![\"Portrait](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/ashlyn-grotegut.jpg\")
<\/p>\n The College of Health & Human Sciences study, funded by the Massachusetts Gaming Commission,
\n reveals a need for recovery voices in gambling policy discussions.<\/p>\n
\t\tCREATORS<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
As legal sports betting continues to make headlines, a recent study<\/a> revealed that 43% of U.S. adults view this form of gambling as bad for society and Despite this, the number of Americans who have bet on sports in the past year has Proponents claim letting Texans play will generate revenue that will provide property Through many related projects over the past five years and counting, Mills has found Mills himself has enjoyed gambling, playing in poker tournaments and even making sport \u201cIt\u2019s a challenge for them,\u201d he said. \u201cIt is literally a disease of the choice and Without an increase of supportive measures in place for gambling disorder, Mills has \u201cI don\u2019t think anyone had ever asked that question,\u201d he said. \u201cSo, we were curious Mills recently took the opportunity to answer this question through a partnership From October 2024 to January 2025, Mills and two doctoral students with the College of Health & Human Sciences<\/a>, Travis Spencer and Michelle Strong, conducted six 90-minute focus groups with 14 Mills and the doctoral students analyzed qualitative data from the sessions and identified \u201cWe were able to really get a rich data set of some interesting insight into how recovery Merit for Concerns about Legalized Gambling\u00a0<\/p>\n Mills and his team determined that recovery communities have struggled with the normalization The harms from a relapse can be detrimental, resulting in various forms of financial, Over time, gambling can contribute to significant mental and physical health problems, But to prevent this type of fallout, there must be a concrete understanding of what They further developed a five-step healing process that included setting personalized This tool would be much more tangible in preventing the complications of gambling \u201cI just think it needs to be acknowledged that stigmatizing the person by telling \u201cSo, then we come from this point of view that they\u2019re being irresponsible and I feel The CRT member went on to say that \u201cresponsible gaming\u201d should be considered in how \u201cThe way they are aggressively pushed towards people in general could also be defined Mills and his research team found a need to determine a less stigmatizing term, as As for individuals in recovery from substance use disorders, who may have limited Call for More Recovery Support \u00a0<\/p>\n This broadened the perspective of Strong, a Center for Students in Addiction Recovery<\/a> research assistant, as she learned that while gambling legalization generates tremendous She describes this as an urgent need.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWhile substance use tends to dominate the public and attract the most resources, The CRT members believe if their voices are amplified within ongoing policy discussions They are particularly interested in increasing social and structural assistance deemed Along the course of this study, Spencer, a research assistant in the Department of Community, Family, & Addiction Sciences<\/a>, became invested in bridging this gap between people seeking recovery and the communities \u201cAmplifying the voices of individuals doing the hard work of addiction recovery is Once the project was complete, Mills and his team presented their findings to the \u201cThey believed it was incredibly helpful in terms of how the commission thinks about Next Steps for the Legalized Gambling Study\u00a0<\/p>\n Mills, Spencer and Strong are all eager to build on their results in the following They hope to recruit more individuals struggling with problematic gambling to join Investigating these questions could inform future interventions and policy efforts While making gambling safer was a key promise of legalization, the CRT\u2019s experience \u201cThese gambling industry partners value their players and they don\u2019t want to take Mills believes Texas lawmakers need to start investing in gambling research now as \u201cI risk hyperbole here, but gambling expansion in the U.S. is going to be the next \u201cGambling is here and alive in Texas, and I hope the state eventually takes notice Mills has several resources he recommends to help those struggling with gambling.
\n sports, up from 34% in 2022.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n not changed much since 2022, with 22% of adults saying they did so in the past year.
\n In fact, ever since the Supreme Court ruled states could legalize sports betting in
\n 2018, many Texans have pushed for this transition.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n tax relief and create other positive economic effects for the state. But as one of
\n few gambling researchers across the U.S., Devin Mills, Texas Tech University<\/a>\u2019s Evelyn M. Davies Professor in Addiction & Recovery, has developed a different perspective.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n state legislatures have often been short-sighted in developing policies that would
\n create and maintain programming to help players keep gambling safe and fun.<\/p>\n![\"Devin](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Mills.jpg\")
Devin Mills<\/p>\n
\n bets on occasion, but he can stop whenever he wants. This is not the case for individuals
\n struggling with gambling disorder.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n they are prevented from really stepping away. It eats at them, and they\u2019re not really
\n making decisions for themselves anymore.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n become concerned about the rapid expansion of legalized gambling. In particular, he
\n began to wonder about the extent to which increased access is impacting communities
\n in recovery from gambling or substance use disorders. \u00a0<\/p>\n
\n about whether these individuals in recovery who are at risk for gambling disorder
\n with their history of addiction, are they at risk for a more negative impact from
\n legalized gambling?\u201d<\/p>\n
\n with the Massachusetts Council on Gaming and Health and funding from the Massachusetts
\n Gaming Commission. He set out to help these organizations determine how the state\u2019s
\n launch of sports betting in 2023 affected those in recovery by assembling an initial
\n qualitative study.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n total participants, including individuals with lived experience and mental health
\n professionals specializing in addiction treatment. Together, these participants comprised
\n the community research team (CRT).\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n key themes, incorporating ongoing input from CRT members to ensure findings<\/a> reflected both lived and professional perspectives.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n is defined and how gambling harms manifest,\u201d Mills shared. \u201cThrough that information,
\n we started to scratch the surface on how legalized gambling impacts recovery.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n of gambling since it became legalized in Massachusetts. In fact, the temptation can
\n become incredibly overwhelming for those healing from gambling disorder as they encounter
\n betting opportunities at sporting events and broadcasts as well as online casinos
\n and mobile applications.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n emotional and social loss. Individuals with an ongoing gambling disorder can neglect
\n important responsibilities and fail in key roles like parenting, work or maintaining
\n a relationship and household. In more desperate measures, the individual may resort
\n to criminal activity like theft or fraud to further fund their gambling or repay debts.<\/p>\n
\n including anxiety, depression and stress-related illnesses.<\/p>\n
\n gambling recovery entails. Mills and his team worked with members of the CRT to develop
\n this novel definition as \u201ca strong commitment to redefine one\u2019s relationship with
\n gambling in an ongoing effort, unique to everyone, to heal from the harms that gambling
\n has caused while fostering holistic life improvement.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n recovery goals, understanding triggers, developing healthy coping processes, participating
\n in social support systems and replacing old patterns with meaningful activities. Using
\n these findings, Mills is in the process of developing a quantitative self-report measure
\n that researchers and clinicians can use to access and track recovery.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n disorder than the industry term \u201cresponsible gambling (or gaming),\u201d which CRT members
\n argue is not necessarily a fully conscious decision of the person gambling.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n them that they are being responsible or irresponsible, especially when they are receiving
\n some type of treatment, doesn\u2019t help much when they are already dealing with all the
\n stress, all the negative impact of gambling and the financial relationships and everything
\n that happens to the person,\u201d one CRT member shared.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n like that might not be that way. I feel like speaking that way might even be harmful
\n for people who gamble and have a problem with gambling.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n games are advertised.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n as responsible or irresponsible, but I don\u2019t know that that\u2019s the point really. When
\n we try to understand if something is harmful\u2026we should just try to acknowledge the
\n effect of that harm instead of trying to define it based on the persona\u2019s qualities.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n well as encourage safer gambling practices such as sticking with a budget and time
\n limits, abstaining from substance use while playing, and stopping when playing is
\n no longer fun.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n or even no experience with gambling, placing bets sometimes becomes a substitute for
\n their addiction to substances. The study result revealed there should be an increase
\n in resources to support recovery communities directly by appropriate taxing gross
\n gaming revenues.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n revenue for the state, little of that funding is directed toward recovery support
\n for those harmed by problematic gambling.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n this project illustrated the hidden struggles of gambling disorder,\u201d said Strong.
\n \u201cThe study community generously shared their lived experiences of recovery, underscoring
\n how \u2018silent addictions\u2019 often go unnoticed and underfunded.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n they can provide actionable insights that will shape future gambling regulations and
\n recovery supporting Massachusetts and beyond. They would like gambling to be treated
\n as a legitimate addiction so they can not only reduce stigma but also receive improved
\n care.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n essential to initiate and sustain recovery, including access to a community of support
\n and accountability, targeted interventions as well as culturally responsive resources.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n that support them.<\/p>\n
\n essential to recovery research, particularly in the rapidly evolving landscape of
\n gambling addiction,\u201d Spencer said. \u201cAs my first experience working on a grant-funded
\n project, I could not have asked for a more supportive mentor or a more meaningful
\n topic.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n Massachusetts Gaming Commission. They were able to address a number of questions and
\n received mainly glowing feedback.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n the impact of gambling,\u201d Mills recalled. \u201cOne of the things they highlighted was they
\n might not be doing enough in terms of marketing their available resources for players.
\n That was something that they were interested in, and excited about, in terms of getting
\n that feedback and moving forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n stages of this study. They are deep into the second year of funding to develop the
\n online survey tool that can be used by clinicians when treating a patient in recovery.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n their CRT to further understand how legalized gambling affects individuals at various
\n stages of the recovery process. They also would like to review how other vulnerable
\n populations are affected by legalized gambling, such as those who are unwell or have
\n mental disabilities, older populations and adolescents.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n aimed at protecting recovery communities in an increasingly gambling-saturated environment.
\n Without these supports in place, legalization may continue to exacerbate disparities
\n in gambling harms and recovery outcomes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n suggests that without stronger regulations and investment in prevention and recovery,
\n the reality falls short of that goal.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n advantage of them,\u201d Mills explained. \u201cThey want to make sure they support their players
\n to engage recreationally and have a positive experience when they gamble at their
\n venues or online. So, we need to be working in tandem with these partners and create
\n reasonable regulations that don\u2019t take away from the gaming experience but only add
\n to the positive experience that they have. This will allow players to leave the game
\n at the casino and be able to step away when need to.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n lawmakers continue to weigh whether to legalize gambling.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n mental health crisis if we do not address it soon,\u201d Mills said. \u201cWe may not have the
\n casinos that mirror Las Vegas or some of the tribal casinos in Oklahoma or other states
\n that border us, but we have a very strong sports gambling and daily fantasy sports
\n climate. We also have a large and growing card club culture here in Texas, as well
\n as game rooms that remain unregulated.<\/p>\n
\n and we increase funding to better study gambling and we also create a context in which
\n players are engaging safely.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n Free, confidential, 24\/7 support is available by calling or texting the National Problem
\n Gambling Helpline at 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2537) or by visiting www.1800gamblerchat.org<\/a>. Texas residents may also reach out to The Gambling Clinic of Texas<\/a> for specialized services.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The College of Health & Human Sciences study, funded by the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, reveals a need for…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":7269,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[168,170,169],"class_list":["post-30039","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-lubbock","tag-lubbock","tag-lubbock-headlines","tag-lubbock-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30039","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=30039"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/30039\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7269"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=30039"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=30039"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=30039"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}