The igaming company LeoVegas Group announces a four-year research project in partnership with the Karolinska Institutet’s Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Stockholm, one of the world’s leading medical universities. The research will aim to improve understanding of how to identify signs of problem gambling and, ultimately, prevent it. LeoVegas Group is providing funding and raw data to the research team, who will begin the project in autumn 2022.
LeoVegas Group and Karolinska Institutet’s Department of Clinical Neuroscience will launch a research project to increase understanding of gambling problems and improve methods for identifying and preventing them by studying the Group’s customer data. The joint project is being funded by LeoVegas Group and is part of the company’s efforts to inform the debate about responsible gaming by providing research to support evidence-based discussions, and ultimately lead to a reduction in the harmful effects of gambling.
Philip Lindner, an associate professor and leader of the university’s research unit with expertise in clinical and applied research in digital psychiatry will lead the project. The university’s research unit aims to develop, evaluate, and implement new tools for mapping and treating mental illness. The collaboration guarantees the researchers academic freedom, and the research will shortly be submitted for ethical review.
Gustaf Hagman, CEO of LeoVegas Group, said “Responsible gaming is an important priority for LeoVegas Group. We believe that our industry must take greater responsibility for contributing knowledge and facts about gambling-related problems, and learning how to minimise these issues. We are proud to be partnering with Karolinska Institutet to carry out this valuable research and hope that decision-makers and the igaming industry will be able to apply the findings in order to support more responsible gambling.’’
Philip Lindner, associate professor and research group leader at Karolinska Institutet, added “As researchers at universities, we have a duty to spread knowledge that is useful to society. This collaboration gives us a unique opportunity to study data that hasn’t previously been available for research. We hope that the collaboration will lead to new ways of identifying and helping players at risk, at the earliest possible stage.”
