Independence of Industry Funded Gambling Research Under Fire

An article in the Boston Globe titled "Gambling industry link to Harvard draws questions" (PDF of the article is available here) presents a range of opinions on whether industry funded gambling research can be considered independent. One thing is for certain is that these views are not new, in fact at the recent Insight Nova Scotia conference, Sol Boxenbaum and Brenda Thomas of Viva Consulting in Montreal presented a paper "Responsible Gambling: Whose Responsibility Is It? A Critique" which raised many of the same issues.

This raises a few issues:

• Is the research actually independent, or is it biased by its funding?
• Is it seen to be independent?
• If industry doesn't pay for the research, who does?
• Does government have a role, or do they also have a perceived bias?
• If industry funded research has an outcome opposing industry practice will it effect future potential funding for that researcher or institution?

These are interesting and difficult questions to answer, especially with any degree of certainty. It is difficult to have an objective opinion on this matter. I think the best that can be done is for researchers and institutions to acknowledge fully and clearly where their funding comes from and any consultation or correspondence they have had with industry. At least then readers can make their own opinions.

What do you think?

GG