National Center For Responsible Gaming Adds New Member &Amp; Approves Grant For Scientific Studies Of Pathological Gambling

Aug 6, 1997

LEDYARD, Conn.—The board of directors for the National Center for Responsible Gaming (NCRG) today approved a $160,000 scientific research grant, gave the go-ahead to seek proposals for other scientific research into problem and underage gambling and appointed a new board member.

The NCRG awarded the research grant to The City of Hope National Medical Center in Duarte, California. The grant will fund a two-year study of the ‘Genetics of Pathological Gambling.’ Researchers will look at DNA samples from pathological gamblers to examine possible genetic abnormalities in an effort to determine whether a particular gene predisposes some individuals to pathological gambling.

The sponsorship of scientific research by NCRG is part of its long-term plan to develop and promote public education programs for problem and underage gambling. NCRG is a fully autonomous, unincorporated division of the Gaming Entertainment Research and Education Foundation (GEREF) that funds independent research that will provide a scientific basis for the development of prevention, intervention and treatment strategies for problem gambling.

‘The diverse research that will be conducted by many distinguished medical centers will answer fundamental questions about why a few individuals develop a problem with gambling, while the vast majority enjoy gaming as a recreational activity,’ said Major General Paul A. Harvey, chairman of the GEREF Board of Directors.

At its meeting, GEREF elected F.M. ‘Bud’ Celey, president & CEO, Foxwoods Resort Casino, to the board of directors, and approved a seed grant program to support planning and pilot projects.

‘The award of this grant is an excellent first step in our examination of the nature of gambling-related disorders. Ultimately, we expect this research to help improve current diagnostic and treatment programs,’ said Harvey.

Established in 1996, NCRG is the first national organization devoted exclusively to funding research on problem and underage gambling. In addition to supporting the NCRG, GEREF’s mission is to raise awareness of and to develop and promote public education programs for the prevention and treatment of problem and underage gambling.

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National Center For Responsible Gaming Announces Competition For Research Grants

Youth Gambling and Neuroscience are Top Priorities

Jul 20, 1998

KANSAS CITY, MO—The National Center for Responsible Gaming (NCRG) has released its latest request for research projects on underage gambling and the neurobiology of disordered gambling.

The NCRG expects to award over one million dollars in grants in support of pioneering research on pathological gambling. Preliminary applications will be accepted in October 1998 and formal proposals on January 4, 1999. Many of the nation’s top scientific researchers are expected to compete.

The NCR has awarded nearly $1.3 million in grants since its establishment in 1996. This funding represents an unprecedented level of support for problem gambling research.

Christine Reilly, executive director of the NCRG, said that the new initiative reflects the NCRG’s commitment to cutting-edge research. ‘We want the field of gambling studies to build on the incredible advances in mental health research such as genetics, drug therapy, and neuroimaging.’ She said, ‘Until we understand the neurobiological roots of disordered gambling behavior, we will not be able to effectively prevent and treat the disorder.’

The initiative also emphasizes the importance of understanding youth gambling, a problem beginning to attract public attention. A recently completed study by Harvard Medical School, the first project funded by the NCRG, estimates that approximately 5.77% of the youth population have a serious problem with gambling.

Researchers are still in the early stages of building a knowledge base about youth and college-age gambling. Reilly stated, ‘The NCRG is especially interested in discovering what puts some young people at risk so that we can develop new prevention strategies. Prevention is ultimately the most effective form of treatment.’

An independent, nonprofit organization, the NCRG is affiliated with the University of Missouri-Kansas City. It receives support from The Lincy Foundation, Boyd Gaming Corporation, Station Casinos, Caesars World, Circus Circus Enterprises, Grand Casinos, Hilton Hotels Corporation, International Game Technology, Mirage Resorts and other gaming entertainment companies.

For more information about the current funding initiative and the National Center for Responsible Gaming, call 816.531.1878.

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National Center For Responsible Gaming Appoints New Board Members

Oct 19, 2001

KANSAS CITY, MO—The National Center for Responsible Gaming (NCRG) recently appointed four new members to its board of directors. G. Thomas Baker, president and chief executive officer, International Game Technology (IGT); Glenn Christenson, executive vice president, chief financial officer and chief administrative officer, Station Casinos, Inc.; Dennis E. Eckart, president and chief executive officer, Greater Cleveland Growth Association; and Kevin P. Mullally, executive director, Missouri Gaming Commission, join the center’s 21-member board, a distinguished group of educators, scientists, health care professionals, civic leaders and gaming industry executives.

‘We are truly honored that four such distinguished leaders have agreed to serve on our board,’ said NCRG Chairman Maj. Gen. Paul A. Harvey (Ret.). ‘The diverse backgrounds of these new members will lend fresh perspectives in our ongoing mission to combat problem and underage gambling through scientific research. All four of these individuals have demonstrated their strong support for our mission, and their combined experiences will prove invaluable to our efforts.’

The NCRG was created by the gaming industry to address problem and youth gambling through the funding of independent research and education. The organization also promotes public awareness of problem and youth gambling through conferences and other programs for researchers, treatment providers, gaming industry personnel and public policy makers. The research funded by NCRG will lead to effective prevention and treatment of problem gambling and has the potential to unravel the mysteries of a whole range of addictive disorders.

Baker, president and chief executive officer of IGT, first joined the company in 1988 as its vice president of finance and chief financial officer. IGT is a world leader in the design, development and manufacture of microprocessor-based gaming products and software systems in all jurisdictions where gaming is legal. The company has also been an industry leader in supporting problem gambling research.

Christenson, executive vice president, chief financial officer and chief administrative officer of Station Casinos, replaces Station President and CEO Frank Fertitta III on the NCRG board. Station Casinos has long been an active supporter of research on problem gambling issues.

Eckart, president and CEO of the Greater Cleveland Growth Association, represented the Cleveland area as a member of the United States Congress from 1981 to 1993, where he served on the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the Small Business Committee and authored several key legislative initiatives. He joined the Growth Association, the nation’s largest metropolitan chamber of commerce, in 2000.

Mullally, executive director of the Missouri Gaming Commission, is responsible for overseeing the daily activities of the commission, which include licensing and regulation of riverboat gaming operations and charitable bingo in the state. He is a past president and a member of the Board of the Missouri Alliance to Curb Problem Gambling and chairman of the North American Gaming Regulators Association Policy Committee.

The NCRG was established in 1996 to address the need for a greater understanding of pathological gambling and related disorders. In five years, the NCRG has transformed the gambling research field by supporting only the highest quality investigations of problem gambling selected through an independent and rigorous peer review process. In 2000, the NCRG awarded a $2.6 million contract to Harvard Medical School’s Division on Addictions to establish the Institute for Research on Pathological Gambling and Related Disorders to carry out the research initiatives first established by the NCRG.

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National Center For Responsible Gaming Approves Grant For Scientific Studies Of Pathological Gaming

Oct 31, 1997

KANSAS CITY, Mo.—The National Center for Responsible Gaming (NCRG) recently approved a $120,000 scientific research grant to the Foundation for Clinical Neuroscience Research and Education, Inc. in Cleveland, Ohio. The grant will fund a two-year study that will use brain imaging and blood samples to determine if there is a biochemical basis for compulsive gambling.

The board of directors also announced that in December the Division of Addictions at Harvard Medical School will release its study of who is at risk for gambling disorders. Supported by a $140,000 grant from the Center, this groundbreaking project will produce the first reliable national estimates of the disorder among both adults and adolescents.

The recipients of the NCRG award at the Foundation for Clinical Neuroscience Research and Education will test their theory that low levels of dopamine-which has been linked to a variety of disorders including alcoholism and binge eating-may result in impaired cognitive functioning that explains compulsive gambling and the frequency of relapse for those in treatment. Dopamine is the neurotransmitter related to mood, attention and learning.

This is the second neuroscience research grant awarded by the NCRG in 1997. In August the City of Hope National Medical Center in Duarte, California, received a grant of $160,000 in support of a two-year study, ‘The Genetics of Pathological Gambling.’ Researchers will look at DNA samples from pathological gamblers to examine possible genetic abnormalities in an effort to determine whether a particular gene predisposes some individuals to compulsive gambling.

The sponsorship of scientific research by NCRG is part of its long-term plan to develop and promote public education programs for problem and underage gambling. NCRG is a fully autonomous, unincorporated division of the Gaming Entertainment Research and Education Foundation (GEREF) that funds independent research that will provide a scientific basis for the development of prevention, education and treatment strategies for problem gambling.

‘The diverse research that will be conducted by many distinguished medical centers will answer fundamental questions about why a few individuals develop a problem with gambling, while the vast majority enjoy gaming as a recreational activity,’ said Major General Paul A. Harvey, chairman of the GEREF Board of Directors.

‘The award of these grants is an excellent first step in our examination of the nature of gambling-related disorders. Ultimately, we expect this research to help improve current diagnostic and treatment programs,’ said Harvey.

Established in 1996, NCRG is the first national organization devoted exclusively to funding research on problem and underage gambling. In addition to supporting the NCRG, GEREF’s mission is to raise awareness of and to develop and promote public education programs for the prevention and treatment of problem and underage gambling.

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National Center For Responsible Gaming Awards Three Major Research Grants For The Study Of Problem Gambling

Aug 16, 2000

Kansas City, MO—The National Center for Responsible Gaming (NCRG) announced today more than $500,000 in grant awards to three prestigious institutions for research into the relationship between brain chemistry and gambling disorders. The first national organization devoted exclusively to funding peer-reviewed research on disordered gambling, the NCRG has awarded $3.7 million in grants since its founding in 1996.

The three new awards reflect ‘the NCRG’s commitment to cutting-edge research that takes advantage of the technological advances in the study of genetics, brain imaging and pharmacology,’ commented Maj. Gen. Paul Harvey (Ret.), chairman of the NCRG board. According to Christine Reilly, the organization’s executive director, these grants will ‘complement the research that takes a social-behavioral approach to the problem by identifying biological markers for the disorder and testing new treatment therapies.’

Details of the grant awards include:

  • Yale School of Medicine received $172,500 in support of ‘Naltrexone and Citalopram Treatment of Pathological Gambling and Comorbid Alcohol Use or Dependence.’ The project will test the efficacy of these drugs in the treatment of patients diagnosed with both alcoholism and pathological gambling.
  • The University of Connecticut Health Center received a grant of $172,056 in support of ‘Functional MRI of Prefrontal Cortex Function in Pathological Gamblers.’ The objective of the project is to ascertain if altered brain function in pathological gamblers affects their risk-taking decision-making.
  • The University of Iowa College of Medicine received a grant of $169,929 in support of ‘A Family-Genetic Study of Pathological Gambling.’ The project will be the first direct family interview study of pathological gamblers.

The NCRG is a division of the Gaming Entertainment Research and Education Foundation (GEREF). In addition to supporting the NCRG, GEREF’s mission is to raise awareness through education and to develop and promote programs for the prevention and treatment of problem and youth gambling.

For more information about the NCRG and its grant projects, call 978-535-6767.

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National Center For Responsible Gaming Grant Awards Exceed One Million Dollars With Support For New Scientific Studies On Problem And Underage Gambling

Dec 29, 1997

Kansas City, Missouri—Grant awards announced today by the National Center for Responsible Gaming (NCRG) totaling $989,437 bring the organization’s total awards for 1997 to $1.3 million. The new grants made by NCRG support wide-ranging research in the three critical areas of study on problem and underage gambling: epidemiology, social and behavioral sciences, and neuroscience.

Christine Reilly, executive director of the National Center for Responsible Gaming, said the most recent awards broaden the scope of research on problem and underage gambling to ensure full study of the subject. ‘We will now have work being pursued in all the critical disciplines to help us establish fundamental, cornerstone research in the areas of problem and underage gambling.’

Harvard Medical School received a two-year grant of $465,069 to continue its groundbreaking epidemiological research on the prevalence of disordered gambling behavior. ‘The Harvard Gambling Resource Project’ builds on research conducted for a recently completed NCRG-supported meta-analysis of past prevalence studies, and will produce a dynamic database of information about rates of problem gambling.

The Harvard meta-analysis was the first of its kind conducted in the area of problem gambling research. Using recommendations from this study, the board of the Center approved the establishment of a national symposium on developing quality protocols for prevalence studies.

The Harvard Gambling Resource Project will enable researchers, policy-makers and the public to access the most reliable and precise estimates of the prevalence of gambling-related phenomena. It will also disseminate information on cutting-edge research via the Internet, a weekly fax newsletter and periodic technical reports.

NCRG grants totaling more than $110,000 will focus on understanding the dynamics of underage gambling. NCRG awarded a grant of $57,339 to the Minnesota Institute of Public Health, Anoka, Minnesota, which will support a study of the ‘Psychosocial and Behavioral Factors Associated with Problem Gambling by Youth.’ A grant of $56,410 was directed to the University of Minnesota to examine whether or not adolescents involved in gambling experience the same ‘maturing-out’ process as young people involved in alcohol and drug use , when they reach young adulthood.

The NCRG is also funding two neuroscience projects that will seek to understand the neurobiological basis for disordered gambling behavior. As argued by the Harvard prevalence study, research that identifies biological markers for the disorder can provide a much-needed ‘gold standard’ against which the accuracy of screening instruments can be measured.

A grant of $76,360 to the University of New Mexico will support the use of neuroimaging instruments, such as the MRI scan, to study the brain activity of pathological gamblers while they gamble. The University of Minnesota will use an NCRG grant of $ 53,374 to conduct a double-blind trial to study the effectiveness of the drug naltrexone with pathological gamblers. Naltrexone has been used effectively in various psychiatric disorders characterized by excessive urges and loss of behavioral control, including alcoholism and bulimia.

Other recipients of grants include:

Addiction Research Foundation, Toronto, Canada, $ 33,748 for ‘Cognitive Biases in Problem Gambling.’ The project will compare the cognitive processes of problem gamblers with those of social gamblers to see if distorted thinking is at the root of the disorder.

Universite Laval, Quebec, Canada, $140,499 for ‘Cognitive Treatment of Pathological Gambling.’ Pathological gamblers will be treated with a therapy designed to help individuals change behavior by modifying their thoughts. In the case of this disorder, the therapy will focus on changing the disordered gambler’s erroneous notion of randomness.

University of Calgary, $106,638 for ‘Critical Dimensions of Relapse in Pathological Gambling.’ The study will follow problem gamblers in treatment for a year to better understand the phenomenon of relapse, a subject that has received little attention from researchers. The findings of this study will have important implications for theory and treatment.

Earlier this year, the NCRG awarded two additional scientific research grants. The Foundation for Clinical Neuroscience Research and Education, Inc. in Cleveland, Ohio, received $120,000 to fund a two-year study that will use brain imaging and blood samples to determine if there is a biochemical basis for compulsive gambling.

The City of Hope National Medical center in Duarte, California was awarded a grant of $160,000 to support a two-year study in which researchers will look at DNA samples from pathological gamblers to examine possible genetic abnormalities in an effort to determine whether a particular gene predisposes some individuals to compulsive gambling.

Maj. General Paul A. Harvey, chairman of the NCRG Board, also announced the recent appointment of new four members to the Advisory Board, a scientific body that counsels the NCRG’s governing board on funding priorities and individual grant awards. The new members are:

Richard I. Evans—Distinguished University Professor of Psychology, University of Houston

Frederick Goodwin, M.D.—Director of the Center on Neuroscience, Medical Progress and Society at George Washington University

Barry Kosofsky—Assistant Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School

Alan Marlatt, Professor of Psychology and Director of the Addictive Behaviors Research Center at the University of Washington, Seattle

General Harvey said, ‘The new members are all leaders in the field of mental health research and will bring the highest commitment to excellence in scientific research to the work of the NCRG.’

These appointees will join Advisory Board members Robert Boswell, Executive Vice President of Pioneer Healthcare, Inc.; Elizabeth George, Executive Director of the Minnesota Council on Compulsive Gambling; and Sue Giles, Director of the Addiction Technology Transfer Center of the University of Missouri, Kansas City.

Established in 1996, the NCRG is the first national organization devoted exclusively to funding research on problem and underage gambling. The NCRG, affiliated with the University of Missouri, Kansas City, is a division of the Gaming Entertainment Research and Education Foundation (GEREF). In addition to supporting the NCRG, GEREF’s mission is to raise awareness through education and to develop and promote programs for the prevention and treatment of problem and underage gambling.

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National Center For Responsible Gaming Receives $50,000 From Mississippi Band Of Choctaw Indians

Jan 22, 2001

KANSAS CITY, MO –The National Center for Responsible Gaming (NCRG) announced today a new funding commitment of $50,000 from the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians. The funds will support research and education on pathological and youth gambling.

‘We want to commend Chief Martin and the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians for their commitment to supporting responsible gaming efforts,’ said Maj. Gen. Paul Harvey (Ret.), chairman of the NCRG board. ‘Their generosity and dedication will help the NCRG continue its ground-breaking research and education efforts.’ The Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians, the sixth largest employer in the state, owns and operates the Silver Star Hotel & Casino in Philadelphia, Miss.

More than 30 companies, including casino operators and manufacturers of gaming equipment, have contributed to the NCRG since its founding in 1996. The first national organization dedicated exclusively to supporting peer-reviewed research on disordered gambling, the NCRG has awarded $3.7 million in research grants to more than 20 institutions, including Harvard Medical School, Yale School of Medicine and Washington University in St. Louis. The NCRG also is dedicated to promoting public awareness of gambling disorders and education programs for scientists and treatment providers.

‘The support of the gaming industry has enabled the NCRG to build widely respected research and education programs,’ said Harvey. ‘Our objective is to improve the quality of research on gambling so that science, not anecdotal evidence, guides our understanding of gambling disorders.’

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National Center For Responsible Gaming Receives New Financial Commitment From Station Casinos

Sandia Casino, Pueblo of Sandia Also Make Contribution

Oct 19, 2001

KANSAS CITY, MO—The National Center for Responsible Gaming (NCRG) announced today that Station Casinos has renewed its financial commitment to the NCRG with a pledge of $50,000 per year to the organization over the next five years. The funds will support research and education on pathological and youth gambling.

‘Station Casinos has long supported our efforts to address the problem of disordered gambling, and we commend them for their renewed commitment to this important research effort,’ said NCRG Chairman Major General Paul Harvey (Ret.). ‘Their generosity and dedication will help the NCRG continue its ground-breaking research and education efforts.’

In addition to Station Casino’s renewed commitment, the NCRG announced that the Sandia Casino and the Pueblo of Sandia together donated $10,300 to the organization. Located in New Mexico, the pueblo and casino have been consistent supporters of NCRG’s efforts over the past several years.

More than 30 companies, including casino operators and manufacturers of gaming equipment, have contributed to the NCRG since its founding in 1996. The first national organization dedicated exclusively to supporting peer-reviewed research on disordered gambling, the NCRG has awarded $3.7 million in research grants to more than 20 institutions, including Harvard Medical School, Yale School of Medicine and Washington University in St. Louis. The NCRG also is dedicated to promoting public awareness of gambling disorders and education programs for scientists and treatment providers.

‘The overwhelming support of the gaming industry and communities like the Pueblo of Sandia has enabled the NCRG to make great strides in building widely respected research and education programs,’ said Harvey. ‘Thanks to the work of the talented researchers funded through our organization, science, rather than anecdotal evidence, is now guiding our understanding of gambling disorders.’

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National Center For Responsible Gaming To Lead Discussion On Genetics

12th National Conference on Problem Gambling gets underway in Las Vegas

Jun 10, 1998

KANSAS CITY—Is there a genetic link to compulsive gambling? The National Center for Responsible Gaming will lead an important discussion on genetics research next week at the 12th National Conference on Problem Gambling in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Christine Reilly, Executive Director of the National Center for Responsible Gaming (NCRG), will moderate the panel discussion, ‘The Genetics of Problem Gambling.’ Joining Reilly on the panel will be David E. Comings, M.D., Director of the Department of Medical Genetics at the City of Hope National Medical Center, and Dr. Ken Winters, Ph.D., Director of the Center for Adolescent Substance Abuse and Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Senior Research Associate in Psychiatry at the University of Minnesota.

Dr. Comings will be speak on: ‘The Genetics of Pathological Gambling: The Addictive Effect of Multiple Genes.’ The topic of Dr. Winters’s address is ‘A Twin Study of Correlates of Gambling and Related Impulse Disorders.’

The NCRG was founded in 1996 to support scientific research on pathological gambling, one of the least understood addictions. To date, the NCRG has funded eleven research projects.

‘We are very excited about the opportunity to present cutting-edge research funded by the NCRG,’ said Reilly. ‘Genetics will help explain the neurobiological basis for problem gambling and lead to improved prevention and treatment programs. For example, identifying biological markers for the disorder will give us a way to independently validate the instruments now being used to diagnose problem gambling.’

Dr. Comings is the principal investigator of the NCRG-funded project, ‘The Molecular Genetics of Pathological Gambling.’ Dr. Comings has authored over 350 papers on genetics and more than 60 publications on diagnosis, treatment and genetics of ADD, Tourette Syndrome, and pathological gambling. His many roles of national leadership in medical genetics include a term as President of the American Society of Human Genetics and eight years as editor of the American Journal of Human Genetics.

Dr. Winters is currently directing ‘Youth Gambling: Transition from Adolescence to Young Adulthood,’ a research project supported by the NCRG. He is nationally recognized for his work on adolescent drug abuse, root causes of addiction, and pathological gambling. Dr. Winters is currently working on projects funded by the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA), the Walker Foundation, and the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention. He is a member of the Committee on the Social and Economic Impact of Pathological Gambling convened by the National Research Council.

The NCRG, a tax-exempt, nonprofit organization, receives support from the Lincy Foundation, Boyd Gaming Corporation, Station Casinos, Caesars World, Circus Circus Enterprises, Grand Casinos, Hilton Hotels Corporation, International Game Technology, Mirage Resorts and other gaming entertainment companies.

The 12th National Conference on Problem Gambling will be held at the Alexis Park Resort from June 18-20 and is sponsored by the National Council on Problem Gambling and the Nevada Council on Problem Gambling. ‘The Genetics of Problem Gambling’ panel will present from 3:15 – 4:45 p.m. on Thursday, June 18 in the Parthenon Conference Center. The Alexis Park Resort is located at 375 East Harmon Avenue, Las Vegas, Nevada.

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NCRG Annual Conference Expands In Size And Scope

Conference Add New Programs: 2nd Annual Scientific Achievement Awards Will Honor Oustanding Contributions in Disordered Gambling Research

Jul 9, 2003

Washington, D.C. –The National Center for Responsible Gaming’s (NCRG) annual conference, approaching its fourth year in December, has enhanced the size and scope of its program to appeal to gaming industry executives, gaming regulators, attorneys and elected officials.

With previous conferences geared primarily to academics and health care professionals in the addictive disorders, the 4th Annual NCRG Conference on Gambling and Addiction, scheduled for Dec. 7-9 in Las Vegas, will now offer a comprehensive, practical agenda for a government and industry audience, in addition to its historical program for the scientific and academic community.

“The expansion of the NCRG annual conference is part of an overall initiative to enhance the Center’s educational programs and reach new audiences,” explained Dennis Eckart, NCRG Chairman. “There is a vast amount of worthwhile information about disordered gambling issues that needs to be disseminated and shared beyond the scientific community. By expanding our conference to the gaming industry and government, we are, in essence, creating a whole new educational tool.”

The 2003 NCRG conference, themed Regulating Addiction: How Individuals, Groups and Institutions Manage Excessive Behaviors, will offer a new “Government and Industry” track, primarily geared toward the gaming industry, gaming regulators, attorneys and elected officials. Topics will range from worldwide responsible gaming practices, to harm minimization features on gaming machines, self exclusion programs, state-funded treatment programs and gaming regulations. A sample list of speakers includes Alex Blaszczynski, Ph.D., Head of Department and Chair in Psychology, University of Sydney; G. Thomas Baker, President and CEO, International Game Technology; Kevin Mullally, Executive Director, Missouri Gaming Commission; John Wilhelm, Member, National Gambling Impact Study Commission and President, Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees International Union; Scott Scherer, Member, Nevada Gaming Control Board; Jon Kelly, Ph.D., CEO, Responsible Gaming Council (Ontario); Philip G. Satre, Chairman, Harrah’s Entertainment, Inc.; and Dennis Eckart, former six-term member of the U.S. House of Representatives and NCRG chairman.

The “Scientific and Clinical” track, co-sponsored by the Institute for Research on Pathological Gambling and Related Disorders at Harvard Medical School’s Division on Addictions, will be of special interest to clinicians, treatment providers and researchers in the field of problem gambling and substance use disorders. It will include such topics as self-guided therapy for problem gamblers and drinkers, how individuals regulate problems with alcohol and weight, and the role of 12-step programs in regulating behaviors. Presenters will include world-renowned scientists and researchers, including Howard J. Shaffer, Ph.D., C.A.S., Director of Harvard Medical School’s Division on Addictions; G. Alan Marlatt, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle; Anne M. Fletcher, M.S., R.D., L.D., author and medical journalist; Henry Wechsler, Ph.D., Director, Harvard School of Public Health, College Alcohol Studies Program; Linda Sobell, Ph.D., Professor and Associate Director of Clinical Training, Center for Psychological Studies, Nova Southeastern University; and Mark Sobell, Ph.D., Professor, Center for Psychological Studies, Nova Southeastern University.

Conference participants will be invited to attend sessions from either track, allowing individuals to select the program elements most important to their needs. Additionally, the conference will offer several plenary sessions open to everyone, including a “Town Hall” meeting, and topics such as gambling from a public health perspective, the latest research on gambling and alcohol at U.S. colleges, and alcohol prevention models.

As part of the 2003 conference, the NCRG will also hold its second annual Scientific Achievement Awards program to honor outstanding contributions to the study of gambling and gambling-related problems. Two recipients will be honored at the awards ceremony: The Young Investigator Award will recognize an individual for excellence in scientific contributions to the field of gambling within the past 10 years; and the Senior Investigator Award will honor an investigator whose body of work has advanced the field of gambling-related research. The NCRG recently distributed an international request for nominations for these prestigious awards (visit www.ncrg.org for more information). The deadline for all nominations is Sept. 15, 2003.

The 4th Annual NCRG Conference on Gambling and Addiction will be held Dec. 7-9 at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. Visit www.ncrg.org to view the full conference program.

Founded in 1996, the NCRG was the first national organization exclusively devoted to funding peer-reviewed, scientific research on pathological and youth gambling. The NCRG’s mission is to be the leading source of science-based research and information on gambling and health, advancing education, prevention, treatment and public policy. To date, the casino industry and related businesses have committed more than $12 million to this effort, and the NCRG has issued more than $6 million in support of groundbreaking research on gambling disorders. In 2000, the NCRG established the Institute for Research on Pathological Gambling and Related Disorders at Harvard Medical School’s Division on Addictions, the world’s preeminent medical research institution.

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