Rutgers Study: 43% of US Teens Gamble, Problem Indicators Raised 2026

Rutgers Research Flags Widespread Youth Gambling Participation

The Center for Gambling Studies at Rutgers University released findings from the first comprehensive national survey of adolescent gambling in the United States, revealing that nearly 43% of young people aged 13 to 17 have participated in some form of gambling over the past year.

The research, announced on October 28, 2026, goes beyond measuring gambling participation to identify concerning prevalence rates of behaviors consistent with problem gambling disorder among affected youth. The findings are prompting calls for heightened preventive measures and stricter regulatory oversight of gaming products accessible to minors.

Study Scope and Findings

Rutgers researchers surveyed a nationally representative sample of U.S. adolescents, capturing data on gambling frequency, preferred gambling formats, and responses to standardized diagnostic assessments for problem gambling. The 43% participation rate encompasses both informal gambling (sports betting with friends, card games) and formal wagering through regulated and unregulated channels.

Critically, a meaningful subset of the adolescent gambling population—the research did not specify exact percentages in preliminary reports—met clinical thresholds for problem gambling across multiple diagnostic frameworks. These thresholds typically include criteria such as loss of control, continued gambling despite negative consequences, and gambling to escape emotional distress.

Gambling Format Breakdown

The study examined multiple gambling modalities available to youth, including sports betting (both regulated sportsbooks and illegal offshore platforms), casino games, video gaming with gambling elements, and social gambling. Online and mobile gambling formats showed particularly high penetration rates among tech-native adolescents, even in states where such platforms are legally restricted to adults.

Age-verification failures emerged as a recurring theme in the research, with youth reporting ease of circumventing identity controls on certain gambling platforms and websites.

Policy and Industry Implications

The Rutgers findings arrive as state legislatures and the federal government consider enhanced guardrails around youth gambling exposure. Operators and technology providers face mounting pressure to implement robust age-verification controls, restrict marketing targeting youth audiences, and deploy in-app warnings about problem gambling risk.

Several state gaming regulators have already tightened compliance expectations in response to emerging youth gambling data, and the Rutgers study will likely accelerate similar actions nationwide. Operators with significant youth market penetration—whether through sportsbooks, casino apps, or fantasy sports platforms—should anticipate enhanced scrutiny and potentially costly compliance upgrades.

Public Health Context

The American Psychiatric Association and other public health bodies increasingly recognize problem gambling as a clinical disorder with neurobiological underpinnings. Early-onset gambling exposure, particularly during adolescence when impulse control and risk assessment capabilities are still developing, is associated with elevated lifetime problem gambling risk.

The Rutgers research will likely inform discussions around responsible gambling funding allocations, treatment program expansion, and evidence-based prevention curricula in schools.