The University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) has launched what it touts as the inaugural academic center in the United States focused solely on researching gambling behaviors among college students, amid rising worries over betting activities on campuses and their potential implications.

The newly established Center for Collegiate Gambling, which received approval from the university’s board of trustees, aims to analyze gambling trends across various formats, including classic card games and modern prediction markets, while creating strategies for prevention and treatment based on empirical evidence. The center will also investigate the relationship between gambling activity and the integrity of collegiate sports.

This initiative arises during a time of significant policy shifts in the gaming sector, including a bipartisan federal initiative proposed to enhance funding for gambling addiction studies, representing the first such movement in over ten years. At the state level, legislative activity is gaining momentum, marked by the recent passage of a second sports betting bill in the Mississippi House of Representatives.

Supporting the university’s initiative is research showing pervasive gambling habits among students. A multi-campus survey conducted by Ole Miss researchers, spanning seven state universities, revealed that 39% of students surveyed had engaged in gambling within the last year, with sports betting being the most prevalent form of participation.

Among those who admitted to sports betting, 6% qualified as problem gamblers according to the American Psychiatric Association’s criteria, while a larger segment fell into the category of moderate risk.

The study further indicated participation patterns, with higher occurrences noted among male students, white students, those living off-campus, and members of Greek organizations. Over half of the students who gamble, specifically 58%, reported engaging with online sportsbooks.

Additionally, the research emphasizes how Mississippi’s regulatory framework impacts student behavior. Although in-person casino operations are strictly governed, ongoing discussions regarding the legalization of online sports betting have led to a fragmented industry. Industry analysts argue that students may resort to offshore operators or prediction markets that evade current state regulations on mobile betting platforms.

Daniel Durkin, an associate professor of social work at Ole Miss, stated that the initiative was sparked by a lack of cohesive responses to an escalating issue. “We observed an emerging gambling dilemma, and not many were stepping up to tackle it,” remarked Durkin.

He added that engagement with wider research communities shaped the university’s strategy: “As we began attending national gambling conferences, we realized more focused efforts were necessary in the collegiate gambling arena.”