Legitimacy-seeking strategies in the gambling industry: the case of responsible gambling

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to examine how responsible gambling policies are communicated and presented as a legitimation strategy to different stakeholders. Design/methodology/approach - This study is based primarily on 49 semi-structured interviews with internal and external stakeholders of Macao’s gambling industry in 2011. This study draws onReastet al.’s (2012) legitimacy-seeking strategy framework. Findings - The findings indicate that these organisations use construing and earning legitimacy strategies to ensure passive support and acquiescence from certain stakeholder groups, and they deploy bargaining and capturing legitimacy strategies to generate active support for this morally contested industry. As a means of attaining long-standing legitimacy in the industry, gambling operators engage symbolically rather than substantively in responsible gambling to minimise the legitimacy gap. Research limitations/implications - The findings of the study pertain to a unique setting and might not be suitable for generalisation. Practical implications - In the absence of stringent legal mechanisms and strong external stakeholder pressure, the 12th Five-Year Plan of the People’s Republic of China aims to transform Macao into a “World Centre of Tourism and Leisure”, and gambling companies may soon face much stronger pressures from the Chinese Government and the Macao Government. Social/implications - Voluntary responsible gambling initiatives are liable to be used only in symbolic fashion, without offering genuine engagement or full commitment to the most vulnerable stakeholder group. Originality/value - This study contributes to the literature on social and accounting literature by providing an in-depth case study of how organisations in the gambling industry use different communication strategies to shape and respond to controversial issues.