Rutgers Study Documents 42.7 Percent Youth Gambling Rate With Elevated Problem Risks

A national survey led by researchers at Rutgers University has found that 42.7 percent of US adolescents aged 13 to 17 participated in gambling activities in the prior year. The study surveyed 1,677 individuals aged 13 to 27 between April and July 2026 and assessed 21 categories of traditional, gambling-like, and emerging activities.

Overall, 52.5 percent of respondents reported gambling in the previous 12 months. Among those who gambled, nearly 40 percent showed some level of problem gambling risk and 10.3 percent were classified as high risk. Across the full sample, 20.8 percent experienced some degree of problem gambling risk, including 5.4 percent in the high-risk category.

Household Exposure and Socioeconomic Patterns

The research identified family gambling as a key associated factor. 41.1 percent of all respondents said a family or household member gambled, rising to 51.5 percent among those aged 13 to 17. Young people who perceived a household member had a gambling problem were more than five times as likely to be high-risk. Those who gambled with a family member were more than four times as likely to fall into that category.

Lower-income households reported higher severity. Nearly 30 percent of gamblers from households earning less than $10,000 annually were high risk. The figure was 22.8 percent for households earning between $10,000 and less than $20,000. Black non-Hispanic respondents showed the highest past-year gambling prevalence at 63.9 percent, with 17.7 percent of Black gamblers classified as high risk.

Emerging Activities and Behavioral Links

Participation in prediction markets saw approximately 40 percent of those involved classified as high-risk problem gamblers. Social casino players showed a 41 percent high-risk rate, compared with the overall 10.3 percent among gamblers. The study reported associations with higher substance use: alcohol use was 44.6 percent among gamblers versus 25.9 percent among non-gamblers. Binge drinking was 25.6 percent versus 10.5 percent.

Lia Nower, director of Rutgers’ Center for Gambling Studies, stated: “Gambling is no longer confined to casinos and lottery tickets. It is increasingly embedded in video games, sports broadcasts, and other products young people can access. We have worried this would increase rates of problem gambling among youth. Now we know it does.” The findings, as reported by World Casino News, also noted frequent online and land-based participation among high-risk individuals and elevated mental health symptoms in that group.

The patterns indicate that repeated and early exposure compounds risk, particularly when combined with household modeling and digital accessibility.