The Brief Addiction Science Information Source (BASIS)

The WAGER, Vol. 1(22) - Knowledge & Skill in Treating Pathological Gamblers

One of the consequences of the presence of multiple addictions among pathological gamblers is that clients at substance abuse treatment facilities may also be experiencing gambling problems. In addition, the limited number of pathological gambling treatment facilities may increase the likelihood that pathological gamblers will seek treatment at or be referred to substance abuse treatment facilities. A recent study assessed the treatment training needs of a randomly selected sample (n = 1590) of staff at 237 New England licensed substance abuse treatment facilities. Of this group, 54.5% reported no or very little knowledge of pathological gambling; another 33.2% reported no... Read more →

The WAGER, Vol. 1(21) - Increased Likelihood of Alexithymia Among Pathological Gamblers

Alexithymia is a disturbance in affective and cognitive function. This problem is relatively common among people with addictive disorders. Individuals with alexithymia experience their emotions in an undif­ferentiated and mostly physical form. These people also have an impaired capacity to benefit from dynamic psychotherapy because they have difficulty identifying and describing how they feel.1 A study2 of 1147 university students explored the hypothesis that alexithymia may be a risk factor for pathological gambling. The level of pathological gambling was classified using the South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS). The study found that pathological gamblers (SOGS score ) were significantly more likely... Read more →

The WAGER, Vol. 1(20) - Sources of Access for Underage Gamblers

Setting the legal age for gambling at 18 or 21 has not precluded the occurrence of underage gambling. Research has demonstrated that underage youth participate in casino gambling, lottery playing, and other forms of gambling. A random telephone-survey of 702 Minnesota adolescents aged 15-18 years confirmed that youth have access to scratch tabs, pull tabs, and lottery tickets. Underage youth rely more on parents or other adults to acquire these games compared to legal age youths. However, 27.6% of minors reported success in purchasing scratch tabs, pull tabs, or lottery tickets. Eight percent (8.2%) of this sample reported that underage... Read more →

The WAGER, Vol 1(19) - Lottery & Non-lottery States: Fiscal Comparisons

During 1995, lottery sales from 36 states and the District of Columbia rose to $32.1 billion. States often enter the lottery business, in part, to gain the revenue necessary to support public education. Money for education is usually one of the explicit or implicit promises that most state legislation offers when it suggests chartering a lottery. However, Money magazine conducted a six-month investigation revealing that state lotteries have failed to boost funding for education. The proportion of state spending dedicated to education has remained relatively unchanged in the 1990s, about 50% for lottery states and 60% for non-lottery states, despite... Read more →