Reflections on the Voluntary Self-Exclusion of Gamblers and the Law-Suits against Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation

Legalized gambling in Canada is governed by Provincial legislation. In Ontario, the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation is responsible for all aspects of gambling in the Province. There have been a number of recent lawsuits against this Crown agency of the Government of Ontario by gamblers, most of which have been settled or otherwise resolved. A recent class-action lawsuit on behalf of thousands of Ontario gamblers against this agency raises a number of interesting questions regarding the issue of responsibility and liability. The questions surround the issue of self-exclusionary practices of gamblers who deem themselves in need of external intervention in order interesting questions regarding the issue of responsibility and liability. The questions surround the issue to abstain from further gambling. A contract is voluntarily signed by the self-excluding gamblers whereby their further attendance at gaming venues is prevented and could be punishable by law. Where the gaming venues have failed to enforce the terms of this contract, gamblers have continued to gamble at these establishments. The class-action lawsuit stems from the grievances of these self-excluded gamblers who were not turned away. Relevant psychological theories and recent findings pertaining to gambling are reviewed and questions relevant to these grievances are discussed in favor of government responsibility and liability toward gamblers.     

Publication Delay in Iranian Scholarly Journals

Scholarly periodicals in Iran are considered main information resources in the development of knowledge in scholarly areas. About 566 periodicals have publication licenses from the Commission of Scholarly Periodicals Evaluation of Ministry of Science, Research & Technology (MSRT), with sixty-eight published in English. This paper studies the publication delay of twenty-six Iranian scholarly periodicals which are published in Persian in Iran, not those Iranian journals which are published in English in Iran or out of the country. The peer review and scholarly publication processes in Iranian journals are quite lengthy and need improvement. There was no significant relationship between publication delay in Persian scholarly periodicals and their impact factor as presented by the Islamic World Science Citation Center (titled ISC). Finally, the authors offer some solutions for improving the publication system of Iranian scholarly journals and decreasing the publication interval of these journals.     

Mothers Raising Daughters: New Complexities in Cultural Socialization for Children Adopted From China

This study examined the process of cultural socialization among 6- to 8-year-old girls adopted from China, with a focus on adoptive mothers’ decisions about their children's socialization and children's interest in and knowledge about China and being Chinese. Qualitative interviews of 10 mothers and their children were analyzed using a grounded theory approach. Three main categories were identified to further specify parental cultural socialization: (1) motivation, (2) approaches to differences, and (3) type of activities that differed in their contextual layers and their degree of structure. Findings additionally revealed the interplay between parents’ cultural socialization practices and children's interest in socialization, patterns of participation, and knowledge and understanding about China or being Chinese. Results suggest that parental cultural socialization in families with children adopted internationally and transracially is more dynamic, complex, and layered than previously thought.     

Growing Up in a Diverse Society: Adolescents’ Interest in Parental Religious Socialization Messages

Because Western societies are becoming increasingly religiously diverse, the sociocultural context in which young adolescents currently grow up differs from that of their parents. This raises the question to what extent adolescents are interested in communicating with their parents about religion. In a cross-sectional study of 498 Belgian adolescents ages 12–18-years (mean age = 14.94, SD = 1.34), we examined how adolescent interest in communicating with parents about religion was related to the link between parental religious socialization messages and adolescent religious out-group attitudes. Testing two models, we aimed to understand whether (a) adolescent interest in communicating with parents about religion mediated the link between parental religious socialization and adolescent religious out-group attitudes or (b) parental religious socialization mediated the link between adolescent interest in communicating with parents about religion and adolescent religious out-group attitudes. Results revealed a dynamic interplay between study variables, and highlighted the importance of considering adolescent interest in communicating with parents about religion.     

Attachment and joint attention in infants: The role of expectation

Previous research highlighted the correlation between parent–infant's attachment quality and joint attention skills. However, the underlying mechanisms of this relationship are still unclear. The aim of this study was to assess whether it is by mediating the expectation component in Internal Working Models that the quality of attachment style can affect joint attention. At first, 12- to 20-month-old infants were classified into secure and insecure groups using the Strange Situation Procedure. On a following day, using a violation-of-expectation paradigm, infants were habituated to two joint attention videos. Finally, the mean looking time duration of secure and insecure infants were compared with each other between two “divergent attention” and “joint attention” videos. Infants looked longer for divergent attention videos suggesting they did have expectation regarding the appropriate response in triadic interactions. In line with our main hypothesis, secure infants, but not insecure ones, looked longer in the divergent attention situation when an attachment-related context was present, revealing the possible mediating role of “expectations” in the correlation between attachment and joint attention.     

A Feasibility Study of Implementing the Policies on Increasing Birth Rate with an Emphasis on Socio-economic Status: A Case Study of Kermanshah Metropolis,Western Iran

Population and development have a mutual relationship, and more to the point, lack of sufficient knowledge on population development and fertility can lead to the presentation of inappropriate population plans in such a way that they may turn out to be useless and ineffective even in the event of implementation. So, the present study aimed to delve into the feasibility of implementing the new governmental policies on increasing birth rate with an emphasis on the socioeconomic status in Kermanshah Metropolis, Iran. To evaluate poverty and fertility in Kermanshah Metropolis, the present cross-sectional study used the latest statistics obtained from the Statistical Center of Iran (2011), and as for the data analysis, such tests in Arc/GIS and SPSS 20 software. The results of the present study showed that the spatial patterns of poverty and fertility were formed in clusters across the city, and the results of variance analysis of the relationship between the variables of fertility and poverty demonstrated that there was a significant difference between the selected neighborhoods in terms of the variables of poverty and total fertility (P < 0.001). Furthermore, the spatial autocorrelations of fertility and poverty in Kermanshah were positive and showed that the spatial means and standard distances of poverty and fertility were overlapping. Not all districts and urban neighborhoods were equal in the total fertility rate. So, given the societal classes’ different socioeconomic and cultural status across different neighborhoods, the government’s new approaches to increasing birthrate cannot be applied to all classes throughout Kermanshah Metropolis.

     

Environmental Factors in the Choice of EGMs: A Discrete Choice Experiment

EGMs are a form of entertainment, and the gambling environment is an important contributor to the overall experience. Logically, to select a play-environment, EGM gamblers must choose the platform through which to access the EGM (e.g., internet, mobile application or land-based venue), a particular provider (e.g., specific website, app vendor or branded casino), and the game itself (e.g., based on graphical theme or bonus features; Thorne et al. in J Gambl Stud, 2016. doi: 10.1007/s10899-016-9601-2). A discrete choice experiment was conducted to identify the features of the platform, provider and game that are most strongly preferred by EGM gamblers. Participants were 245 EGM gamblers from clubs in Victoria, Australia and 7516 EGM gamblers from an Australian online panel. Results indicate that the ideal environment for the average gambler consists of: gambling at a club that is close to home; with a group of friends; in a relatively quiet place that has air conditioning, cheap food and a large space to play in; on a classic game with quality animations and small bet sizes; where you feel safe and secure; and where there is a wide variety of other games to play when you are done. Segmenting these results by problem-gambler status highlights important differences in preferences between problem and non-problem gamblers. Problem gamblers are less likely to give weight to the company they share and have a preference for larger venues. Using a powerful paradigm from marketing research, the present study was able to determine the relative value of different features of the EGM gambling environment, and also contributes important insight towards what constitutes a safer environment for recreational play.     

Electronic Gaming Machine (EGM) Environments: Market Segments and Risk

This study used a marketing-research paradigm to explore gamblers’ attraction to EGMs based on different elements of the environment. A select set of environmental features was sourced from a prior study (Thorne et al. in J Gambl Issues 2016b), and a discrete choice experiment was conducted through an online survey. Using the same dataset first described by Rockloff et al. (EGM Environments that contribute to excess consumption and harm, 2015), a sample of 245 EGM gamblers were sourced from clubs in Victoria, Australia, and 7516 gamblers from an Australian national online survey-panel. Participants’ choices amongst sets of hypothetical gambling environments allowed for an estimation of the implied individual-level utilities for each feature (e.g., general sounds, location, etc.). K-means clustering on these utilities identified four unique market segments for EGM gambling, representing four different types of consumers. The segments were named according to their dominant features: Social, Value, High Roller and Internet. We found that the environments orientated towards the Social and Value segments were most conducive to attracting players with relatively few gambling problems, while the High Roller and Internet-focused environments had greater appeal for players with problems and vulnerabilities. This study has generated new insights into the kinds of gambling environments that are most consistent with safe play.     

Traditional and innovated gambling products: an exploration of player preferences

There is concern that recent innovations of traditional face-to-face gambling products may lead to increased harm because of the tendency for innovated products to share certain structural features with electronic gaming machines (EGMs). The VICES framework focusses on several mechanisms known to influence gambling behaviour: visual and auditory enhancements, illusions of control, cognitive complexity, expedited play and social customization. The current study applied the VICES framework to an investigation of player experiences with both traditional and innovated gambling products. Through a series of six focus groups (N = 40) with regular bingo, poker and casino table game players and sports bettors, we examined the characteristics of innovated gambling products and their influences on player experience and the risk of gambling harm. Findings suggest that traditional games are perceived as more social, more enjoyable and less harmful. This was largely attributed to the low social interaction, expedited play and increased potential for consumption that is associated with EGM-type gambling activity. Further, we suggest that VICES, pending some revision, is a valid and applicable framework by which to identify characteristics of innovated products that influence player experience and behaviour.