Gaming and Casino Operations Management Commons^™

The Intersection Of Sport Betting And Consumer Behavior: A Systematic Review, Jackson Sears, Beth Cianfrone

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

Sport betting is a popular and lucrative entertainment segment of the sport industry. As such, understanding consumer behavior across the betting experiences is critical for the many stakeholders involved. The current study is a systematic quantitative literature review which assesses the current state of literature that intersects sport betting and consumer behavior literature, specifically cognitive, affective, conative, and consumption behavior of the sport bettors. The purpose of the systematic review is to (1) identify the most recent sport betting consumer behavior research, (2) compile and examine theoretical frameworks guiding sport gambling consumer research, (3) provide a descriptive summary of findings …

Gambling Behaviors, Perceptions, And Risks Among Nevada Adults, Andrea Dassopoulos

International Gaming Institute Faculty Research

This study presents a statewide assessment of gambling behaviors, perceptions, and gambling-related risk among 1,078 Nevada adults. Using a mixed-source, population-calibrated survey developed by UNLV and NORC, the research measures gambling participation, motivations, venue exposure, and attitudes toward harm, treatment, and regulation. The Problem Gambling Severity Index (PGSI) identifies substantial levels of harm: nearly half of past-year gamblers show some degree of risk, with the highest rates among younger adults, racially diverse groups, gaming and hospitality workers, and those who gamble in neighborhood bars or slot parlors. The survey also documents public beliefs about gambling addiction, youth exposure, stigma, and …

Investigating The Relationship Between Noun Classes And Plant Folk Taxonomy In Chasu Language Of Kilimanjaro Region In Tanzania, Peter Rabson Mziray

Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences

The current study investigates the relationship between noun classes and plant folk taxonomy in Chasu (G 22). The study focuses on two objectives: the first objective is to describe the plant folk taxonomy in Chasu and the second objective is to determine the relationship between noun classes and plant folk taxonomy in Chasu. Data were collected from rural villages in Same and Mwanga districts by using free listing, field interviews (jungle-walk-and-identify), and written texts containing Chasu plant names. The findings reveal that Chasu folk taxonomy reflects different ethnobotanical categories; including a unique beginner which is mmea/mimea ‘plant(s)’, and three life …

Breaking The Odds: A Gendered Analysis Of Women And Gambling Behaviors, Rowland Edet

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

Gambling is increasingly recognized as a complex public health issue with wide-ranging implications for individuals, families, and communities. While traditionally male-dominated, recent shifts reveal a growing participation among women, facilitated by gender-specific gambling products, targeted marketing, and evolving societal norms. This paper critically examines the prevalence, motivations, and harms associated with gambling among women, drawing on theoretical perspectives such as social capital theory, cultural geography, and gender role theory. By synthesizing existing literature, this review highlights distinct gendered patterns in gambling behaviors, including the use of gambling as a coping mechanism for stress, isolation, and caregiving burdens, and the role …

Ai Governance In The Gaming Industry: A Proposal For A Use Case Registry, Cesar D. Lozoya Martinez

Student Research

Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly integrated into everyday life. From customer service chatbots and marketing strategies to player protection tools and surveillance systems, casino operations are embracing the trend. However, without a systematic framework to track the current and emerging use cases across the industry, concerns about transparency, ethical use, and potential consumer harm continue to grow. Rather than aiming to establish binding regulatory practices for an industry and technology that are both quickly evolving, this policy brief advocates for the creation of an AI-use case registry. The registry would comprehensively track gaming companies that are using AI. The growing …

The Nexus Of Sports Fandom And Sports Wagering: A Scoping Review, Brandon Mastromartino, Michael L. Naraine, Henry Wear

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

This scoping review examines the intersection of sports fandom and sports betting, with a particular focus on the marketing considerations involved in this relationship. Sports fandom, driven by strong emotional investments and team identification, plays a critical role in shaping betting behaviors. As this relationship becomes increasingly complex, it is essential to explore the underlying motivations and behaviors of sports fans who engage in betting, the ethical implications of marketing practices targeting this group, and the methodologies used to study this intersection. To address these relationships, this review examines four key areas: motivations for sports fans to engage in betting, …

Horse Racing And Historical Horse Racing’S Impact On The Kentucky Economy: Possible Hhr Saturation?, Thomas E. Lambert

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

The Commonwealth of Kentucky currently has 5 thoroughbred racing tracks and 3 harness racing tracks (Kentucky Horse Racing Commission 2023 and Mint Julep Louisville 2021). As Table 1 below shows, the industry employees roughly 7,000 people (direct jobs), and these jobs annually support another 2,000 jobs or so throughout the state. These 2,000 jobs are jobs that are provided by the suppliers to the horse race tracks (indirect jobs) and jobs that are created by the spending of the race track employees and the employees of suppliers on food, housing, transportation, and clothing by vendors and retailers throughout the state …

Ua12/2/1 College Heights Herald: Your Vote Matters, Wku Student Affairs

WKU Administration Documents

Magazine edition of the College Heights Herald for the period October 4 - November 6, 2023.

• Anderson, Alexandria. Letter from the Editor – Elections
• Reed, Bailey. Every Vote in This County is Important – Daniel Cameron, Andy Beshear
• Phelps, Maggie. The Importance of Voter Registration
• Daniel Cameron on the Issues
• Andy Beshear on the Issues
• Di Palermo, Dominic. The Bowling Green Rock Band Academy – Musicians
• Costellow, Ali. Students & Campus Organizations Prepare for November Election
• Wilborn, Price. Wokeness Is Not a Bad Thing, and People Need to Stop Saying It Is
• Edmonds, Luke. A Kentuckian’s Guide to Legal Sports …

A Comparison Of Clustered And Isolated Casino Performance In Missouri, Douglas M. Walker, Todd M. Nesbit

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

This paper utilizes data on Missouri’s casino industry to examine how clustered casinos, such as those in Kansas City and St. Louis, perform compared to dispersed or isolated casinos, such as those in Boonville, Caruthersville, La Grange, and St. Joseph. Missouri limits the number of casino licenses allowed; however, it does not explicitly mandate casino locations. Missouri provides a unique natural experiment for comparing location model performance. Although there is no published research on which type of casino location model is more effective for generating industry revenues and associated taxes, state legislatures have nevertheless been following an isolated casino location …

Recent Impacts Of Penny And Fixed Odds Wagering: What Does The Future Hold?, Thomas E. Lambert

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

In order hopefully to revive attendance at the tracks and/or fuel a resurgence in gambling (either in person or virtually), the last year has seen some recent wagering developments and changes at different horseracing tracks in the United States. At Ellis Park Racing and Gaming (Henderson, Kentucky) in the Evansville, Indiana metro area, penny wagering has been tried since the 2022 season to influence gambling revenues. Meanwhile, starting in 2022 Monmouth Park in New Jersey now offers “fixed odds” wagering as an alternative to parimutuel wagering for patrons who do not like the possible fluctuations in odds before a race …

Payments Data In Gambling Research, Kasra Ghaharian, Mana Azizsoltani

International Conference on Gambling & Risk Taking

A considerable body of gambling-related research has leveraged gamblers' behavioral tracking data to address a broad set of research questions. These data have typically comprised of gamblers' betting-related behaviors including, for example, the frequency and volume of betting. The analysis of gamblers' payment-related behavioral data is far less common, but provides a fruitful avenue gambling-related research.

In this presentation we discuss a selection of potential research opportunities that payments transaction data presents. We supplement this discussion with specific analyses that have been performed by our research group. We also discuss knowledge gaps and areas for future research.

The Locals Casino As A Social Network – Can An Interconnected Community Of Players Detect Differences In Hold?, Jason D. Fiege, Anastasia (Stasi) D. Baran

International Conference on Gambling & Risk Taking

Abstract

It is difficult for individual players to detect differences in theoretical hold between slot machines without playing an unrealistically large number of games. This difficulty occurs because the fractional loss incurred by a player converges only slowly to the theoretical hold in the presence of volatility designed into slot pay tables. Nevertheless, many operators believe that players can detect changes in hold or differences compared to competition, especially in a locals casino market, and therefore resist increasing holds. Instead of investigating whether individual players can detect differences in hold, we ask whether a population of casino regulars who share …

Horse Sense Or Horse Hype? Estimating The True Economic Impact Of Churchill Downs And The Kentucky Derby On The Louisville Metro Area, Thomas E. Lambert

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

In trying to assess the true economic impact of the Kentucky Derby on the Louisville region (north central Kentucky and south central Indiana counties), one can find two different estimates appear in doing a quick search on the internet. Some sources, such as the Kentucky Derby Museum, indicate that the economic impact of the Derby is around $217 million (Kentucky Derby Museum 2023) but never mention a source or study for this conjecture. In doing some research, this amount is determined to come from a 2001 study by the marketing research firm Wilkerson and Associates (LaMarra 2001), and therefore this …

A Comparison Of The Economic Impact Of Horse Racing Tracks In Kentucky Versus Neighboring Indiana, Thomas E. Lambert

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

The Louisville metro area is one that spans two states—Kentucky and Indiana. Since the University of Louisville has many students and employees who come from the Hoosier State, it would be interesting to see how the two states compare when it comes to what has been labeled a “signature” industry for the Commonwealth of Kentucky—horse racing.

The Economic Impact Of Keeneland Race Course On The Lexington Metro Area With Projections For This Year’S Breeders Cup, Thomas E. Lambert

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Keeneland Race Course in Lexington, Kentucky has had a long tradition for quality horse racing going back to its inception in 1936 (Keeneland 2022). With the 2022 Breeders’ Cup World Championships coming to the race track this November, this paper examines what economic impact the race track has on the Lexington metro area (Bourbon, Clark, Fayette, Jessamine, Scott, and Woodford counties in Kentucky) on an annual basis and how the 2022 Breeders’ Cup will boost the impact of the race track when compared to a typical year.

The Economic Impact Of Buying And Redeveloping Ellis Park By Churchill Downs, Thomas E. Lambert

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Churchill Downs’ acquisition of Ellis Park Racing and Gaming in Henderson, Kentucky reflects the growing number of mergers across the US among racetracks, racetracks and casinos, and casinos with other casinos. Some years back, Ellis racetrack closed for one year due to declining profitability, yet after new ownership took over and a gaming center was added, it began a rebound in earnings (Courier and Press 2008). The $75 million that Churchill Downs plans to spend to transform Ellis Park (Schulz 2022) will have a much bigger impact than the construction, revamping, and expansion of park facilities. This is in addition …

A Peer Feedback Process To Improve Assistant Nurse Manager Job Satisfaction, Juanita A. Jularbal-Walton

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Projects

Problem

Healthcare organizations offer different methods of training for emerging and newly hired Assistant Nurse Managers (ANM). Without sufficient orientation to what the role requires, new ANMs receive many requests without adequate guidance on how to respond to patient, staff, and leadership requests. This experience creates unhealthy work environments with low job satisfaction and high turnover rates.

Context

Peer feedback provides an opportunity to reflect on the purpose of the Assistant Nurse Manager role. With sufficient orientation and peer feedback, front-line assistant nurse managers develop competency and role satisfaction, as evidenced by reduced turnover and improved retention.

Intervention

This project …

Shaping Success For Mobile Applications Of Integrated Resorts, Krista Larsen

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

As smartphones have become indispensable in society, it has become critical for integrated resorts to develop mobile applications ("apps") that serve as a marketing tool and an enhancement in the customer's travel journey. This research reviews the features of existing mobile travel apps, in addition to areas of opportunity for future innovations regarding this platform. Based on this research, this study recommends best practices for an integrated resort's mobile app. The findings of this study can be leveraged as a resource when developing and maintaining mobile apps within the hospitality industry to provide an optimal guest experience throughout the entire …

Implications Of Online Gambling Legalization, William M. Schmidt

Student Publications

The tradition of gambling has been around for thousands of years, but has undergone a recent evolution into what it is perceived as today. This has turned it into an industry of its own, which will only continue to grow with the ongoing legalization of online gambling. Past trends in these legislations would project further economic growth tied to the gambling industry. However, the mental health implications that have been seen to stem from the practice of gambling are as present as ever. This problem associated with the industry will also be expected to climb as gambling becomes both more …

Did Covid Benefit Or Harm Horse Racing Wagering? A Comparison Of Trends, Thomas E. Lambert

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Different media accounts during the recent Covid-19 pandemic have mentioned an upswing in horse racing gambling thanks to a decline in other forms of wagering at casinos and with sports gambling. This paper examines gambling trends across the US before and during the pandemic for these forms in gambling as well as lotteries. Horse racing wagering did see an increase, but not as dramatically as one would expect.

Sports Gaming, Casinos, And Horse Racing In New Jersey: The Record Before And During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Thomas E. Lambert

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

New Jersey was the first state to legalize sports gaming outside of Nevada after a landmark US Supreme Court decision in May 2018 struck down a federal law banning sports gambling in all other states and the District of Columbia (Liptak and Draper 2018). Some race tracks such as Monmouth Park race track began offering sports gambling as a way to bring back fans to parimutuel wagering which had been and still is in decline for several decades at tracks throughout the nation (Associated Press 2019). This brief paper examines trends in New Jersey on how sports gambling has grown …

What Happens Here? Educating Las Vegas’S Guests During Covid-19, Marta Soligo

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

When, in 2003, the Las Vegas Visitors and Convention Authority (LVCVA) launched the tag line “What happens here, stays here,” it reinforced the idea, already supported by the media, that in Sin City everything is allowed. Looking at the COVID-19 crisis, one might wonder how, after being seen for years as a place without restrictions, Las Vegas could convince its tourists to respect some rigid safety guidelines. This paper tries to answer that question starting from the framework of the host-guest relationship, which is widely used in anthropology and sociology of tourism. On the one hand, I state that short-time …

Covid-19 And Its Implications For Women In Gaming: Move Towards Regulation, Policies, And Culture Changes In The United States, Shekinah Hoffman, Itzel Alanis

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

COVID-19 exposes structural inequalities within American society which can no longer be ignored. Here, we highlight the structural inequalities women and women of color face that are glaringly apparent or exacerbated in the pandemic. Inequalities that play a role in the unemployment, insufficient workplace protection, and increased work-life demands of women and women of color in the gaming industry. Instead of returning to “normal” business post-pandemic, we urge gaming leaders to reflect on these inequities within their workplaces. We offer that guaranteed paid leave and permanent flexible work arrangements could improve the life of gaming women employees and their families.

Reinventing The Wheel: Comparing Family Friendly Vegas And Adult Friendly Vegas Revenue Growth, James Vaughn

International Conference on Gambling & Risk Taking

The one constant for Las Vegas is change, always looking for the Next Big Thing™. In the 1990s, Las Vegas engaged in a grand experiment: roller coasters, amusement parks, family pools and shows. In the 2000s, Las Vegas reinvented itself back to its roots: condo not amusement parks, sensual not swashbuckling shows, topless European ultra-pools not kiddie pools. While the house always wins, did the casinos of the 1990s or 2000s beat the ultimate house, going beyond nominal revenue growth into the jackpot of real revenue growth?

Sports Betting And Indian Gaming: Overcoming Barriers To Market Entry And Integration Of Sports Books Into Tribal Casinos, Steve Light

International Conference on Gambling & Risk Taking

Abstract

Even before the U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision In Murphy v. NCAA (2018) permitting states to legalize sports wagering, the biggest brand-names in gaming worldwide were positioning themselves to capitalize on the fan base for America’s most recognizable sports leagues.

Sports wagering already is up and running in five states; analysts predict that more than half the states will legalize it within five years. Many will be among the 29 states that currently have casinos owned and operated by American Indian tribes in this $32.4 billion market segment.

There is no firm sense and little data pointing to …

Tribal Gaming Leader Strategies Toward A Sustainable Future, Janie A. Hall, Patricia I. Fusch, Janet M. Booker

The Qualitative Report

One aspect of leadership strategy is the need to account for the core values of the organization.The purpose of this case study was to explore the tribal gaming leader strategies used toward sustainability, an action that leads to tribal economic development and stability. The conceptual framework of situational leadership theory was used to guide the scope and analysis of this study. Six tribal gaming leaders from Oklahoma participated in a focus group session; 7 additional tribal gaming leaders from the same gaming organization participated in individual interview sessions. Member checking was used to strengthen the credibility and trustworthiness of the …

Book Review: The Strip. Las Vegas And The Architecture Of The American Dream., Marta Soligo

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

Book Review: The Strip. Las Vegas and the Architecture of the American Dream

A History Of Play In Print Board Games From The Renaissance To Milton Bradley, Kelli Wood

Occasional Papers

This essay considers how a historical legacy of printed games dating back to the sixteenth century in Italy laid the foundation for modern board games like those produced by Milton Bradley. The technology of print and the broad publics it reached enabled the spread of a common gaming culture- one built upon shared visual structures in game boards. Modern board games, of course, relied upon similar rules and replicated the ludic functions of their Renaissance progenitors. But perhaps more importantly, they built upon and perpetuated entrenched narratives about how fortune and morality contributed to lived experiences, presenting their viewers and …

Blackjack Player Choice, Superstition, And Calculated Odds Of Winning, Skyler Worley, Erykah Mcclendon, Avery Mielke, Ryan Speelman

Paper Presentations

Given the prevalence of gambling and preponderance of gaming options, efforts to curb problem gambling and promote responsible play for recreational players are of value. The current experiment analyzed choice behavior in the context of blackjack, the associated odds produced by these choices, and the influence of accurate rules (instructions) regarding gameplay. Results found novice players deviate significantly from optimal strategy and adjusted payout rates change as a function of this deviation. For these players, the predicted losses incurred following such strategies deviated significantly from the anticipated outcomes predicted by the odds that are commonly advertised. Next, participants viewed a …

Gambling On Revenue, Kelsey Tallent, Michael Davidsson

Paper Presentations

My findings from my study have concluded that median age and subprime credit population were actually significant for every test when I thought they would be the least significant. If the evidence suggested is true Sedgwick county has a population that is focused on the younger population with higher credit scores when income is insignificant so this tells us that the college aged people with parents that have high credit scores are fueling casino revenue. Wyandotte county can be seen as the exact opposite because it is focused on the older population with higher income and higher credit scores. Ford …