A coordinated health communication campaign addressing casino and sports gambling among undergraduate students

Research has outlined many negative effects of disordered gambling. While gambling disorder exists among all US sociodemographic groups, college students are particularly vulnerable. This study describes a health communication approach commonly studied in the intervention of college behaviors such as risky alcohol/substance use and sexual activity. Specifically, two health communication messages targeting casino and sports betting disordered gambling were distributed at a Midwestern US public research university, and central intercept techniques were utilized to collect quantitative and qualitative data assessing student reception. Results revealed females preferred the casino message more than males (U = 4696.50, p < .05) and stated more often that the advertisement would appeal to friends (U = 4745.50, p < .05). Individuals who lost more money than they intended to lose 1–2 times understood the message more than those persons who never gambled (U = 946.50, p < .05) and those persons who never lost more than planned (U = 249.50, p < .05). Students who first gambled at ages 16–18 liked the casino message less than those students who first gambled at 13–15 (U = 208.00, p < .05) and the students who had never gambled (U = 1656.00, p < .05). For the sports betting message, the only significant association was between students’ understanding of the advertisement and race/ethnicity (w²(5) = 14.095, p < .05). Based on our findings, we suggest a health communication approach might be effective to raise awareness about gambling disorder among college students. We recommend researchers develop targeted materials with support of college administrators to deter disordered gambling.