Submission Title
Regulating the Gaming Industry Across Time and Place
Session Title
Session 2-2-C: Consumer Protection
Presentation Type
Event
Location
Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada
Start Date
29-5-2019 11:00 AM
End Date
29-5-2019 12:25 PM
Disciplines
Criminology and Criminal Justice | Other Legal Studies | Other Political Science | Policy Design, Analysis, and Evaluation | Social Control, Law, Crime, and Deviance
Abstract
By researching vice, socio-legal scholars learn about the move from a relatively simple prohibitory approach to a complicated regulatory process that that must redefine the behavior and draw new boundaries between what is legal and illegal. As behaviors become legal, a struggle ensues to determine whether they are morally acceptable and how to control potential harms. The gambling industry provides an example of such issues, and its proliferation across the globe makes it important to understand the role of state agents in preventing or intervening in harm. Prior research has neglected the study of gambling regulators’ roles in responding to the violations of gambling licensees.
The current paper is a comparative historical analysis examining how gaming regulators in two jurisdictions (Las Vegas and Atlantic City) have handled violations of laws by gambling providers. Using archival data, we investigate whether and how the adopted regulatory approach influences (and is influenced by) existing jurisdictional constraints and culture. This research has strong implications for regulators, including an emphasis on involving the public, policymakers, and the industry when deciding how to effectively protect consumers and further legitimize the industry.
Keywords
Regulation, Gambling, Responsive Regulation, Corporate Compliance
Funding Sources
I am grateful to UNLV’s International Gaming Institute’s International Center for Gaming Regulation (ICGR) for their financial support for this project via the inaugural 2016 - 2017 Research Fellowship. The IGI had no influence on any aspect of the research, although Andre Wilsenach and Jennifer Roberts made helpful comments on the "Research in Brief" on which the presentation is based.
Competing Interests
I received the IGI International Center for Gaming Regulation's 2016 - 2017 Research Fellowship to conduct this research.
Regulating the Gaming Industry Across Time and Place
Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, Nevada
By researching vice, socio-legal scholars learn about the move from a relatively simple prohibitory approach to a complicated regulatory process that that must redefine the behavior and draw new boundaries between what is legal and illegal. As behaviors become legal, a struggle ensues to determine whether they are morally acceptable and how to control potential harms. The gambling industry provides an example of such issues, and its proliferation across the globe makes it important to understand the role of state agents in preventing or intervening in harm. Prior research has neglected the study of gambling regulators’ roles in responding to the violations of gambling licensees.
The current paper is a comparative historical analysis examining how gaming regulators in two jurisdictions (Las Vegas and Atlantic City) have handled violations of laws by gambling providers. Using archival data, we investigate whether and how the adopted regulatory approach influences (and is influenced by) existing jurisdictional constraints and culture. This research has strong implications for regulators, including an emphasis on involving the public, policymakers, and the industry when deciding how to effectively protect consumers and further legitimize the industry.