Laura J. Long , Jake Samora , Teresa Indriolo , Emilie G. Huber , Yanjia Geng , Lantian Ouyang , Santiago Papini , Jasper A.J. Smits , Michael W. Otto
{"title":"Examining the individual and combined influence of negative affect and nicotine cue provocation on craving to vape nicotine among e-cigarette users","authors":"Laura J. Long , Jake Samora , Teresa Indriolo , Emilie G. Huber , Yanjia Geng , Lantian Ouyang , Santiago Papini , Jasper A.J. Smits , Michael W. Otto","doi":"10.1016/j.addbeh.2025.108378","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.addbeh.2025.108378","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Identifying cues for craving to vape (nicotine) in e-cigarette users can inform cessation treatments. Both proximal (e.g., holding e-cigarette) and distal (e.g., smoking environment images) environmental cues and negative affective cues can elicit nicotine craving. Virtual reality (VR) environments provide an efficient, replicable method for cue exposure with a high degree of realism, and lends itself to studying the additive or interactive effects of negative affect on cue reactivity. The current study examined the effects of cue provocation in negative and neutral affect contexts among 50 e-cigarette users. Our fully-within subject design examined the factorial combination of these internal (negative affect induction or not) and external (proximal or distal nicotine) cues. We hypothesized exposure to both in vivo proximal cues (holding e-cigarette) and distal cues presented via a VR headset (social smoking environment) would induce cravings to vape nicotine. Furthermore, we expected induced negative affect would produce higher cravings to vape nicotine compared to their natural affective state. Finally, we hypothesized an interaction between affective and nicotine vaping cues, with participants showing the greatest reactivity to cues following negative affect induction. We found that affective and external cue exposure had additive but not interactive effects on craving to vape nicotine, with evidence that both in vivo (proximal vaping cues) and VR headset-based (distal smoking cues) led to increased cravings. These findings demonstrate the efficacy of VR headset-presented cues on cravings to vape nicotine among e-cigarette users and show that negative affect induction can have additive effects on cue-induced craving.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7155,"journal":{"name":"Addictive behaviors","volume":"169 ","pages":"Article 108378"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2025-05-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144071165","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Hongying Daisy Dai , Amber K Brown Keebler , Brian Young
{"title":"Biomarkers of secondhand smoke and vaping exposure among U.S. Adolescents","authors":"Hongying Daisy Dai , Amber K Brown Keebler , Brian Young","doi":"10.1016/j.addbeh.2025.108381","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.addbeh.2025.108381","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Despite reductions in smoking use among adults and adolescents, e-cigarette use has increased, raising a new public health concern.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>We analyzed Wave 4 (2016–2018) data from the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health (PATH) Study to assess biomarkers of exposure to secondhand smoke and vaping aerosols among U.S. adolescents (age range 12–17). Participants with no current tobacco use in the past 30 days were divided into four mutually exclusive groups: no exposure, exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) only, exposure to secondhand aerosol (SHA) only, and dual exposure to both (SHD).</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Among 2,379 adolescents (mean[SD] of age = 14.4[0.02]), 1.5 % reported SHA, 18.3 % reported SHS, and 2.8 % reported SHD. Mean concentrations of cotinine were significantly higher among those exposed to SHA only (0.5 ng/mg creatinine, p = 0.04), SHS (3.0,p < 0.0001), or SHD (2.5,p < 0.0001) than among those with no exposure (0.2). As compared to the no-exposure group, both SHS and SHD groups also had higher mean concentrations of carcinogen, NNAL (4.1 and 2.8 pg/mg creatinine, respectively, vs. 0.9, p < 0.0001) and exposure to SHS had a higher level of CYMA (1.8 vs. 1.1 ng/mg creatinine, p < 0.0001). In comparison with the SHA group, the SHS and SHD groups had 6.8 and 3.6 times higher levels of cotinine and 4.6 and 2.2 times higher levels of NNAL, respectively; the SHS group also had higher levels of AAMA and CYMA.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>Secondhand vaping aerosol poses a lower exposure risk to youth non-tobacco users than combustible cigarette smoke. The distinct exposure patterns emphasize the importance of implementing tobacco-free policies to reduce youth exposure to environments where combustible tobacco or e-cigarette use occurs.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7155,"journal":{"name":"Addictive behaviors","volume":"169 ","pages":"Article 108381"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2025-05-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143948782","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Temporal effects of environmental tobacco smoke exposure: An ecological momentary assessment study among adolescent never- and experimental smokers","authors":"Daan H.G. Hulsmans , Joyce Dieleman , Marloes Kleinjan , Maartje Luijten , Roy Otten","doi":"10.1016/j.addbeh.2025.108379","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.addbeh.2025.108379","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Previous cross-sectional research provided evidence for a relationship between environmental tobacco smoke (ETS) exposure and symptoms indicative of nicotine dependence in adolescent never- and experimental smokers. This study aims to examine temporal associations between nicotine dependence-like symptoms and ETS exposure, and whether this differs between never- and experimental smokers.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Ecological momentary assessment data were collected in a sample of Dutch adolescent never-smokers (<em>n</em> = 105; <em>M</em><sub>age</sub> = 14.48; 30.5% male) and experimental smokers (<em>n</em> = 72; <em>M</em><sub>age</sub> = 16.57; 30.6% male). Participants self-rated dependence-related symptoms (pleasant, unpleasant, autonomy over smoking, dizziness, wanting, withdrawal-related symptoms) and ETS exposure three times a day for three weeks. Binomial generalized linear mixed effects models were applied examining 1) the association between ETS exposure and symptoms within the same interval, 2) whether ETS exposure precedes symptoms, and 3) vice versa.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Analyses revealed a positive association between unpleasant symptoms and ETS exposure during ETS exposure for never-smokers. The experimental smokers experienced less autonomy over smoking within the same time interval, less wanting shortly after ETS exposure and fewer pleasant symptoms in the interval preceding ETS exposure. We did not find that ETS exposure precedes dependence-like symptoms.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>Temporal effects of ETS exposure differ between never- and experimental smokers. ETS exposure has a potentially aversive effect in never-smokers, while in experimental smokers may potentially contribute to developing nicotine dependence. Future research should increase the frequency of momentary assessments to investigate the processes in more detail.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7155,"journal":{"name":"Addictive behaviors","volume":"168 ","pages":"Article 108379"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2025-05-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143927517","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Planning limits or inhibiting risky alcohol consumption? Towards a deeper understanding of Protective Behavioral Strategies in students through factorial and latent profile analyses","authors":"Maëlle Fleury , Maxime Mauduy , Jessica Mange","doi":"10.1016/j.addbeh.2025.108377","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.addbeh.2025.108377","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Objective</h3><div>Protective Behavioral Strategies (PBS) are cognitive-behavioral strategies that are promising to reduce risky alcohol consumption and binge drinking (BD) among students. This research investigates 1) the multidimensional nature of PBS by establishing a stable typology, assessing variations in PBS effectiveness, and 2) psychosocial risk factors influencing PBS use.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Two complementary studies were conducted among university students (<em>N<sub>S1</sub></em> = 1252; <em>N<sub>S2</sub></em> = 896). In both, factorial structure and gender invariance of PBS were tested. Study 1 used a variable-centered approach with multivariate regression models to assess the links between PBS types, drinking outcomes, and psychosocial determinants. Study 2 applied a person-centered approach, utilizing a latent profile analysis to identify distinct profiles of PBS users and non-users based and their characteristics in terms of PBS utilization, psychological determinants, and alcohol-related outcomes.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Firstly, both studies confirmed the four-type PBS typology and demonstrated gender invariance. Secondly, certain PBS types, such as modification of drinking practices (MOD) and planning consumption limits (PLD), were the most protective against risky drinking behaviors but were the less utilized. Thirdly, profiles combining all four PBS types showed the lowest risk, though they comprise a minority of students. Fourthly, psychosocial determinants, particularly drinking identity, inhibited MOD and PLD use.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>Findings highlight the value of a multidimensional PBS framework. Interventions should target diversity in PBS strategies and address psychosocial barriers to promote effective use, offering new insights for reducing excessive drinking among students.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7155,"journal":{"name":"Addictive behaviors","volume":"168 ","pages":"Article 108377"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2025-05-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143904266","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Rebecca J. Evans-Polce , Brooke J. Arterberry , Stephanie T. Lanza , Megan E. Patrick
{"title":"Patterns of substance use on a given day in a national sample of U.S. young adults","authors":"Rebecca J. Evans-Polce , Brooke J. Arterberry , Stephanie T. Lanza , Megan E. Patrick","doi":"10.1016/j.addbeh.2025.108376","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.addbeh.2025.108376","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>Young adulthood constitutes a period of substance use risk and many young adults engage in use of more than one substance. While existing work has examined young adult co-use of substances at the day-level, there has not been a comprehensive investigation of day-level substance use that considers mode and intensity of use in a national sample of U.S. young adults.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Individuals were eligible through participation in the nationally-representative Monitoring the Future study in 12th grade in 2018 and reporting past 30-day drinking in 12th-grade. Respondents completed a 14-day daily study in 2019 (n = 911 individuals; modal age 19). Days on which individuals reported alcohol, cannabis, and/or nicotine/tobacco use (n = 3,086 days and 590 individuals) were examined. Latent class analysis was used to identify patterns of substance use at the day-level with stress, boredom, loneliness, and type of day as covariates.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Six patterns of substance use days were identified: Vaping Nicotine (33.69 %), Cannabis Smoking (23.49 %), Alcohol Only (17.10 %), Cannabis Vaping (11.72 %), Multiple Combustibles (7.28 %), and Multimodal Cannabis (6.72 %) days. Stress and boredom were greater on Multimodal Cannabis days compared to most other substance use days. Alcohol Only days were characterized by lower levels of stress, boredom, and loneliness and a greater probability of being a special occasion or a weekend compared to other substance use days.</div></div><div><h3>Discussion</h3><div>This study identified heterogeneous patterns of substance use behaviors among U.S. young adults. Understanding these patterns is important for developing intervention strategies that are responsive to specific substance use on a given day.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7155,"journal":{"name":"Addictive behaviors","volume":"168 ","pages":"Article 108376"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2025-04-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143898666","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Davide Marengo, Francesco Quilghini, Michele Settanni
{"title":"Leveraging social media and large language models for scalable alcohol risk assessment: Examining validity with AUDIT-C and post recency effects","authors":"Davide Marengo, Francesco Quilghini, Michele Settanni","doi":"10.1016/j.addbeh.2025.108375","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.addbeh.2025.108375","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Risky alcohol consumption is a major public health concern, yet significant barriers exist to effective screening. The present study examines the potential of Large Language Models (LLMs) to infer risky alcohol use from social media text. The unobtrusive nature of this approach could provide a more scalable way to assess alcohol risk in large populations. To this aim, we analyzed Facebook status updates from 208 adults from Italy (mean age = 26.8, 70.7 % female) who also completed the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test-Consumption (AUDIT-C), a brief validated self-report measure of risky drinking. Two state-of-the-art LLMs, Gemini 1.5 Pro and GPT-4o, were used to assess alcohol risk and to quantify alcohol references. Results demonstrated strong inter-model agreement between risk inferences (ρ = 0.572, p < 0.001). LLM-inferred risk scores showed moderate correlations with AUDIT-C scores (Gemini 1.5 Pro: ρ = 0.344, p < 0.001; GPT-4o: ρ = 0.375, p < 0.001; Average: ρ = 0.405, p < 0.001). These correlations were significantly stronger among participants with recent posts (Average risk score: ρ = 0.500, p < 0.001) than among those without (ρ = 0.294, p = 0.008). The strongest correlation was observed between average LLM-inferred risk scores and AUDIT-C in the recent posts group (disattenuated ρ = 0.606). These findings suggest that LLMs offer a promising tool for identifying risky alcohol use when analyzing recent social media activity. Their accuracy is comparable to some traditional alcohol assessment methods, highlighting their potential to enhance early detection efforts. Limitations and future research directions are discussed.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7155,"journal":{"name":"Addictive behaviors","volume":"168 ","pages":"Article 108375"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2025-04-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143943584","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Assessing the risk of problem gambling among lottery loyalty program members: A machine learning approach","authors":"Paul Sacco, Jihyeong Jeong","doi":"10.1016/j.addbeh.2025.108372","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.addbeh.2025.108372","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background and Aims</h3><div>Lottery gambling is a relatively benign form of gambling. Nonetheless, individuals with gambling problems may engage in lottery play and/or play the lottery exclusively. Lottery loyalty programs have data that could be used to screen for problem gambling, as they collect information on demographics and ticket purchases from players who sign up to receive incentives. The current study evaluates the feasibility of machine learning to identify individuals who have gambling problems using data collected from a state lottery loyalty program.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Data from ticket uploads was merged with an online survey sent to loyalty program participants (N = 5903). The Problem Gambling Severity Index (PGSI) was used to screen for problem gambling, with a five or greater denoting problem gambling (n = 809; 14%). Other survey items queried frequency of other gambling (e.g., casino slot machine) as well as amounts spent. Random forests analysis, a predictive modeling technique, was used to predict individuals who have gambling problems.</div></div><div><h3>Discussion and Conclusions</h3><div>Problem gambling was more common among loyalty program players than typical in population samples. The random forest algorithm performed fairly well overall, but sensitivity was poor, indicating that the model did not identify individuals with problem gambling effectively. Lottery loyalty programs may be a promising setting for screening and secondary prevention efforts because of relatively high prevalence of problem gambling, but random forests may not be the best approach for detecting those at risk.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7155,"journal":{"name":"Addictive behaviors","volume":"168 ","pages":"Article 108372"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2025-04-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143935305","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Natalie Sumetsky , Maria Mori Brooks , Jeanine Buchanich , Brooke S.G. Molina , Christina Mair
{"title":"Relationships between substance use treatment facilities and alcohol-attributable mortality across U.S. counties","authors":"Natalie Sumetsky , Maria Mori Brooks , Jeanine Buchanich , Brooke S.G. Molina , Christina Mair","doi":"10.1016/j.addbeh.2025.108364","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.addbeh.2025.108364","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Background</h3><div>Formal substance use treatment is a key resource for recovery among people with alcohol use disorders. Limited county-level availability of substance use treatment facilities may restrict access to care and ultimately contribute to worsening health outcomes and mortality. However, it is unknown whether the availability of such facilities is associated with county-level alcohol-attributable mortality risk.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>We used Bayesian hierarchical Poisson spatial regression models to assess the relationship between population-weighted county-level treatment facility availability and rates of (1) fully chronic alcohol-attributable mortality, (2) alcohol poisonings, and (3) suicides by exposure to alcohol in 2019–2020. Localized treatment facility availability was calculated using a weighted method incorporating Census block group-level population counts. We adjusted for county-level demographic and socioeconomic factors, hospital density, population density, overall mortality rate, densities of mental health practitioner offices, U.S. Census region, year, and season.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>There was county-level heterogeneity in the availability of substance use treatment facilities, with northeastern county treatment facility densities at least twice as high as other regions. Higher county-level densities of treatment facilities were related to increased county-level risk for chronic fully alcohol-attributable deaths and alcohol poisonings but not suicides by exposure to alcohol.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusions</h3><div>Availability of substance use treatment facilities and the services they offer is heterogeneous across U.S. counties. The positive relationship between population-weighted county-level densities of treatment facilities and chronic fully alcohol-attributable mortality and alcohol poisonings may suggest that treatment facilities are placed in areas of greatest demand; yet, population-level needs may not fully met by these facilities.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7155,"journal":{"name":"Addictive behaviors","volume":"168 ","pages":"Article 108364"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2025-04-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143879174","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Relations between adverse childhood experiences, racial and ethnic Identity, and cannabis use outcomes","authors":"Jordan A. Gette , Adriana Espinosa","doi":"10.1016/j.addbeh.2025.108361","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.addbeh.2025.108361","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and age of cannabis use onset are associated with cannabis use disorder (CUD), but their differential effect across race and ethnicity is unknown. Using NESARC-III, we examined ACEs, age of onset, and their interaction on lifetime cannabis use and CUD across racial and ethnic groups (Non-Hispanic White, Hispanic, Black/African American, Asian, American Indian/Alaska Native). ANOVAs found that American Indian/Alaska Native individuals reported the greatest prevalence of lifetime cannabis use and CUD, the greatest mean number of ACEs, and the earliest age of cannabis onset. Using logistic regressions, stratified by race and ethnic groups and adjusted for sociodemographic characteristics, we found that as ACEs increased, the odds of lifetime use (aORs 1.48–2.48), lifetime CUD (aORs 1.45–3.03), and past-year CUD (aORs 1.46–2.28) increased for all groups. The relations between ACEs and CUD were strongest among Asian/Pacific Islander respondents. Among respondents with lifetime use, increased age of onset was associated with lower lifetime CUD (aORs 0.85–0.94) and past-year CUD (aORs 0.88–0.97) for most groups. Three significant interactions between ACEs and age of onset predicting CUD emerged. Among Black and American Indian/Alaska Native individuals with an early age of cannabis initiation, ACEs exhibited a weaker relation with CUD. For White respondents, as number of ACEs increased, the impact of age of onset on CUD development diminished. Our findings highlight ACEs and age of onset as implicated in the progression from cannabis use to CUD and the importance of considering these factors in relation to racial and ethnic identity.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7155,"journal":{"name":"Addictive behaviors","volume":"167 ","pages":"Article 108361"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2025-04-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143854401","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Leonardo Weiss-Cohen , Madison Palmer , Jamie Torrance , Philip Newall
{"title":"Never tell me the odds: Typical return-to-player information increases gamblers’ perceived chances of winning","authors":"Leonardo Weiss-Cohen , Madison Palmer , Jamie Torrance , Philip Newall","doi":"10.1016/j.addbeh.2025.108363","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.addbeh.2025.108363","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Previous research has shown that gamblers consistently misunderstand return-to-player (RTP) information, and participants shown an RTP of 93% reported that they were more likely to win than those who were shown no information. However, this effect might have been inflated by a higher-than-average RTP percentage. We experimentally test the impact of showing an industry-average RTP message of 90% on gamblers’ perceived chances of winning, in two studies across two countries (UK and US).</div><div>Slot players from Prolific (N = 6062) were shown either an RTP message (“This game has an average percentage payout of 90%”), two different House Edge (HE) messages (“This game keeps 10% of all money bet” or “This game is programmed to cost you 10% of your stake on each bet”) or No-Information, and asked to rate their perceived chances of winning at a new slot machine.</div><div>Across both studies and countries, participants rated their perceived chances of winning as significantly higher with a typical 90% RTP message than with No Information, with large effect sizes (<em>ORs</em> > 5). Both HE messages significantly outperformed RTP, but were no better than No-Information. These effects were moderated by PGSI in the No-Information condition, with participants with higher PGSI responding with higher chances of winning, but not in the other conditions.</div><div>These results show an undesired side-effect of the consistently ineffective RTP information and confirm the superiority of HE over RTP, although none of the messages were superior to No-Information. Gamblers deserve to be better informed.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":7155,"journal":{"name":"Addictive behaviors","volume":"168 ","pages":"Article 108363"},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2025-04-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143868999","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}