Lived Experiences of Teenage Boys & Young Men: New Research with the Gambling Commission
We’re really proud to share that the Gambling Commission has published the findings from our latest qualitative study exploring how teenage boys and young men (aged 14–25) think about and experience gambling and gambling-like activity in their everyday lives.
You can read the full report here.
The study set out to understand how gambling and gambling-like activities show up in young men’s everyday lives, how they conceptualise “gambling” in their own words, and how relationships to gambling can evolve over time. Rather than starting at 18, their stories show a much longer journey that begins with arcade games, early gaming experiences, and small bets with friends - stretching into young adulthood where gambling becomes legal, social, and often financial.
Using a multi-stage qualitative approach consisting of expert conversations, introductory calls, four days of online diary tasks, and one-to-one interviews, we were able to get an insight into that full journey: the fun, the social connection, and the excitement, but also the frustration, financial worries, and early warning signs that things are tipping from play into risk.
A few themes particularly stood out:
Gambling feels ever-present online: memes, streamers, and influencer content make gambling feel entertaining and easy to access, even for under-18s.
Turning 18 as a gateway moment: legal access, new income, early independence, and peer influence converge to make gambling feel like a natural part of becoming an adult.
Risk as something that builds quietly: vulnerability emerges where independence, impulsivity, online visibility, and money all meet - especially around key life transitions.
We’re really proud to see this work feeding into the Commission’s evidence programme on early gambling experiences, harm and vulnerability. And we’re hugely grateful to the boys and young men who trusted us with their stories, as well as the Gambling Commission team and lived experience advisers who helped shape the project.
If you’d like to talk about the research or what it might mean for policy, regulation or youth-focused interventions, we’d love to chat.