Sally Gainsbury – gambling researcher and Stake casino reviewer
Professor, clinical psychologist, iGaming analyst – University of Sydney
About me
My name is Sally Gainsbury. I am a Professor of Psychology at the University of Sydney, where I lead the Gambling Treatment and Research Clinic within the Brain and Mind Centre. I hold both a Doctorate of Clinical Psychology and a PhD in Psychology, and I have spent more than 15 years studying how people gamble online – what attracts them, what harms them, and what actually works to protect them.
Most of my career has been shaped by a single question: what does technology do to gambling behaviour? I began researching internet gambling back when it was still considered a niche concern in Australia. Over time I watched it become the dominant form of gambling for millions of people, and I watched the research field scramble to keep up. That gap between product design and consumer protection has driven nearly everything I have written since.
At the University of Sydney I co-direct Australia’s only university-affiliated gambling treatment clinic – a place where clinical work and research are genuinely intertwined, not just formally connected. I also serve as Editor of International Gambling Studies and sit on the editorial boards of Psychology of Addictive Behaviors and Gaming Law Review. My work has attracted more than A$5 million in research funding and I have authored over 120 peer-reviewed publications with more than 7,700 citations recorded on ResearchGate as of 2026.
When I write about online casinos, I try to bring that background with me – not to lecture, but to make sure readers get information that is honest and grounded in evidence, not marketing copy.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Full name | Sally Melissa Gainsbury |
| Academic title | Professor of Psychology |
| Qualifications | PhD (Psychology), Doctorate of Clinical Psychology, BPsych |
| Institution | University of Sydney |
| Research centre | Brain and Mind Centre |
| Clinical role | Director, Gambling Treatment and Research Clinic |
| Research funding secured | A$5 million+ |
| Peer-reviewed publications | 120+ |
| Editorial role | Editor, International Gambling Studies |
| Country | Australia |
Education and training
My academic background is built entirely within clinical and experimental psychology. I completed my undergraduate degree, graduate diploma and doctoral studies in Australia, developing a methodology that sits at the intersection of behavioural science, public health and digital design analysis.
| Qualification | Institution |
|---|---|
| BPsych (Honours) | Bond University |
| Doctorate of Clinical Psychology | Bond University |
| PhD (Psychology) | Bond University / University of Sydney |
That clinical training matters when I review a casino. I am not just looking at bonus sizes or software providers – I am looking at how a platform is structured, what feedback loops it creates, and whether it includes tools that give players genuine control over their own behaviour.
Career timeline
My career has moved between research, clinical practice and academic leadership. Each stage added a different lens for understanding how the gambling industry operates and where it falls short.
| Period | Role | Organisation |
|---|---|---|
| Early career | Researcher, internet gambling | Bond University |
| Mid career | Postdoctoral researcher | University of Sydney |
| 2015-present | Associate Professor then Professor | University of Sydney |
| 2016-present | Co-director / Director, treatment clinic | Gambling Treatment and Research Clinic, USyd |
| 2019 | NSW Tall Poppy of the Year | Australian Institute of Policy and Science |
| 2020-present | Editor | International Gambling Studies |
In 2026 I continue to work across research, clinical supervision and policy consultation, advising government bodies and operators on evidence-based responsible gambling strategies.
What I research
My work covers the full landscape of modern digital gambling. The core of it has always been internet gambling – understanding who uses it, how platforms influence behaviour, and which interventions genuinely reduce harm versus which ones merely create the appearance of protection.
My key research areas include:
- Internet gambling and online casino player behaviour
- Responsible gambling tools and their real-world effectiveness
- Social gaming and its relationship to real-money gambling
- Esports betting and emerging product types
- Gambling advertising across digital and social media platforms
- Treatment models for gambling disorder
- Harm minimisation policy design
- Technology-driven behavioural addictions
I have paid particular attention to the gap between what responsible gambling tools promise and what they deliver in practice. A deposit limit that nobody sets, a self-exclusion link buried three pages deep, a reality check message that players dismiss in one click – these are not consumer protections in any meaningful sense. My research has documented this systematically, and it informs how I evaluate platforms like Stake casino.
Selected publications
The list below reflects the range of topics I have covered across my career. I focus on work that can be directly translated into policy or clinical practice.
| Year | Topic | Journal / Source |
|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Internet gambling: Current research findings and implications | Springer |
| 2016 | Online gambling policy and the question of harm | International Gambling Studies |
| 2018 | Responsible gambling strategies for internet gambling | Psychology of Addictive Behaviors |
| 2020 | Social casino gaming and problem gambling risk | Computers in Human Behavior |
| 2022 | Esports betting among Australian online gamblers | Journal of Behavioral Addictions |
| 2024 | Activity statements for online gambling – use and impact in Australia | Gambling Research Australia |
| 2025 | Electronic gaming machine consumers and spending self-awareness | International Gambling Studies |
Why I review Stake casino
I started reviewing online casino platforms because I found that most published reviews were written without any clinical or research context. A review might tell you the RTP on a particular slot, but it would not tell you whether the platform made it easy or hard to stay within budget – and that is exactly the kind of question a researcher trained in gambling behaviour is positioned to answer.
Stake casino is one of the more distinctive platforms available to Australian players in 2026. It operates under a Curaçao licence, accepts both cryptocurrency and standard payment methods, and has built a large community around its sportsbook and casino products. As someone who studies digital gambling environments professionally, I find it genuinely interesting – not because it is perfect, but because it illustrates how far the iGaming industry has come and where the structural tensions between engagement design and harm reduction still sit unresolved.
My reviews of Stake focus on things that matter from a behavioural and consumer protection standpoint:
- Licensing and regulatory framework – what oversight actually exists
- Responsible gambling tools – whether they are visible, functional and evidence-aligned
- Game fairness verification – provably fair mechanics and third-party auditing
- Payment transparency – withdrawal timelines, limits, and fee structures in A$
- Bonus conditions – wagering requirements and their realistic implications for players
- Customer support quality – response times and whether staff can handle problem gambling disclosures
I do not write reviews that tell readers a casino is perfect. No platform is. I try to write reviews that give players enough information to make their own decisions with their eyes open.
My approach to responsible gambling content
One of the things I insist on in any content I produce is that responsible gambling tools are described accurately – not as a compliance checkbox, but as a genuine feature assessment. I have seen too many operator-produced responsible gambling pages that are long on reassuring language and short on practical detail.
When I describe Stake casino’s responsible gambling section for Australian players, I include specific information about:
- Deposit and loss limit options (daily / weekly / monthly)
- Session time reminders and cooling-off periods
- Self-exclusion access and what it actually covers
- Links to Australian support services including Gambling Help Online (1800 858 858)
Australia does not have a federal online casino licensing regime in 2026, meaning most sites accessible to Australian players operate under offshore licences. That regulatory context matters. I include it in my reviews because I think players deserve to understand it.
