UK study awarded funding to investigate how loot boxes affect children

A study led by Edge Hill University has received £900,000 in funding to investigate how loot boxes affect children. The research will explore how the gambling-like features in games influence the development of primary school-aged children.

Dr. John Shaw, a Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Edge Hill, will lead the study. In a press release last week, Dr. Shaw said that “loot boxes share psychological similarities with gambling and are linked with mental health difficulties in young people.”

Previous research has yet to fully determine how engagement with loot boxes develops over time, how they impact broader psychological development, or which children are most at risk, said the researchers.

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