Understanding the Harms of Online Gambling Through Digital Literacy: Project Overview and Inquiry Process
Online gambling has become increasingly accessible through mobile apps, online casinos and sports betting platforms. These platforms are often marketed as forms of entertainment, making it difficult to understand concerns of addiction, misinformation, and digital safety. For our inquiry project, we will explore the question: How can digital literacy help people better understand and avoid the harms of online gambling?
Inquiry process
To guide my investigation, I will use an inquiry framework from the Pacific School of Innovation and Inquiry, that emphasizes asking questions, investigating information, and reflecting on new knowledge. Using this inquiry framework will help structure how I explore the topic by guiding me through my questioning, investigation, and reflection. In the question stage, I will ask questions such as, how do online gambling platforms encourage users to keep playing? What information do gambling companies emphasize or hide in their advertisements? These questions will help me focus on important digital literacy themes related to online gambling. In the investigation stage I will examine multiple sources, such as advertisements, platform features, and academic research. For example, I could analyze how betting apps use reward systems, design features, notifications, etc. to encourage continued engagement and influence behaviour. I will also assess claims made to determine whether they present realistic information about winning odds, relating to information literacy and the ability to critically assess online information. I may review the privacy policies of online gambling platforms to understand what personal data they collect and how it may be used. In the reflection stage of the inquiry model, I will consider how these findings demonstrate the importance of digital literacy skills in helping individuals recognize the risks and make safer online gambling decisions.
Digital Literacy Framework Themes
This project connects to themes from the BC post secondary digital literacy framework, particularly digital wellbeing, information literacy, and ethical and legal considerations such as privacy and security. These themes provide a useful lens for understanding the risks associated with online gambling platforms.
Regarding digital wellbeing, we want to focus on how individuals can maintain healthy relationships when using online gambling platforms. A digitally literate person should use technology intentionally and recognize when digital environments may negatively impact mental or emotional health. Online gambling platforms are designed to encourage repeated engagement through quick rewards, constant notifications,and easy access through phones. These features can make it difficult for users to set boundaries and may contribute to harmful patterns such as excessive spending or addictive behaviour. Understanding how digital platforms are designed to influence behaviour is therefore an important aspect of digital wellbeing.
Information literacy plays a role in helping users critically evaluate the claims and messages they encounter online. Gambling websites and advertisements often promote the possibility of winning money while downplaying statistical odds of losing. Digital literacy encourages users to critically assess who created information, why it was produced, and whether it is trustworthy or misleading. Developing these skills can help individuals understand and recognize misleading marketing tactics or unrealistic promises related to gambling success.
Ethical and legal considerations related to privacyand securityare also relevant to online gambling. Many gambling platforms require users to create accounts and share personal and financial information. Digital literacy includes understanding how companies collect and use data, as well as strategies for protecting personal information online. Users who are not aware of these risks may expose themselves to privacy concerns, data misuse, or financial vulnerabilities.
Through this inquiry project, I hope to better understand how digital literacy can help individuals critically navigate online gambling environments. Education and awareness about this can reduce harm and support individuals in safer digital gambling practices.