E) by offering the "NCRG at G2E" track of sessions on October 2. For the second year, the NCRG Conference co-located with G2E, making it easier for attendees of both events to learn about best practices in responsible gaming. The first session on this year’s NCRG at G2E series took a close look howtreatment providers report on their use of funds and how government and the private sector evaluates the impact of these services.

Continuing the theme of “Exploring New Trends in Recovery, Research and Responsible Gaming,” Monday’s NCRG Conference sessions took a close look at responsible gaming strategies. The afternoon session let by Robert Ladouceur, Ph.D., professor emeritus of psychology at Laval University, talked about smart cards and examined whether or not they were effective in encouraging responsible play among gamblers.

The NCRG is on the road again, and we’re heading to Miami, Fla., for the 2012 Annual Education Summit! Each year, the NCRG travels to a new city to hold a series of events that gives the NCRG the opportunity to meet with clinicians, legislators, public health officials, business leaders, government officials, academics and gaming industry members. These meetings allow the NCRG to discuss the latest research on gambling disorders and responsible gaming and share the most up-to-date resources and tools that can help attendees in their community leadership positions.

The NCRG is pleased to announce that we will be visiting Miami, Fla., from April 30 to May 2. If you are located in South Florida, please feel free to register for any of our Summit events by contacting Amy Martin (amartin@ncrg.org, 202-552-2689). All of the events are free for participants, and clinicians can also receive continuing education credits by attending the treatment provider workshop on May 2.

2011 was a year of growth for the NCRG. We have many accomplishments to celebrate, from the launch of a first-of-its-kind online resource for college students and administrators to a redesigned website and new social media channels. Taking a cue from Dr. Thomas Insel, director of the National Institutes of Mental Health, we decided to make a list of the NCRG’s top 11 accomplishments in 2011.

During the 12^th annual NCRG Conference on Gambling and Addiction, researchers presented more than 37 posters that showcased the latest studies on gambling disorders and responsible gaming. The posters included research such as a study of young adults that explored the connection between measures of problematic gambling behavior and impulsivity, and research that looked for associations of computer game involvement and problem gambling behavior among online players.

The October 3 afternoon session of the 12th annual NCRG Conference on Gambling and Addiction featured two leading researchers and their latest studies about youth gambling. Randy Stinchfield, Ph.D., clinical psychologist and associate director of the Center for Adolescent Substance Abuse Research at the University of Minnesota, discussed his longitudinal research on the rates of youth gambling in Minnesota since 1992. Marc Potenza, M.D., Ph.D., professor of psychiatry in the child study center and of neurobiology and founding director of the Problem Gambling Clinic at Yale University School of Medicine, presented his findings from a survey of Connecticut youth that further explored the factors that are associated with teen gambling behavior. Dr. Potenza is also the principal investigator of the NCRG Center of Excellence in Gambling Research at Yale University.

A Monday afternoon session during the 12th annual NCRG Conference on Gambling and Addiction featured two leading researchers and their most recent studies about youth gambling. Randy Stinchfield, Ph.D., clinical psychologist and associate director of the Center for Adolescent Substance Abuse Research at the University of Minnesota, discussed rates of youth gambling in Minnesota since 1992. Marc Potenza, M.D., Ph.D., professor of psychiatry in the child study center and of neurobiology and founding director of the Problem Gambling Clinic at Yale University School of Medicine, presented his findings from a survey of Connecticut youth to understand the factors that can influence teen gambling behavior.

Breakout sessions at the NCRG Conference on Gambling and Addiction are a unique opportunity to hear from leaders in research on gambling disorders and responsible gaming in a smaller setting. Joachim Häeusler, the responsible gaming manager at bwin.party digital entertainment (bwin.party), led a Sunday-evening breakout session at this year's conference that examined the company’s comprehensive player-protection program, as well as what the company’s goals for future responsible gaming initiatives.

What is the impact of Internet gambling and video games on young people? Are the rates of gambling and problem gambling in this population remaining stable or changing? Researchers Randy Stinchfield, Ph.D., University of Minnesota, and Marc Potenza, M.D., Ph.D., Yale University, will discuss this topic at the 12^th annual NCRG Conference on Gambling and Addiction. Their session on Monday, October 3 is titled “What the Research Shows: The Latest on Teen Gambling” and will report on the latest research on youth gambling.

Regarding youth gambling, results from the Minnesota Student Survey suggest that the rates of youth gambling have declined from 1992 to 2007.  According to Dr. Stinchfield’s (2011) study published in Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, an analysis of this survey suggests a decline in gambling behaviors among ninth and 12^th grade Minnesota public, charter and tribal school students. In an interview with the NCRG earlier this year, Dr. Stinchfield offered explanations for some of his findings.