Gambling And Age-Gating: An Alternative View

18 or 21. That is one of the most heated debates in the gambling world. With a handful of places allowing sports betting at 18, there has been a push to raise the age to 21. I have thoughts.

Age-gating is an interesting topic, as the dividing line between adults and minors is incredibly inconsistent.

• In most locales, 16-year-olds can drive and be charged criminally as adults.

• We let 18-year-olds join the military (17 with parental permission), apply for credit cards, get tattoos and piercings without parental consent, purchase firearms, and get married. 

• And then cigarettes, alcohol, and marijuana are 21+. 

The legal betting age varies by product:

• Most states are 18+ for lottery

• Horseracing is usually 18+

• Casino gambling is 21+ in most states, but ten states are 18+ or a combination of 18/21

Is there any wonder there is a lot of confusion about when adulthood begins?

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What Does the Research Say

And then there is the research. 

An op-ed written by psychologist Larry Steinberg seems to be guiding these conversations. In the 2012 op-ed that appeared in the New York Times, Steinberg wrote, “Significant changes in brain anatomy and activity are still taking place during young adulthood, especially in prefrontal regions that are important for planning ahead, anticipating the future consequences of one’s decisions, controlling impulses, and comparing risk and reward.” 

A decade later, Steinberg was asked by Slate about the age 25 number. He responded that there is consensus that brain development continues into the 20s, but there’s no agreement on when adulthood begins. “I honestly don’t know why people picked 25,” he said. “It’s a nice-sounding number? It’s divisible by five?”

Essentially, brain development continues for most people into their 20s (and even into a person’s 30s). But like growing in height, there’s variance among the population and, more importantly, no clear answer to when the brain is developed enough to make “adult” decisions. 

I’ll Just Take My Bets Elsewhere

Here’s the thing. Age-gating doesn’t prevent minors from gambling. What age-gating does is prevent minors from gambling with you.