University of Mississippi inaugurates the nation’s first academic center dedicated to student gambling

(AsiaGameHub) –   The University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) has set up the country’s first specialized academic center solely focused on student gambling.

Endorsed by the university’s board of trustees, the new Centre on Collegiate Gambling will lead research, prevention, and treatment efforts, as well as assess effects on the integrity of collegiate sports. This launch occurs amid increased legislative activity in the state, such as the recent approval of a second sports betting bill by the state’s House of Representatives.

This initiative is driven by recent findings that underscore significant gambling activity among college students. A multi-campus study carried out by Ole Miss researchers polled students from seven state universities. It found that 39% of those surveyed had gambled in the past year. 

Sports betting proved to be the most prevalent type of student gambling. Notably, 6% of student sports bettors met the American Psychiatric Association’s standards for problem gambling, with numerous others facing moderate risk.

The study also pinpointed demographic trends associated with greater gambling frequency, including male students, white students, those residing off-campus, and members of Greek life groups. More than half (58%) of student gamblers indicated they used online sportsbooks.

The Ole Miss center will seek to address a research void by methodically examining various gambling behaviors on college campuses. This will cover everything from card games to emerging prediction markets, and will create evidence-based prevention and treatment approaches.

Additionally, it will look into how gambling activities impact the integrity of college sports. The initiative will also align with recent, more extensive national policy changes, such as the introduction of the first bipartisan federal measure in over a decade intended to boost funding for gambling addiction research.

‘More direct efforts were needed in the collegiate gambling space’

Daniel Durkin, an associate professor of social work at Ole Miss, emphasized the need for coordinated action. “We were witnessing a growing gambling issue, and not many people were actually taking steps to address it,” Durkin said. 

He attributed attending national gambling conferences to sparking a strategic change: “When we began attending national gambling conferences, that’s when we recognized that more focused efforts were required in the collegiate gambling sphere.”

Mississippi’s gambling environment has complexities that affect student behaviors. The state enforces strict regulations on in-person casino operations, and legislative discussions persist regarding the legalization of online sports betting. Industry observers note that prediction markets and offshore betting operators offer alternative avenues for student betting, bypassing current legal limitations on mobile platforms.