Massachusetts Gaming Commission hears research on gambling harm among veterans

Massachusetts is looking at how to better protect veterans from gambling harm, a group the research describes as especially vulnerable in the state. The issue was raised in a presentation to the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, which is already funding a study on veterans and gambling-related harm.

The figures cited are stark. Veterans make up only 3.7% of the population, yet one in five problem gamblers is a veteran. Within the group, 8% of veterans are reported to struggle with gambling-related issues, compared with 1.4% of the general population. On that basis, the researchers argue that states and treatment providers aiming to reduce gambling harm have good reason to target veterans more directly.

Emma Hersh, director of veterans programs and employee experience at the consulting firm Technical Assent, which leads the study, told the commission that the aim was to understand what lies behind the numbers. The work is carried out through the William Joiner Institute for the Study of War and Social Consequences at the University of Massachusetts Boston, and it supplements state, educational and private efforts on what the source describes as an overlooked issue.

According to the findings, gambling often serves as an outlet for pent-up feelings, and the form it takes varies between individuals. Some veterans turn to casinos, others to sports betting or the compulsive purchase of lottery tickets. Hersh said that all of these patterns can be addressed with the right strategies.

A key finding concerns how veterans prefer to seek help. Most are open to peer-to-peer interaction, provided it does not leave them feeling remorse or shame. Veterans are reported to be more comfortable speaking with others who have served, and they are willing to open up in that setting. The research also notes that gambling can have a social function for some veterans, who contribute money to social pools run by other veterans in order to feel that they belong.

The study adds to the regulator's work on gambling harm among specific demographic groups and may inform how support services are designed for veterans in Massachusetts.