ArticleJournal of behavioral addictions2021
Young people who purchase loot boxes are more likely to have gambling problems: An online survey of adolescents and young adults living in NSW Australia.
Article in Journal of behavioral addictions, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 17 papers.
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Who cites it
17 citing papers in PubMed.
- Social communities in gacha gaming and adolescent problem gambling risk: a mixed methods study.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Article
- Correlates of Gambling Behaviour Among Adolescents: The Role of Psychological Factors, School Behaviours, and Normative Perceptions.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Scrutinizing the Gateway Relationship Between Gaming and Gambling Disorder: Scoping Review With a Focus on the Southeast Asian Region.JMIR serious games · 2025Review
- Two for the GOES: Exploring Gambling Outcome Expectancies Scores Across Mixed and Offline-Only Gamblers in Relation to Problem Gambling Risk Status.Journal of gambling studies · 2024Article
- Do problematic gamblers and loot boxers share similar fallacies of thought? A comparative analysis of cognitive biases.Frontiers in psychology · 2024Article
- Order of first-play in simulated versus monetary gambling.Journal of behavioral addictions · 2023Article
- A scoping review of the association between loot boxes, esports, skin betting, and token wagering with gambling and video gaming behaviors.Journal of behavioral addictions · 2023Article
- Problem Gambling Among Adolescents in Uganda: A Cross-sectional Survey Study.Journal of gambling studies · 2023Article
- Opening Pandora's Loot Box: Weak Links Between Gambling and Loot Box Expenditure in China, and Player Opinions on Probability Disclosures and Pity-Timers.Journal of gambling studies · 2023Article
- The relationship between problematic gambling severity and engagement with gambling products: Longitudinal analysis of the Emerging Adults Gambling Survey.Addiction (Abingdon, England) · 2023Article
- Skin Gambling Contributes to Gambling Problems and Harm After Controlling for Other Forms of Traditional Gambling.Journal of gambling studies · 2023Article
- Article
- Blind box over-engagement and suicide risk among adolescents and young adults: Results of a large-scale survey.EClinicalMedicine · 2022Article
- Adolescents Who Play and Spend Money in Simulated Gambling Games Are at Heightened Risk of Gambling Problems.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Article
- Loot boxes use, video gaming, and gambling in adolescents: Results from a path analysis before and during COVID-19-pandemic-related lockdown in Italy.Frontiers in psychology · 2022Review
- Development and Internal Validation of a Model for Predicting Internet Gaming Disorder Risk in Adolescents and Children.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2022Article
- Characteristics of Gamers who Purchase Loot Box: a Systematic Literature Review.Current addiction reports · 2021Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND
aimsLoot boxes are a common feature in video games where players win, buy or are gifted a virtual box or other container that is unwrapped to reveal virtual items of value, such as skins, weapons, in-game currency or special abilities. The current study aimed to relate the use of loot boxes to gambling problems and harm.
methodsAn online survey was conducted with 1,954 adolescents and young adults from NSW Australia, 59.9% female (aged 12-24), recruited by online panel aggregator, Qualtrics.
resultsBuying and selling loot boxes was associated with higher 12-month gambling frequency and gambling problems in young adults, aged 18-24 (Problem Gambling Severity Index). Young adults who bought loot boxes additionally had more gambling-related harms (Short Gambling Harms Screen). Young women, aged 18-24, who opened, bought and/or sold loot boxes spent more money in the last 12 months on gambling. In adolescents, aged 12-17, buying loot boxes was similarly associated with gambling problems (DSM-IV-MR-J). Furthermore, adolescent girls who bought and/or sold loot boxes viewed gambling more positively than other girls (Attitudes Towards Gambling Scale). There was no evidence, however, that longer-term experience in opening or purchasing loot boxes, a differentiating feature of the survey, is associated with current gambling problems. DISCUSSION AND
conclusionsThis study suggests that loot boxes may be attractive to people who are already predisposed to engage in other gambling, and females who use loot boxes may have unique vulnerabilities to gambling problems that could be explored in future research.
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