The initiative began in 2015 when Anders Håkansson was appointed as a senior lecturer at Lund University to build up research into preventive measures against gambling addiction. Svenska Spel, with a governmental remit to work towards the prevention of gambling problems, funds the senior lecturership through a contribution of SEK 2.5 million per year over five years.
Now, Anders Håkansson has been appointed professor of addiction medicine specialising in gambling addiction, which makes him Sweden’s first professor of medicine in gambling addiction.
Anders Håkansson and his team focus their research on preventive measures to avoid gambling addiction, on detecting gambling problems at an early stage and on treatment and prevention work to avoid relapses. Several of the research projects currently underway, enabled by the investment from Svenska Spel, focus on youth and young adults.
“We have started a project in which we investigate problem gambling in young people in socially vulnerable environments, where we believe the risk of developing gambling problems can be high. In addition, we are currently preparing an investigation of attitudes to gambling and early development of gambling problems in youth and young adults in Malmö. At the moment, a finalised project on mobile phone behaviour and gambling is also being reviewed. It allowed us to learn more about behavioural patterns and signs of gambling problems in youth and young adults,” explains Anders Håkansson.
“Improving preventive work against gambling problems requires new research-based treatment strategies and measures. With more in-depth knowledge about gambling addiction, we at Svenska Spel can develop even better player responsibility tools and continue to contribute to a healthy development of the gambling market in Sweden. This is why we are funding the country’s first professorship in gambling addiction,” says Lennart Käll, CEO of Svenska Spel.
Anders Håkansson and his research team also collaborate with colleagues in other countries. In an international project, they study gambling behaviour and online behaviour among mainly young people in various countries. They hope to be able to identify risk factors for new types of gambling addiction.
“By conducting research at our clinical unit at Regions Skåne’s Addiction Centre in Malmö, we will also be able to obtain more knowledge about comorbidity, i.e. which other addictions and psychiatric illness these people have and what the consequences are. We can also study the course of treatment and the subsequent risk of relapse.”
Contact:
Anders Håkansson
+46 46-17 55 96
anders_c [dot] hakansson [at] med [dot] lu [dot] se