Eric R. Louderback, PhD is an Instructor in Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, and a Research & Evaluation Scientist and Open Science Ambassador at the Division on Addiction, Cambridge Health Alliance, a Harvard Medical School teaching hospital. His research is focused on studying addiction within a public health lens, algorithms to predict risky gambling behavior, analysis of data from actual internet gamblers, and responsible gambling program evaluation. Dr. Louderback received his PhD in Sociology with specializations in Medical Sociology and Criminology from the University of Miami in 2018, where he studied the structural causes of neighborhood violence, and social psychological predictors of cybercrime perpetration and victimization.

At the Division, Dr. Louderback is the Section Editor for the Worldwide Addiction Gambling Education Report (The WAGER) and is currently working on several ongoing research projects with Division colleagues and scholars from U.S. and international universities. He is also working on a project funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) focused on evaluating an ongoing peer support-based substance abuse treatment program in the Boston area. His research collaborations at the Division utilize the Syndrome Model of Addiction as a guiding framework and he is a strong supporter of transparency and Open Science initiatives. As an Open Science Ambassador, he leads monthly seminars on contemporary scientific and statistical methodologies, best practices for transparency and study replication, and emerging trends in scientific publications.

His research has appeared in journals including PLOS One, Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, Addiction Research & Theory, The British Journal of Criminology, Addictive Behaviors, Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, International Gambling Studies, and Journal of Gambling Studies. Dr. Louderback has presented his research studies at national and international conferences to diverse audiences including academic researchers, government policymakers, and the general public. He has served as an expert reviewer in the peer-review process for publications including Addiction Research & Theory, Criminal Justice and Behavior, Criminology, International Journal of Cyber Criminology, Journal of Experimental Criminology and Spatial and Spatio-temporal Epidemiology. Guided by his commitment to educating a new generation of leaders, he has taught quantitative and qualitative research methods at the college level, and he strongly believes that basic scientific knowledge is an integral part of being an informed citizen.


Current Projects

Principal Investigator: ESPN Research Fellowship

Principal Investigator: Examining Responsible Gambling Advertising Practices and Testing Effects of Actual Responsible Gambling Messages on Behavior

Assessing Cultures of Recovery in Tribal Communities (NARCH XII) 

Multidimensional Loss Chasing in Online Gambling: Considering the Importance of Optimal Cutpoints, Temporal Reference Points, and Coming in Hot for Improving Predictive Ability

Responsibility, Research, and Resources: 2024 Plan for Responsible Gambling Activities


Selected Publications

In-press

Louderback, E. R., Tom, M. A., Edson, T. C., & LaPlante, D. A. (2024). The stability of gambling expenditure distributions over time and associations with the use of gambling self-regulatory tools. International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction, 1-23. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11469-024-01399-6 

2024

Heirene, R., LaPlante, D., Louderback, E. R., Keen, B., Bakker, M., Serafimovska, A., & Gainsbury, S. M. (2024). Preregistration specificity and adherence: A review of preregistered gambling studies and cross-disciplinary comparison. Meta-Psychology. 8.  https://doi.org/10.15626/MP.2021.2909 

Louderback, E.R., McCullock, S.P. & LaPlante, D.A. (2024). Cryptocurrency trading, day trading, and gambling behavior: Examining the moderating effects of financially focused self-concept and gambling motives. Journal of Gambling Studies. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-024-10343-1

McCullock, S. P., Louderback, E. R., & LaPlante, D. A. (2024). Examining factors that hinder the efficacy of responsible gambling messages: Modeling predictors and effects of responsible gambling message fatigue. International Gambling Studies, 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1080/14459795.2024.2409430

Nelson, S. E., Louderback, E. R., Edson, T. C., Tom, M. A., & LaPlante, D. A. (2024). Overtime: Long-term betting trajectories among highly-involved and less-involved online sports bettors. Journal of Gambling Studies. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-024-10294-7

2023

Edson, T. C., Louderback, E. R., Tom, M. A., McCullock, S. P. & LaPlante, D. A. (2023). Exploring a multidimensional concept of loss chasing using online sports betting records. International Gambling Studies. https://doi.org/10.1080/14459795.2023.2276741

Edson, T. C., Louderback, E. R., Tom, M. A., Philander, K. S., Slabczynski, J. M., Lee, T. G. & LaPlante, D. A. (2023). A large-scale prospective study of big wins and their relationship with future involvement and risk among actual online sports bettors. Computers In Human Behavior, 142, 107657. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2023.107657

Louderback, E. R., Gainsbury, S. M., Heirene, R. M., Amichia, K., Grossman, A., Bernhard, B. J., & LaPlante, D. A. (2023). Open science practices in gambling research publications (2016–2019): A scoping review. Journal of Gambling Studies, 39, 987–1011. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-022-10120-y

Louderback, E. R., LaPlante, D. A., Abarbanel, B., Kraus, S. W., Bernhard, B. J., & Gray, H. M. (2023). Examining responsible gambling program awareness and engagement trends and relationships with gambling beliefs and behaviors: A three-wave study of customers from a major gambling operator. Journal of Gambling Studies, 39(1), 401–429. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-022-10109-7

2022

Abarbanel, B., Xu, T., Kraus, S., Gray, H., Louderback, E., LaPlante, D., & Bernhard, B. (2022). Association between casino resort employee department and responsible gambling program perceptions: A three-year follow-up study. International Gambling Studies. 22(3), 390–411. https://doi.org/10.1080/14459795.2021.2007976

Edson, T. C., Tom, M. A., Louderback, E. R. Nelson, S. A., & LaPlante, D. A. (2022). Returning to the virtual casino: A contemporary study of actual online casino gambling. International Gambling Studies, 22(1), 114-141. https://doi.org/10.1080/14459795.2021.1985581

Gray, H. M., Louderback, E. R., LaPlante, D. A., Abarbanel, B., Kraus, S. W., & Bernhard, B. J. (2022).Who holds a shared responsibility view of minimizing gambling harm? Results from a multiwave survey of casino gamblers. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 36(4), 347-357. https://doi.org/10.1037/adb000076

Louderback, E. R., Gray, H. M., LaPlante, D. A., Abarbanel, B., & Bernhard, B. J. (2022). A comparison of two GameSense implementation approaches: How program awareness and engagement relate to gambling beliefs and behaviors. Journal of Gambling Studies, 38(1), 153-183. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-021-10013-6

McAuliffe, W., Louderback, E. R., Edson, T. C., LaPlante, D. A., & Nelson, S. E. (2022). Using “Markers of Harm” to track risky gambling in two cohorts of online sports bettors. Journal of Gambling Studies, 38(4), 1337–1369. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-021-10097-0

Nelson, S. E., Edson, T. C., Grossman, A., Louderback, E. R., Gray, H. M., & LaPlante, D. A. (2022). Time out: Prediction of self-exclusion from daily fantasy sports. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 36(4), 318-332. https://doi.org/10.1037/adb0000829

Tom, M. A., Edson, T. C., Louderback, E. R., Nelson, S. E., Amichia, K. A., & LaPlante, D. A. (2022). Second session at the virtual poker table: A contemporary study of actual online poker activity.  Journal of Gambling Studies, 39(3), 1295–1317. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-022-10147-1

2021

Abarbanel, B., Kraus, S., Huang, Q., Gray, H. M., Louderback, E. R., LaPlante, D. A., & Bernhard, B. J. (2021). Association between employee department and responsible gambling program perceptions: Extension and follow-up study. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Insights, 4(5), 582-600. https://doi.org/10.1108/JHTI-07-2020-0116

Edson, T. C., Tom, M. A., Philander, K. S., Louderback, E. R., & LaPlante, D. A. (2021). A large-scale prospective study of big wins and their relationship with future financial and time involvement in actual Daily Fantasy Sports contests. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 35(8), 948-960. https://doi.org/10.1037/adb0000715

Gray, H. M., Louderback, E. R., LaPlante, D. A., Abarbanel, B., & Bernhard, B. J. (2021). Gamblers’ beliefs about responsibility for minimizing gambling harm: Associations with problem gambling screening and gambling involvement. Addictive Behaviors, 114. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2020.106660

Heirene, R., LaPlante, D., Louderback, E. R., Keen, B., Bakker, M., Serafimovska, A., & Gainsbury, S. M. (2021). Preregistration specificity & adherence: A review of preregistered gambling studies & cross-disciplinary comparison. https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/nj4es

LaPlante, D. A., Louderback, E. R., & Abarbanel, B. (2021). Gambling researchers’ use and views of open science principles and practices: a brief report. International Gambling Studies, 21(3), 381-394. https://doi.org/10.1080/14459795.2021.1891272

Louderback, E. R., LaPlante, D. A., Currie, S. R., & Nelson, S. E. (2021). Developing and validating lower risk online gambling thresholds with actual bettor data from a major internet gambling operator. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 35(8), 921-938. https://doi.org/10.1037/adb0000628

Louderback, E. R., Wohl, M. J. A., & LaPlante, D. A. (2021). Integrating open science practices into recommendations for accepting gambling industry research funding. Addiction Research & Theory, 29(1), 79-87. https://doi.org/10.1080/16066359.2020.1767774

McAuliffe, W. H. B., Edson, T. C., Louderback, E. R., LaRaja, A., & LaPlante, D. A. (2021). Responsible product design to mitigate excessive gambling: A scoping review and z-curve analysis of replicability. PloS one, 16(4), e0249926. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0249926

Nelson, S. E., Edson, T. C., Louderback, E. R., Tom, M. A., Grossman, A., & LaPlante, D. A. (2021). Changes to the playing field: A contemporary study of actual European online sports betting. Journal of Behavioral Addictions, 10(3), 396-411. https://doi.org/10.1556/2006.2021.00029

2020

Choi, K., Lee, C. S. and Louderback, E. R. (2020). Historical evolutions of cybercrime: From computer crime to cybercrime. In T. J. Holt & A. M. Bossler (Eds.) The Palgrave Handbook of International Cybercrime and Cyberdeviance. Basingstoke, United Kingdom: Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-78440-3_2

2019

Maimon, D. and Louderback, E. R. (2019). Cyber-dependent crimes: An interdisciplinary review. Annual Review of Criminology, 2(1), 191-216. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-criminol-032317-092057

2018

Louderback, E. R. and Sen Roy, S. (2018). Integrating social disorganization and routine activity theories and testing the effectiveness of neighbourhood crime watch programs: Case study of Miami-Dade County, 2007-2015. The British Journal of Criminology, 58(4), 968-992. https://doi.org/10.1093/bjc/azx062

Cowen, C., Louderback, E. R. and Sen Roy, S. (2018). The role of land use and walkability in predicting crime patterns: A case study of Miami-Dade County, 2007-2015. Security Journal, 1-23. https://doi.org/10.1057/s41284-018-00161-7

Bunting, R. P., Chang, O., Cowen, C., Hankins, R. P., Langston, S., Warner, A. F., Yang, X., Louderback, E. R. and Sen Roy, S. (2018). Spatial patterns of larceny and aggravated assault in Miami-Dade County, 2007-2015. The Professional Geographer, 34-46. https://doi.org/10.1080/00330124.2017.1310622

2017

Louderback, E. R. and Antonaccio, O. (2017). Exploring cognitive decision-making processes, computer-focused cyber deviance involvement and victimization: The role of thoughtfully reflective decision-making. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 54, 639-679. https://doi.org/10.1177/0022427817693036