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Loot boxes and problem gambling: Investigating the “gateway hypothesis”
Spicer, Stuart Gordon Close, James Lloyd, Helen
Spicer, Stuart Gordon
Close, James
Lloyd, Helen
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Epub Date
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2022-04-06
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Abstract
Loot boxes are purchasable items in video games with a chance-based outcome. They have attracted substantial attention from academics and legislators over recent years, partly because of associations between loot box engagement and problem gambling. Some researchers have suggested that loot boxes may act as a gateway into subsequent gambling and/or problem gambling. However, such “gateway effects” have not been formally investigated. Using a survey of 1102 individuals who both purchase loot boxes and gamble, we found that 19.87% of the sample self-reported either “gateway effects” (loot boxes causally influencing subsequent gambling) or “reverse gateway effects” (gambling causally influencing subsequent loot box engagement). Both subsets of participants had higher scores for problem gambling, problem video gaming, gambling-related cognitions, risky loot boxes engagement, and impulsivity. These individuals also had a tendency for higher loot box and gambling spend; suggesting that potential gateway effects are related to measurable risks and harms. Moreover, the majority of participants reporting gateway effects were under 18 when they first purchased loot boxes. Content analysis of free text responses revealed several reasons for self-reported gateway effects, the most frequent of which were sensation-seeking, normalisation of gambling-like behaviours, and the addictive nature of both activities. Whilst the cross-sectional nature of our findings cannot conclusively establish directions of causality, thus highlighting the need for longitudinal research, we conclude that there is a case for legislation on loot boxes for harm minimisation purposes.
Citation
Spicer, S. G., Fullwood, C., Close, J., Nicklin, L. L., et al. (2022) Loot boxes and problem gambling: Investigating the “gateway hypothesis”, Addictive Behaviors,131, Article No. 107327. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2022.107327.
Publisher
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Research Unit
PubMed ID
35397261 (pubmed)
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Journal article
Language
en
Description
© 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier. This is an open access article available under a Creative Commons licence.
The published version can be accessed at the following link on the publisher’s website: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2022.107327
Series/Report no.
ISSN
0306-4603
EISSN
1873-6327
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Sponsors
This project was funded by the charity GambleAware, with additional funding from the University of Plymouth School of Psychology. S. G. Spicer was additionally supported by the National Institute for Health Research Applied Research Collaboration South West Peninsula. The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the funder/supporter organisations.