The impact of cash-outs on online gambling behavior: A randomized controlled trial

The rise of online sports betting, facilitated by technological innovations such as the cash-out feature, has transformed the gambling landscape. While cash-outs have been suggested to intensify problematic gambling behaviors, empirical studies to date have been correlational, leaving a gap in determining causal evidence. In the present Registered Report, the proposed study will investigate the direct impact of the cash-out feature on various facets of gambling behavior in a randomized controlled trial. Hungarian residents with online gambling history will be offered the chance to gamble real money on sport events. Following random allocation, half of the participants will have the option to cash out their bets before the outcome of the sport event is known while the other half will not. The study will compare the proportion of participants placing bets, bet sizes, and bet risks between the two groups. Furthermore, the study will explore the differential effects of the cash-out feature on specific high-risk subgroups. The findings are likely to have significant implications for the design of online betting platforms, contribute to regulatory frameworks, and help in the design of interventions that minimize gambling-related harm.