New Study Reveals That a Number of Practices in Video Games Significantly Links to Problem Gambling

According to a new study, a number of video game practices, such as token wagering, real-money gaming and social casino spending, are significantly linked to problem gambling. The study provides evidence that players who engage in these practices are also more likely to suffer from disordered gaming.

Author of the study, Dr. David Zendle from the Department of Computer Science at the University of York, said: “These findings suggest that the relationship between gaming and problem gambling is more complex than many people think.”

“When we go beyond loot boxes, we can see that there are multiple novel practices in gaming that incorporate elements of gambling. All of them are linked to problem gambling, and all seem prevalent. This may pose an important public health risk. Further research is urgently needed.”

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For the study, a group of just under 1100 participants were quota-sampled to represent the UK population in terms of age, gender and ethnicity. They were then asked about their gaming and gambling habits.

The study revealed that a significant proportion (18.5%) of the participants had engaged in some behaviour that related to both gaming and gambling, such as playing a social casino game or spending money on a loot box.

“There are currently loopholes that mean some gambling related elements of video games avoid regulation. For example social casinos are ‘video games’ that are basically a simulation of gambling: you can spend real money in them, and the only thing that stops them being regulated as proper gambling is that winnings cannot be converted into cash,” Dr. Zendle said.

“We need to have regulations in place that address all of the similarities between gambling and video games. Loot boxes aren’t the only element of video games that overlaps with gambling: They’re just a tiny symptom of this broader convergence,” Dr. Zendle added.