Technology, Risk and Gambling

Sally Gainsbury
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  • Mental Health
  • Updated Weekly

The Technology, Risk and Gambling (TRG) podcast is produced by the Technology Addiction Team at the Brain and Mind Centre, University of Sydney, and hosted by Professor Sally Gainsbury. The series brings together researchers, policymakers, practitioners, and communicators to examine how technology shapes decision-making, risk, and behaviour – and has reached audiences across academia, policy, industry, and community services internationally.

Episodes

  1. Aug 31

    ECR Spotlight: Gambling Dark Patterns, Privacy & Choice with Avelyn and Jack | TRG S6 EP11

    In the final episode of Season 6 of the Technology Risk and Gambling Podcast, Professor Sally Gainsbury speaks with early-career researchers Avelyn Wenyu Gao from the University of Sydney and Jack McGarrigle from Swansea University about how dark patterns and dark nudges can shape consumer behaviour in online gambling.   Visit BetWell: Bet with more clarity, insight and intention   https://betwell.org.au/      Show notes and related links:  Register for the National Australian Gambling Studies Conference (NAGS):  https://www.nags.org.au/  Read Jack McGarrigle’s current research work:  McGarrigle J, Smith J, Griffiths J, Torrance J, Quigley M, Dymond S. Dark patterns in online gambling: A scoping review and classification of deceptive design practices. J Behav Addict. 2026 Jan 6;15(1):99-114. doi: 10.1556/2006.2025.00096.   McGarrigle, Jack and Torrance, Jamie and Quigley, Martyn and Dymond, Professor Simon, Consent Banners, Dark Patterns, and GDPR Infringements in Online Gambling: Evidence from a Systematic Audit and Online Experiment. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=6477560 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.6477560  Interested in learning more about dark nudges? Revisit Episode 4 with Chandni Gupta, where we explore dark nudges and their policy implications: https://youtu.be/DRSZ1AXorOc?si=U_c0Os39gAjD7h7k

  2. Aug 24

    Rethinking Gambling and Financial Harm with Dr Timothy Fong | TRG S6 Episode 10

    In this episode, Professor Sally Gainsbury speaks with Dr Timothy Fong, Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at UCLA, Co-Director of the UCLA Gambling Studies Program (UGSP), and lead investigator on the Financial Stability and Responsible Gambling Initiative. Together, they explore why financial harm from gambling is often recognised only after it has become severe, despite financial changes frequently emerging much earlier. They discuss the close relationship between financial and mental health, how digital payments and easy access to credit have changed the gambling environment, and why simply asking someone how much debt they have may fail to capture the true financial impact of their gambling.    Visit BetWell: Bet with more clarity, insight and intention   https://betwell.org.au/      Show notes and related links:  Check out the UCLA Gambling Program: https://uclagamblingprogram.org/   Financial Stability and Responsible Gambling Initiative (FSRG): https://fsrginitiative.org/   Kindbridge Research Institute: https://kindbridgeinstitute.org/   Gamfin Financial Counseling for Gambling Addiction: https://www.gamfin.org/   Etcera Foundation: https://ecstra.org.au/   Want to learn more about financial literacy? –  Listen to Episode 1 with Prof. Annamaria Lusardi and Episode 2 with Dr. Tracey West

  3. Aug 17

    Building Trust in Digital Mental Health: AI, Governance and Equity with Maureen Abbott | TRG S6 Episode 9

    What makes a digital tool worthy of trust? Professor Sally Gainsbury speaks with Maureen Abbott, Director of Innovation at the Mental Health Commission of Canada, about the governance of digital mental health tools and what other digital environments can learn from it. They explore app assessment frameworks, AI and the tension between innovation and precaution, and the role of equity and inclusion in designing safe and accessible digital tools. The conversation also considers how these principles could apply beyond mental health, including gambling, financial platforms and AI-powered financial literacy tools. The episode asks whether effective digital interventions can succeed without first earning the trust of the people they are designed to support.    Visit BetWell: Bet with more clarity, insight and intention   https://betwell.org.au/       Show notes:  Mental Health Commission of Canada – App Assessment Framework:  https://mentalhealthcommission.ca/app-assessment/  E-Mental Health Strategy for Canada:  https://mentalhealthcommission.ca/resource/ementalhealthstrategy/  National Guidance for AI in Mental Health and Substance Use Health Care:  https://mentalhealthcommission.ca/ai-in-mental-health/  WHO – Ethics and Governance of Artificial Intelligence for Health:  https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240029200  eMHPrac – Digital Mental Health Resource Directory:  https://www.emhprac.org.au/directory/  Mental Health Commission of Canada:  https://mentalhealthcommission.ca/  Stephen M. R. Covey – The Speed of Trust

  4. Aug 10

    Interaction Design for Responsible Gambling with Carly Grace Allen | TRG S6E8

    Description:  In this episode, Professor Sally Gainsbury speaks with Carly Grace Allen about how interaction design and user experience (UX) principles can improve responsible gambling tools. Drawing on large-scale field experiments conducted within Norsk Tipping, Carly discusses how message framing, risk communication, mandatory limit setting, and behavioural design influence real gambling behaviour. The conversation explores how evidence-based UX design can support informed decision-making and preventative gambling interventions at population scale.    Visit BetWell: Bet with more clarity, insight and intention  https://betwell.org.au/      Show notes and links  Connect with Carly Grace Allen via LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carlygraceallen/?locale=no   Learn more about Carly’s research:  Allen, C. G., Sveen, T., Volden, F. S., & Inal, Y. (2025). Framing the Risk: A Large-Scale Field Experiment on Risk Communication in Responsible Gambling. INTERACT 2025. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-032-05002-1_16   Explore upcoming conferences where Carly will be presenting her research: - European Association for the Study of Gambling (EASG) Conference (https://www.easg.org/conferences) - European Lotteries (EL/WLA) Responsible Gaming & Sustainability Seminar (https://www.european-lotteries.org/events) - National Center for Responsible Gaming (NCRG) Conference on Gambling and Addiction (https://www.americangaming.org/event/ncrg-conference-on-gambling-and-addiction/)    Books mentioned:  - Harry Brignull – Dark Patterns - Stephen Wendel – Designing for Behavior Change

  5. Aug 4

    Wins, Windfalls and Willpower: Liquidity and Self-Regulation in Online Sports Gambling with Dr Mandeep Singh | TRG S6 Episode 7

    In this episode, Dr Mandeep Singh joins Professor Sally Gainsbury to explore what really drives betting behaviour from one moment to the next. Drawing on transaction-level data from more than 24,000 Australian online sports bettors, they discuss how wins and losses shape subsequent betting decisions, why access to money (liquidity) matters, and whether current safer gambling tools are helping people regulate their behaviour in the ways they intend.  Dr Mandeep Singh is a Lecturer in Finance at the University of Sydney Business School. His research spans empirical asset pricing, financial intermediation and climate finance. In this conversation, he discusses interdisciplinary research combining finance, psychology and behavioural science to better understand gambling behaviour and how digital environments influence financial decision-making.  Visit BetWell: Bet with more clarity, insight and intention  https://betwell.org.au/      Show notes and links  Read the paper here: http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.6305500     University of Sydney Business School: https://www.sydney.edu.au/business

  6. Jul 27

    Informed Decisions: Financial Behaviour in Persuasive Digital Environments with Nikki Bond

    In this episode, Nikki Bond joins Professor Sally Gainsbury to discuss the. Nikki heads the UK’s Gambling Harms Action Lab, under the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute. Prior to this she worked across both the financial services and social work sectors, supporting people from marginalised groups.   Together, they examine into how financial institutions can identify problem gambling, through algorithmic analysis. As well as understanding potential conflicts of interest, both for firms and for consumers. Asking, where do we draw the line between help and surveillance?  Visit BetWell: Bet with more clarity, insight and intention https://betwell.org.au/  We would like to acknowledge the production and editing team  Eunice Huynh, Asha Osporne and Madhu Pelluru   Show notes and links:  Find the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute here https://www.moneyandmentalhealth.org/   Naomi Muggletons “Redefining harm: The role of data integration in understanding gambling behaviour”  https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/add.16461

  7. Jul 20

    Economic Abuse, Gambling, and the Limits of Financial Capability | TRG S6 Episode 5

    In this episode, Rebecca Glenn joins Professor Sally Gainsbury to explore the relationship between gambling, economic abuse, and domestic and family violence. Rebecca is the Founder and CEO of the Centre for Women's Economic Safety, co-founder of the International Coalition Against Economic Abuse, and a Churchill Fellow whose work has helped shape Australia's response to economic abuse.  The conversation examines how gambling can both contribute to and result from coercive control, creating financial harm that often remains hidden from partners, families, and services. Sally and Rebecca discuss financial literacy, digital banking, coercive control legislation, and the role of financial institutions in recognising and responding to economic abuse.  They also consider the limits of financial capability. If someone is being controlled, is more knowledge enough to improve financial decisions? What responsibilities do governments, banks, gambling operators, and digital platforms have in preventing economic abuse? And how can better systems and policies reduce harm before it becomes entrenched?  Visit BetWell: Bet with more clarity, insight and intention https://betwell.org.au/  We would like to acknowledge the production and editing team  Eunice Huynh, Fergus Lyons, Asha Osporne, Madhu Pelluru  Show notes and links:  Rebecca Glenn's Churchill Fellowship: https://www.churchilltrust.com.au/fellow/rebecca-glenn-vic-2019/   Financial Safety Website: https://financialsafety.org.au/   Evidence based resources on domestic, family and sexualised violence. https://www.insightexchange.net/  A practical guide and short video on responding to people experiencing violence and abuse. https://www.insightexchange.net/follow-my-lead/

  8. Jul 13

    Dark Nudges and Deceptive Design with Chandni Gupta

    In this episode, Chandni Gupta joins Professor Sally Gainsbury in exploring where persuasion ends and deceptive design begins, what Australia can learn from other jurisdictions, and why regulation matters when consumers are navigating platforms shaped by information asymmetry and commercial incentives.  Chandni is Deputy CEO and Digital Policy Director at the Consumer Policy Research Centre and a 2023 Churchill Fellow. Her research has built Australia’s leading evidence base on deceptive design: the features embedded in websites and apps that steer choices in ways that benefit businesses rather than consumers.  Visit BetWell: Bet with more clarity, insight and intention  https://betwell.org.au/    Show notes and links:  Made to Manipulate: Protecting Consumers in Digital Markets (Chandni Gupta's Churchill Fellowship Report) https://apo.org.au/node/330919   Australian Government reforms on Unfair Business Practices / Dark Patterns https://treasury.gov.au/consultation/c2024-466491   Duped by Design: Manipulative Online Design https://cprc.org.au/report/duped-by-design-manipulative-online-design-dark-patterns-in-australia/   Consumer Policy Research Centre – Digital Consumer Research https://cprc.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Digital-checkout-final.pdf   Books  Deceptive Patterns — Harry Brignull https://deceptive.design/   Hooked: How to Build Habit Forming Products — Nir Eyal https://www.nirandfar.com/hooked/   Indistractable — Nir Eyal https://www.nirandfar.com/indistractable/     Podcasts   I've Got Questions — Sinead Bovell https://open.spotify.com/show/0PBDy9jiLEikDvF6JCWejE

  9. Jul 6

    Journalism and Public Communication with Chris Kohler

    In this episode, Chris Kohler joins Professor Sally Gainsbury to discuss how financial information cuts through in a noisy digital world. Chris is Finance Editor at 9News, author of How They Get You, and host of the podcast How We Got Here. He has also built one of Australia’s largest independent finance audiences, with more than 750,000 followers on Instagram, by explaining complex financial systems clearly and accessibly.  The conversation explores why clear communication matters, especially when products and platforms are deliberately designed to influence consumer behaviour. Chris and Sally discuss how short-form videos can reveal the mechanisms behind pokies, lotteries, sports betting, prediction markets, loyalty schemes, buy-now-pay-later products, and other systems that often work against consumers’ interests.  They also consider the limits of communication. If people understand that a product is designed to influence them, does that knowledge actually change behaviour? What can public-facing communication do that official warnings, academic research, or government messaging often cannot? And where does responsibility sit when legal products are built around psychological pressure, persuasive design, and information imbalance?    Visit BetWell: Bet with more clarity, insight and intention https://betwell.org.au/    Show notes and links:  Chris Kohler on Instagram: @chriskohlernews  Chris Kohler on YouTube: @ChrisKohlerNews  Chris Kohler on TikTok: @chriskohlernews  Books:  How They Get You by Chris Kohler: Available through Penguin Random House Australia and all good booksellers.  How We Got Here podcast: Available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Acast.  Australian Government Response: https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/House/Social_Policy_and_Legal_Affairs/Onlinegamblingimpacts/Government_Response   Note: Correction - The Government Response was released over the Easter long weekend, not the Anzac Day weekend.  Some of our favourites from Chris Kohler:   Pokies: instagram.com/reel/DCQbGEzgvXZ/    Lotteries: youtube.com/shorts/XrENnU5l3hw  Sports betting: instagram.com/reel/DQlN9aoEuqE/  Prediction markets: youtube.com/shorts/HBiWxEPCiWk

  10. Jun 29

    What Financial Education Can and Can’t Do with Dr. Tracey West

    In this episode, Dr Tracey West joins Professor Sally Gainsbury to discuss what actually works in financial education, and how we know.  Tracey is a financial capability researcher and practitioner whose work spans financial education, behavioural change, consumer wellbeing, and large-scale program evaluation. Drawing on her experience with initiatives such as Talk Money with Ecstra Foundation, the conversation explores what financial education programs can achieve, what their evaluation data can and cannot tell us, and why the gap between knowledge, intention, and behaviour matters.  The episode considers how financial capability should be understood in practice, especially for young people navigating digital environments shaped by gambling, buy now pay later products, investing apps, scams, and online spending. It also examines where responsibility sits with individuals, educators, regulators, governments, or commercial platforms.  Visit BetWell: Bet with more clarity, insight and intention https://betwell.org.au/  Show notes and links:  Books:  Akerlof & Shiller, Phishing for Phools   Robert Shiller, Finance and the Good Society   Dan Ariely, Dollars and Sense   Tyson Yunkaporta, Sand Talk   Richard Thaler, Misbehaving   Podcast:  Tim Harford, Cautionary Tales   Academic article:  Netemeyer, R. G., Lynch, J. G., Lichtenstein, D. R., & Dobolyi, D. (2024). Financial Education Effects on Financial Behavior and Well-Being: The Mediating Roles of Improved Objective and Subjective Financial Knowledge and Parallels in Physical Health. Journal of Public Policy & Marketing, 43(4), 254–275. https://doi.org/10.1177/07439156241228197

  11. Jun 22

    Why Financial Literacy Matters in a Digital Gambling World with Professor Annamaria Lusardi

    In this episode, Professor Annamaria Lusardi, Professor of Finance at Stanford University and founder of the Global Financial Literacy Excellence Center, joins Professor Sally Gainsbury to discuss financial literacy, financial decision-making, and what gambling can reveal about the limits of financial capability. Their conversation explores why basic financial knowledge matters, including compound interest, inflation, risk, and diversification, while also considering the role knowledge plays in behavioural change.  Visit BetWell: Bet with more clarity, insight and intention https://betwell.org.au/    Show notes and links:  Professor Annamaria Lusardi: https://annamarialusardi.com/   Lusardi & Mitchell’s “Big Three” financial literacy measure: Lusardi, Annamaria, and Olivia S. Mitchell. 2014. "The Economic Importance of Financial Literacy: Theory and Evidence." Journal of Economic Literature 52 (1): 5–44.DOI: 10.1257/jel.52.1.5 Stanford Initiative for Financial Decision-Making: https://ifdm.stanford.edu/   IFDM Big Three Financial Literacy Questions: https://ifdm.stanford.edu/the-big-three/quiz   IFDM financial calculators and educational resources: https://ifdm.stanford.edu/resourcehub   Book: Mellody Hobson, Priceless Facts about Money

  • 11 Episodes

About

The Technology, Risk and Gambling (TRG) podcast is produced by the Technology Addiction Team at the Brain and Mind Centre, University of Sydney, and hosted by Professor Sally Gainsbury. The series brings together researchers, policymakers, practitioners, and communicators to examine how technology shapes decision-making, risk, and behaviour – and has reached audiences across academia, policy, industry, and community services internationally.

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