“Anyone raising a son is all too familiar with the rhythms of digital life. Between the nonstop notifications, ceaseless social media scrolling, and late-night gaming sessions, boys are figuring out who they are online. Parents love to see their sons connect, but they’re uneasy, too. And the data backs up their concern.
Our newest research reveals that gambling has become common among adolescent boys, with more than a third of boys gambling before they turn 18.
In “Betting on Boys: Understanding Gambling Among Adolescent Boys,” our second report about boys’ online lives, we discovered that for boys today, gambling largely doesn’t happen at casinos or card tables. It lives in sports betting and inside boys’ favorite video games—in loot boxes, skin cases, and other reward systems that blur the line between playing and paying—and it’s showing up in their social media feeds through algorithmic recommendations. Nearly half of boys who gamble see online material that promotes gambling, mostly through algorithmic exposure.
Our research makes clear that we’re at a pivotal moment for boys’ well-being. We can either let gambling become normalized during a critical period of their development, or we can act now—with education, safeguards, and real accountability.”
Click the link below to access the full report.