Loot box gambling and economic preferences: a survey analysis of Japanese adolescents and young adults

With the increasing use of social-network games, game addiction has become a serious challenge to the world. This study investigates the effects of risk preference, loss aversion, and time preference on the behaviour of Japanese adolescents and young adults purchasing ‘Gacha’, or loot box gambling, in social-network games. We surveyed 1,210 respondents, aged 12 to 23 years; approximately 34% of the respondents had purchased ‘Gacha’. We found that loss-averse and risk-averse female respondents had less experience paying for ‘Gacha’, with their highest billing amount charged per month being lower than that of other female respondents. Furthermore, future-oriented female respondents had less payment experience than present-oriented ones, with the highest billing amount charged per month for the former respondents being also lower. The highest billing amount charged per month of loss-averse male respondents was significantly lower than that of other male respondents.