Watch and yearn? Effects of watching gambling livestreams on cravings

Background: Gambling content on streaming platforms, such as Twitch, has gained popularity. Given their intense, cue-laden nature, watching gambling streams may trigger cravings among viewers. At the same time, people who gamble may be motivated to watch gambling streams in an attempt to regulate their cravings. Methods: We tested these ideas across two preregistered online studies, recruiting i) people who gamble, to compare subgroups of gambling stream viewers with non-viewers (Study 1; nviewers = 221, nnon-viewers = 642), and ii) a group of gambling stream viewers (Study 2; nviewers = 271). Results: Gambling stream viewers were younger, more likely to identify as men, and displayed higher levels of problem gambling, and gambling cravings, compared to non-viewers. Problem gambling severity was correlated with both the motivation to use gambling streams to regulate cravings, and with cravings elicited by watching gambling streams. Discussion: These findings link the viewing of gambling streams both to the elicitation of cravings and the regulation of cravings, as well as to problematic gambling involvement.