In June 2021, the Canadian government passed Bill C-218, which lifted the federal ban on single-event sports betting. Ontario subsequently launched its regulated sports betting program in April 2022, expanding the types of sports betting and sportsbooks available.
With these legislative developments, the sports betting structure is changing in Ontario. Mental health and addiction professionals need to understand what the sports betting landscape looks like now.
This webinar offers a view into new laws, a new industry, and new data on the demographics of sports betting in Canada. With a spotlight on in-play betting—the nature of which can be compared to slot machine play—this webinar looks at the role of contextual and psychological factors, such as simultaneous substance use and emotion regulation.
Originally lived streamed: Monday, December 11, 2023
Click to access the recording and presentation slides
Who should watch?
This presentation is intended for mental health and addiction service providers who work directly with clients experiencing issues related to problem gambling. Other mental health and addiction service providers interested in learning more about the new legislation are encouraged to attend.
Learning objectives:
By the end of this webinar, learners will be able to:
- Establish a baseline understanding of legislative changes to sports betting in Canada
- Define and compare types of legal sports betting
- Explore the demographics of sports bettors in Canada, with a spotlight on in-play bettors in Ontario, and
- Discuss the mechanics of in-play betting and relevant contextual and psychological factors.
Accreditation: Applications for accreditation have been submitted to the Canadian Problem Gambling Certification Board and the Canadian Addiction Counsellors Certification Federation for 1 Continuing Education Unit (CEU).
Presenter bios:
Andrew (Hyounsoo) Kim (Ph.D., R.Psych) is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Calgary and an Adjunct Scientist at the University of Ottawa Institute of Mental Health Research at The Royal. Dr. Kim is also the Chair of CPA’s Addiction Psychology. Dr. Kim has been a national expert on sports betting since the legislative changes and has given numerous invited presentations and media interviews on the topic for outlets such as CBC and CityTV. Dr. Kim’s clinical interests are in providing evidence-based care for people with co-occurring addictions and mental health difficulties. Relatedly, his research interest lies in developing an integrated treatment for substance and behavioural addictions and their mental health comorbidities.
Dr. Kim’s research has been funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, Gambling Research Exchange Ontario, and the American Psychological Association’s Society of Addiction Psychology. Dr. Kim has also received awards and fellowships from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (Banting Post-Doctoral Fellowship; declined), Killam Trusts, and the Canadian Psychological Association.
Jenna Vieira (B.A.) completed her undergraduate degree in Psychology at Toronto Metropolitan University and is currently a Master’s student in the Clinical Psychology program at Toronto Metropolitan University. Jenna has contributed to several peer-reviewed journal articles identifying the demographic, psychological, and gambling-related factors that characterize in-play bettors in Ontario. Broadly, Jenna is also interested in conducting research that seeks to understand the risk factors and mechanisms of co-occurring anxiety and addictive disorders.