An Exploratory Study in Gambling Recovery Communities: A Comparison Between ‘‘Pure’’ and Substance-Abusing Gamblers

Abstract

Most of the available literature has shown that gambling disorder (GD) is often associated with several psychiatric conditions. Comorbidities with mood disorders, impulsiveness, personality traits, and impairments in cognitive function have also been frequently investigated. However, it is currently uncommon to study this disorder in individuals without comorbid substance abuse; therefore, the primary aim of our study was to compare the psychological profile of individuals with GD with and without substance use disorder. A total of 60 participants (100% male), including 20 individuals with GD, 20 substance-dependent gamblers (SDGs), and 20 healthy controls (HCs), were assessed with several clinical measures to investigate impulsivity, hostility, mood, and personality traits, as well as with cognitive tasks (i.e., decision-making tasks). Our results showed differences in both experimental groups compared with the HC group in mood disorders, impulsivity, and hostility traits. The ‘‘pure’’ GD group differed from the SDG group only in characteristics related to mood disorders (e.g., State-Trait Anxiety Inventory-Y2, Beck Depression Inventory-II, and assault dimension), whereas greater impairment in decision making processes related to risky choices was shown in the SDG group. This study suggests the importance of studying pure GD to clarify the underlying mechanisms without the neurotoxic effects of the substances. This could provide an important contribution to the treatment and understanding of this complex disorder.

Betting on Your Feelings: The Interplay between Emotion and Cognition in Gambling Affective Task

“…Therefore, the purpose of the present study is to extend the findings of a previous study of ours [54], in which it was found that the "pure" GD group differed from the SDG group primarily in terms of mood disorder traits such as depression, anxiety, and hostility. To this end, different emotional and affective dimensions have been included, along with the creation of an affective task, with the aim of shedding light on both the emotional aspects and their impact on risk-taking decision-making processes.…”

“…This is because the use of other substances can be confusing in attributing factors that play a role in gambling behaviour. Previous studies have highlighted neurobiological alterations that appear to be independent of substance intake [68] and have shown the presence of exclusive factors (e.g., Gambling Disorder severity, mood disorder) in a sample of "pure" gamblers in-treatment [54]. The lack of adaptive emotion regulation strategies appears to modulate the relationship between personality traits and gambling severity, in which gambling may represent a way to suppress negative affective states and escape personal needs (i.e., gambling as a coping strategy) [69].…”

“…This outcome could be attributed to the fact that, in our study, all SDG participants were gamblers as well. However, they likely considered gambling as a secondary addiction that frequently developed as a result of substance dependency [54].…”

From Emotional (Dys)Regulation to Internet Addiction: A Mediation Model of Problematic Social Media Use among Italian Young Adults

“…Young [ 35 ] was the first to outline specific diagnostic criteria for IA, based on the DSM-IV diagnostic criteria [ 36 ] for pathological gambling, with which IA shares symptomatic overlap; drawing on this criteria, she constructed a diagnostic questionnaire (i.e., Young’s Internet Addiction Test; IAT) [ 35 ]. Research using the IAT has shown that IA has characteristics and symptoms comparable to those of gambling disorder (e.g., preoccupation, tolerance, withdrawal, failure to control, impaired decision making) and comorbidity with depression and anxiety [ 37 , 38 , 39 ], obsessive-compulsive symptoms [ 40 , 41 , 42 , 43 ], attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder [ 44 ], and hostility–aggression behaviors [ 45 , 46 ]. Nevertheless, IA is not classified as a specific psychiatric disorder, but a psychological symptom that may arise in various psychopathological frameworks.…”