GAMSPON Project

The GAMSPON project (2022–2026) aimed to map the impact of exposure to gambling advertising and sponsorship among young people and adults on attitudes toward gambling, gambling intentions, and gambling behavior, as well as the underlying mechanisms that can explain these relationships, with particular attention to the role of the normalization of gambling.

The project involved a collaboration between researchers from Ghent University (Faculty of Political and Social Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, and Faculty of Law and Criminology) and Sciensano (Health Information Department). There was also consistent interaction with the user group, consisting of policymakers, experts with lived gambling experience, and professionals from prevention and care services, in which research results were discussed and future research phases were continuously evaluated.

The GAMSPON project adopted a multi-method approach, in which quantitative methods (such as survey research and experimental research among young people and adults) were combined with qualitative methods (in-depth interviews with young people, focus groups, and co-creation sessions with policymakers, lived experience, and academic experts). Due to this approach, we were able to not only determine the impact of exposure to gambling advertising and sponsorship, but also to identify which groups are at risk and which policy interventions are therefore needed.