Loot box purchasing is associated with gambling and problem gambling when controlling for known psychological risk factors of gambling

Abstract

Background A robust literature has found that loot box purchasing is associated with gambling and problem gambling. However, it remains unclear whether this association is merely an artifact of known psychological risk factors for gambling. The present study thus examined associations of loot box purchasing with gambling and problem gambling while controlling for potential psychological confounders. Methods Current gamers, recruited from five Canadian universities (N = 1189) and Academic Prolific and Reddit (N = 499), reported on loot box engagement, gambling engagement, and psychological characteristics. In each sample, binomial logistic regression analyses were used to examine the association between past-year loot box purchasing and likelihood of past-year gambling. Hierarchical linear regression analyses were used to examine the associations of each of past-year loot box purchasing and risky loot box engagement with problem gambling severity. Results In both samples, having purchased loot boxes in the past year was significantly associated with increased likelihood of having gambled in the past year and greater problem gambling severity. In the student sample, greater risky loot box engagement was significantly associated with increased problem gambling severity. Conclusions Consistent with previous research, there exist associations between loot box purchasing and gambling. Results suggest that these associations are robust to known psychological risk factors for gambling, reducing plausibility of the notion that the association between loot box purchasing and gambling exists only due to shared psychological vulnerabilities. Loot box purchasing represents an important marker of risk for gambling and problem gambling among people who play video games.