Gaming — an intriguing study for academia
By Richard N. Velotta, Las Vegas Sun
When gambling went from being a pastime largely offered by organized crime to a leading entertainment industry, academia took notice and wanted to study it.
Thus began the University of Nevada, Reno’s Institute for the Study of Gambling and Commercial Gaming in 1989.
Its leader is William Eadington, an economics professor with an interest in the study of addictive behavior. He had already organized the International Conferences on Gambling and Risk Taking at Lake Tahoe every three years since 1974 and, over time, built a reputation as an expert on the gaming industry.
The UNR institute encourages and promotes research and learning on gambling, and Eadington is internationally recognized as an authority on the legalization and regulation of the industry. He has written and edited several books on the economic and social effects of commercial gaming.