Frequent Card Playing and Pathological Gambling: The Utility of the Georgia Gambling Task and Iowa Gambling Task for Predicting Pathology

The current investigation examined performance on two laboratory-based gambling tasks, the Georgia Gambling Task (GGT; Goodie, 2003. The effects of control on betting: Paradoxical betting on items of high confidence with low value. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 29, 598–610) and the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT; Bechara, Damasio, Damasio, & Anderson, 1994. Insensitivity to future consequences following damage to human prefrontal cortex. Cognition, 50, 7–15), as well as self-reported markers of gambling pathology using the Diagnostic Interview for Gambling Severity (DIGS; Winters, Specker, & Stinchfield, 2002. The downside: Problem and pathological gambling (pp. 143–148). Reno, NV: University of Nevada, Reno) among a sample of undergraduate students who are frequent card players. Two hundred twenty-one participants (55 female and 166 male; mean age 19.21 years) who self-classified as playing cards at least once per month completed these measures. Performance on GGT and IGT systematically related to gambling-related pathology in several ways. Overconfidence and bet acceptance on the GGT, and myopic focus on reward on the IGT, predicted gambling related pathology. GGT and IGT performance correlated with each other, but both contributed independently to predicting gambling pathology. Card playing frequency predicted gambling pathology but not GGT or IGT performance. Discussion focuses on the role of biases of judgment and risky decision making in pathological gambling.     

Alcohol’s Effects on Video Lottery Terminal (VLT) Play Among Probable Pathological and Non-Pathological Gamblers

This study tested whether alcohol increases behaviors associated with video lottery terminal (VLT) play, particularly among probable pathological gamblers. Forty-four regular VLT players were designated either probable pathological gamblers or non-pathological gamblers on the basis of scores on the South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS); [Lesieur & Blume (1997). American Journal of Psychiatry, 144, 1184–1188] Gamblers from each SOGS category were randomly assigned to either a moderately intoxicating alcohol dose or a control beverage condition (n = 11 per cell in the 2 × 2 between-subjects design). Following beverage consumption and absorption, participants played a video poker VLT game for up to 30 minutes. Four behaviors were measured: “power-bets” (doubling bet after viewing only two cards of the five-card poker hand); total money spent; mean bet magnitude; and number of minutes played. Alcohol increased time spent playing and rate of power-bets, particular among the probable pathological gamblers. Post hoc analyses revealed that alcohol also influenced the proportion of losing hands played––increasing them among the probable pathological gamblers while decreasing them among the non-pathological gamblers. Clinical and policy implications of the findings are discussed.     

Development and Psychometric Evaluation of a 10-Item Short Form Inventory of Gambling Situations

The Inventory of Gambling Situations (IGS-63; Turner and Littman-Sharp, Inventory of gambling situations users guide, 2006) is a 63-item measure of high-risk gambling situations. It assesses gambling across 10 situational subscales that load onto two higher-order factors: negative and positive situations (Stewart et al. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 22:257–268, 2008). While the IGS-63 has excellent psychometric properties (Littman-Sharp et al., The Inventory of Gambling Situations: Reliability, factor structure, and validity (IGS Technical Manual), in press) its length may preclude its use in time-limited contexts. The purpose of this study was to develop and validate a 10-item short-form of the IGS (IGS-10). Each IGS-10 item reflects one of the ten subscale categories from the IGS-63, with two items from the original subscales included as examples for each IGS-10 item. The IGS-10 was administered to 180 undergraduate gamblers along with the IGS-63 and the Problem Gambling Severity Index (PGSI; Ferris and Wynne, Canadian Problem Gambling Index: Final report, 2001). IGS-10 items showed convergent validity with the corresponding IGS-63 subscales (r’s = .60–.73). Principal components analysis of the IGS-10 revealed two factors: negative (α = .84) and positive (α = .85). PGSI scores correlated significantly with all IGS-10 items (r’s = .33–.58) and with both IGS-10 higher-order subscales (r’s = .66 [negative] and .49 [positive]), supporting the criterion validity of the IGS-10. Since minimal information is lost when using the IGS-10, the short form may prove particularly useful when respondent burden prevents using the full IGS-63.     

Differences in Cognitive Distortions Between Pathological and Non-Pathological Gamblers with Preferences for Chance or Skill Games

Cognitive distortions have been thought to play an important role in the development and maintenance of pathological gambling. The present study investigated whether severity of gambling problems and gamblers’ preference for chance or skill games were related to two sub-factors of cognitive distortions as measured by the Gamblers Belief Questionnaire: Luck/Perseverance, which reflects an individual’s perception that chance is favorable to him/her, and Illusion of Control, which reflects an individual’s perception that his/her behavior influences chance occurrences. Participants (N = 166) were recruited from a race track (n = 79), off-course betting facilities (n = 50) and from an online treatment program for problem gamblers (n = 49). Gambling severity was measured by the South Oaks Gambling Screen, and 73 were classified as pathological gamblers whereas 93 were classified as non-pathological gamblers. The present study supports previous proposals that cognitive distortions are core processes related to gambling behavior as pathological gamblers reported more cognitive distortions than did non-pathological gamblers. A preference for skill games was also associated with greater Illusion of Control compared to a preference for chance games. For gamblers preferring skill games there were no differences in Luck/Perseverance or Illusion of Control between pathological and non-pathological gamblers.     

Assessing the Reliability of the Gambling Functional Assessment

Dixon and Johnson (Analysis of Gambling Behavior 2007, 1:44–49) introduced the Gambling Functional Assessment (GFA), which attempts to identify the consequences that may be maintaining a person’s gambling behavior. The present study had 949 introductory psychology students complete the GFA, with 124 of them completing the measure a second time 12 weeks later. Measures of internal consistency were quite good regardless of whether “non-gamblers” were included or excluded. Test–retest reliability was somewhat mixed, with Escape scores yielding substandard coefficients, especially among females. Both internal and test–retest reliability were typically poorer for female respondents. In general, the GFA performed within the limits of acceptable reliability, and coefficients compared favorably with similar measures. Future investigations will need to determine the reliability and validity of the instrument, especially as it pertains to its intended population, pathological gamblers.     

Narrowing of Attention and Dissociation in Pathological Video Lottery Gamblers

The phenomena of attention and dissociation were investigated in pathological and occasional video lottery (VLT) gamblers. Twelve problem VLT gamblers [mean age 41.3; 6 male, 6 female; South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS; Lesieur & Blume, 1987) scores 5] were compared to a group of 11 occasional VLT gamblers, (mean age 31.9; 4 male, 7 female; SOGS scores < 5). Pathological gamblers were slower than occasional gamblers in reacting to irrelevant external light stimuli while playing on a demonstration video lottery terminal. They were significantly more likely to report more symptoms of general dissociation as measured by the Dissociative Experiences Scale (Bernstein & Putnam, 1986). The results suggest that pathological gamblers may experience a greater narrowing of attention than occasional gamblers when engaged in VLT play.     

Problem and Probable Pathological Gambling Among Older Adults Assessed by the SOGS-R

This study had three main objectives: to examine the prevalence of gambling and problem gambling among older adults, to examine the socio-demographic and gambling patterns of people with various South Oaks Gambling Screen Revised (SOGS-R) scores, and to examine endorsement of the SOGS-R items. The data were drawn from telephone interviews conducted with a sample of 1000 older adults, 60 years and older, throughout the province of Manitoba. Problem gambling was determined from scores on the SOGS-R (Lesieur, H., & Blume, S. (1987). American Journal of Psychiatry, 144, 1184–1188; Lesieur, H., & Blume, S. (1993). Journal of Gambling Studies, 9, 213–219). The results showed gambling to be a fairly common activity among older adults, with 74.7% of participants having gambled in the year prior to the study. Of the total sample, 1.6% were gambling at problem levels, and a further 1.2% were gambling at probable pathological levels in the past year. Inspection of gambling patterns by SOGS-R score failed to reveal a clear and consistent distinction between problem gambling and probable pathological gambling. Finally, examination of item distribution revealed consistent trends of both over and under endorsement of certain items. These results suggest the need for either refinement of the SOGS-R for use with older adults, or the development of a new measure specific to older adults.     

Flow and Dissociation: Examination of Mean Levels, Cross-links, and Links to Emotional Well-Being across Sports and Recreational and Pathological Gambling

To examine whether flow (Csikszentmihalyi (1990). Flow: The psychology of optimal experience. NY: Harper & Row) and dissociation (Jacobs (1986). Journal of Gambling Behavior, 2, 15-31) are experienced across sports and recreational and pathological gambling, we assessed a sample of 511 college students (256 females and 255 males, M age = 19.54) that was comprised of 14 pathological gamblers, 21 non-addicted gamblers, and 476 athletes. The findings showed that both flow and dissociation lay on a continuum of subjective experiences across activity groups. Specifically, pathological gamblers experienced lower levels of flow than athletes, whereas recreational gamblers lay in between the previous groups in this regard. In contrast, pathological gamblers experienced higher mean levels of dissociation than athletes and recreational gamblers who, in turn, were similar in this regard. A LISREL model showed that flow was positively associated with general emotional well-being, whereas dissociation was negatively associated with well-being.     

Impulsivity,compulsivity and pathological gambling: an exploratory study of pathological gambling as an impulsivity-compulsivity spectrum disorder

The current study was conducted to examine pathological gambling as an impulsivity-compulsivity spectrum disorder. University students (N=162) who gambled a minimum of twice monthly completed measures of impulsivity, compulsivity and pathological gambling. Instruments completed included: measures of problem gambling severity (South Oaks Gambling Screen, NORC DSM-IV Screen for Gambling Problems, Canadian Problem Gambling Index, Victorian Gambling Screen), the Padua Inventory, the Barratt Impulsivity Scale and the Tridimensional Personality Questionnaire. Results supported previous research indicating that pathological gamblers had elevated scores on measures of impulsivity and compulsivity, as well as personality factors correlated with these two constructs. Moreover, impulsivity and compulsivity were found to be interrelated as proposed by the impulsivity-compulsivity spectrum model.     

Reliability,Validity, and Cut Scores of the South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS) for Chinese

We examined the reliability, validity, and classification accuracy of the South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS) when adopted for use in Chinese. The DSM-IV criteria for pathological gambling served as the standard against which the classification accuracy of the SOGS was tested. A total of 283 Chinese adults in the community and 94 Chinese treatment-seeking gamblers were recruited. The internal reliability of the SOGS was satisfactory for the general sample and acceptable for the gambling sample. The SOGS was correlated with the DSM-IV criteria items as well as psychosocial and gambling-related problems. Relative to the DSM-IV criteria, the SOGS tended to overestimate the number of pathological gamblers in both samples. In general, we were relatively confident that individuals were not pathological gamblers if the SOGS scores were between 0 and 4 and were pathological gamblers if the SOGS were between 11 and 20. There was about 50–50 chance of being pathological gamblers if the SOGS scores were between 8 and 10. However, the probability of individuals being pathological gamblers was about 0.30 if the SOGS scores were between 5 and 7. We proposed a SOGS cut score of 8 to screen for probable pathological gambling in Chinese societies.     

Mahjong Gambling in the Chinese-Australian Community in Sydney: A Prevalence Study

Mahjong is a popular gambling game played in Chinese communities all over the world (Papineau, China Perspect 28:29–42, 2000) and is sometimes referred to as ‘国赌’ (guodu, the Chinese national gambling game) or ‘修长城’ (xiu changcheng, repairing the Great Wall). Exploratory studies using snowball sampling conducted by Zheng et al. (J Psychol Chin Soc 9(2):241–262, 2008) indicated that Mahjong is not only a popular pastime within the Sydney Chinese community but also problematic for around 3% of players. The current study aimed to extend earlier studies by estimating the prevalence of Mahjong problem gambling in a random sample of Sydney Chinese community members. In addition, due to first-hand gambling experience of the first author with superstitious Mahjong players, the study also investigated the role of superstitious beliefs in Mahjong gambling. The current study involved a series of self-report questionnaires administered to 469 randomly selected Chinese Australians in Sydney. The problem gambling rate, assessed by the Canadian Problem Gambling Index (CPGI), was 3.8%, with Chinese males and older Chinese prominent. Superstitious beliefs were found to play a part in the maintenance of Mahjong gambling behaviour. Information stemming from the current study has helped gain insight into culturally specific forms of gambling, and to identify correlates of problem gamblers. Funding bodies and counselling services should be aware of the existence of this form of gambling, and should devise appropriate treatment plans for Mahjong problem gamblers.     

Validation of the Consumption Screen for Problem Gambling (CSPG)

A 3 item screen for problem gambling was developed based on a conceptual analogue of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test—Consumption (Bush et al. in Arch Intern Med 158:1789–1795, 1998); a brief screen that measures consumption rather than harm. Data were collected from an email panel survey of 588 men and 810 women (n = 1,398) across all states in Australia. Respondents indicated their consumption of gambling products using the 3 items of the new Consumption Screen for Problem Gambling (CSPG). Receiver Operating Characteristics curve analysis was used to analyze the performance of the new items relative to the Problem Gambling Severity Index (Ferris and Wynne in The Canadian problem gambling index: Final report, 2001). Results show a 98% probability that the CSPG score for a randomly chosen positive case of problem gambling will exceed the score for a randomly chosen negative case. In addition, a score of 4+ on the CSPG identified all 14 cases of Problem Gambling correctly, while only 7.3% of non-problem gamblers had scores of 4+ (sensitivity = 100%; specificity = 92.7%). Lastly, only 3.0% of respondents without any gambling problems had CSPG scores of 4+. The current study suggests that the CSPG, a brief consumption-based measure for gambling products, can quickly and accurately identify people who are likely to be experiencing gambling problems.     

Contingent Gambling-Drinking Patterns and Problem Drinking Severity Moderate Implicit Gambling-Alcohol Associations in Problem Gamblers

Although problem gambling and problem drinking often co-occur, the processes underlying this association are not well understood. This study investigated the effects of contingent gambling-drinking patterns and problem drinking severity on implicit gambling-alcohol associations. Participants were 144 (34 female) problem gamblers. The South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS) measured severity of problem gambling. The Brief Michigan Alcohol Screening Test (BMAST) measured severity of problem drinking. The Implicit Association Test (Greenwald, McGhee, & Schwartz, 1998, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 74, 1464–1480) measured gambling-alcohol associations. Participants who reported drinking when they won displayed faster response time (i.e., priming) on trials where alcohol words were paired with gambling win (e.g., jackpot) vs. gambling loss (e.g., forfeit) words. The tendency to drink in response to losses did not influence the priming effect of win cues or moderate the effects of Win-Drinking Pattern on priming. Severity of problem drinking on the BMAST also correlated positively the priming effects of win cues. These findings indicate that a tendency to drink in response to gambling wins and more severe alcohol problems each coincide with stronger associations between gambling win and alcohol concepts in memory. Such associations can promote drinking and its attendant effects (e.g., poor decision-making) in problem gamblers, and thus, may contribute to co-morbid gambling and alcohol use disorders.     

The Four Es of Problem Gambling: A Psychological Measure of Risk

A focus group of Reno area Gamblers Anonymous members identified four psychological traits contributing to risk for problem gambling, including: Escape, Esteem, Excess and Excitement. A panel of four experts authored 240 Likert-type items to measure these traits. By design, none of the items explicitly referred to gambling activities. Study 1 narrowed the field of useful items by employing a quasi-experimental design which compared the answers of Reno area Gamblers Anonymous members (N = 39) to a control sample (N = 34). Study 2 submitted successful items, plus new items authored with the knowledge gained from Study 1, to validation in a random sample telephone survey across Queensland, Australia (N=2577). The final 40 item Four Es scale (4Es) was reliable (α=.90); predicted gambling problems as measured by the Canadian Problem Gambling Index of Severity (PGSI, Ferris & Wynne (2001). The Canadian Problem Gambling Index: Final Report: Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse); and distinguished problem gamblers from persons with alcohol abuse problems. The new scale can provide a basis for further study in harm minimization, treatment, and theory development.     

Explaining the High False Positive Rate of the South Oaks Gambling Screen

The South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS) has been used extensively in estimating the prevalence of pathological gambling but produces a large number of false positive classifications. Ladouceur et al. (, Journal of Gambling Studies, 16, pp. 1–24) claim that misunderstanding of SOGS items is responsible for the high false positive rate. However, their study is open to a number of methodological criticisms. The current study, where clinical and non-clinical gamblers complete the SOGS with and without clarification, overcomes these problems. Results suggest that clarification does not have a significant overall effect on SOGS scores. This implies that item misunderstanding is not responsible for the false positive rate of the SOGS.     

Gambling Related Cognitions Mediate the Association Between Thinking Style and Problem Gambling Severity

This study examined the associations among thinking style (rational versus experiential), gambling related cognitions, and problem gambling severity. The participants were 70 female and 41 male regular gamblers who completed the Gambling Related Cognitions Scale (Raylu and Oei, Addiction 99:757–769, 2004), the Rational-Experiential Inventory (Pacini and Epstien, J Pers Soc Psychol 76(6):972–987, 1999), and the Problem Gambling Severity Index (Ferris and Wynne, The Canadian problem and gambling index: final report. Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse, Ottawa, 2001). Rational thinking was negatively related to problem gambling severity. Gambling related biases increased with problem gambling severity but the strength of those biases was dampened by rational thought. The patterns by which gambling related cognition mediated the association between thinking style and gambling severity suggest that therapeutic interventions may benefit from a consideration of a gambler’s thinking style.     

Never Smile at a Crocodile: Betting on Electronic Gaming Machines is Intensified by Reptile-Induced Arousal

Tourists at the Koorana Saltwater Crocodile Farm in Coowonga, Queensland, Australia, including 62 males and 41 females, aged 18–66 (M = 34.2, SD = 13.3), were randomly assigned to play a laptop-simulated Electronic Gaming Machine (EGM) either: (1) prior to entry, or (2) after having held a 1-m saltwater-crocodile. Gambling behavior; including bet-size, speed of betting, final payouts and trials played on the EGM; was investigated with respect to participants’ assigned arousal condition, problem-gambling status, and affective state. At-risk gamblers with few self-reported negative emotions placed higher average bets at the EGM after having held the crocodile when compared to the control. In contrast, at-risk gamblers with many self-reported negative emotions placed lower average bets at the EGM after having held the crocodile. The results suggest that high arousal can intensify gambling in at-risk players, but only if this feeling state is not perceived as a negative emotion.     

Psychometric Validation of the Gambling Passion Scale (GPS) in an English-speaking University Sample

The Gambling Passion Scale (GPS) is a recently developed research instrument for assessing individuals' passion for gambling. Because the psychometric properties of the GPS have only previously been examined in French Canadians, the aim of this study was to replicate previous psychometric findings in an English-speaking university sample. Participants (female: n = 58; male: n = 89) were drawn from a university campus based on self-reported experience with gambling indexed by scores on the South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS). The two-factor structure reported by Rousseau et al. (Journal of Gambling Studies, 18(1), pp. 45–66, 2002) was largely replicated in this sample, as were relationships between ‘obsessive passion’ and negative consequences stemming from gambling. These results support the validity of the GPS as a measure of gambling passion in English-speaking university gamblers and its potential to contribute to understanding problem gambling.     

Significant Others and Gambling Treatment Outcomes

Aims This study investigates the effect of significant others on treatment outcomes among treated pathological gamblers. Design This is a cohort study of individuals who received gambling treatment. Setting Oregon Problem Gambling Services (OPGS) for gamblers and their family members. Participants 4,410 adult gamblers who were discharged from treatment between August, 2001 and April, 2007. Measurements OPGS enrollment forms provided gambler gender, age, ethnicity, education level, employment status, gambling-related debt, and whether the gambler had a significant other at the time of enrollment. Termination forms provided information on the type of discharge (successful/unsuccessful) and treatment length (in days). Participation of the gambler’s significant other in the family treatment program was identified. Findings Results showed that age, ethnicity, gambling debt, and having a significant other are associated with the odds of successful treatment. Education level moderates the effect of having a significant other on treatment success. Age, ethnicity, education, employment, and having a significant other participate in treatment significantly impacted gamblers’ length in treatment. Conclusions These findings indicate that there may be a benefit to integrating significant others in gambling treatment methods. Significant others may act as social supports for gamblers seeking treatment, and involving loved ones in gambling treatment models may positively affect gambler treatment outcomes.     

Examining DSM-IV Criteria for Pathological Gambling: Psychometric Properties and Evidence from Cognitive Biases

We examined the DSM-IV criteria for pathological gambling as assessed with the DSM-IV-based Diagnostic Interview for Gambling Severity (DIGS; Winters, Specker, & Stinchfield, 2002). We first analyzed the psychometric properties of the DIGS, and then assessed the extent to which performance on two judgment and decision-making tasks, the Georgia Gambling Task (Goodie, 2003) and the Iowa Gambling Task (Bechara, Damasio, Damasio, & Anderson, 1994), related to higher reports of gambling pathology. In a sample of frequent gamblers, we found strong psychometric support for the DSM-IV conception of pathological gambling as measured by the DIGS, predictive relationships between DIGS scores and all cognitive performance measures, and significant differences in performance measures between individuals with and without pathological gambling. Analyses using suggested revisions to the pathological gambling threshold (Stinchfield, 2003) revealed that individuals meeting four of the DSM-IV criteria aligned significantly more with pathological gamblers than with non-pathological gamblers, supporting the suggested change in the cutoff score from five to four symptoms. Discussion focuses on the validity of the DSM-IV criteria as assessed by the DIGS and the role of cognitive biases in pathological gambling.