Reviewing digital gaming and gambling addiction: A dark intersection of technology, psychology, and sociology

Digital gaming and digital gambling are converging into a single behavioural ecosystem in which loot boxes, social casino games, esports betting, and other hybrid mechanisms blur the historical boundary between gaming and gambling, generating addiction risks that no single discipline can fully explain. This study conducts a structured literature review of 78 studies focused on adults and emerging adults. The review first identifies recurring technological factors (gamification elements, immersive technologies, personalisation algorithms, and monetisation strategies) that act as triggers. These triggers activate psychological mechanisms (behavioural reinforcement, emotional regulation, impulse-control deficits, escapism, motivational drivers) and sociological mechanisms (cultural norms and peer influence, social connectivity and isolation, socio-demographic factors). Their interaction surfaces as recurring influence patterns that sustain problematic engagement. Building on these patterns, a conceptual framework is proposed that brings the triggers, mechanisms, and behavioural outcomes together as a coherent whole, connected through reinforcing feedback loops and a macro-design loop in which outcomes shape the next generation of triggers. The study advances theoretical understanding of digital addiction and equips designers and policymakers with a research agenda and intervention principles for mitigating harm without curbing legitimate digital entertainment.