For the past two years, staff at The Donwood Problem Gambling Program in Toronto, Canada, have been collecting gambling-related information* from substance abuse clients in all programs. The data collection instruments include 1) the South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS) to measure lifetime gambling behavior, 2) an instrument that explores current (i.e., past year) gambling behavior, and, more recently, 3) six questions about Stages of Change**. The stage of change was identified by asking respondents to choose from the following six statements the one that best applied to them “right now:” a) I had a gambling problem more than six months... Read more →
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December 1996
Tuesday, December 17, 1996
Tuesday, December 10, 1996
The WAGER, Vol. 1(50) - Gambling Disorders in Louisiana
Seven forms of legalized gaming are available in Louisiana: pari-mutuel horse racing, charitable gaming, off-track betting, lottery, riverboat casinos, video poker, and land-based casinos. A recent study determined the prevalence of problem and pathological gambling among adults (over 21) and adolescents (defined in this study as ages 18-21) in Louisiana. A random sample of 1818 residents were interviewed by telephone using the South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS) to ascertain the prevalence of gambling disorders. Individuals with SOGS scores of 3 or 4 were considered “problem” gamblers, and those with scores of 5 or more were considered “pathological” gamblers. Adolescents were... Read more →
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Tuesday, December 03, 1996
The WAGER, Vol. 1(49) - Treatment Issues: Explaining Variance in Problem Gambling
A host of factors influence the development of problem gambling as well as treatment outcome. The various “causes” of problem gambling are unequally changeable by treatment; “immutable variables” such as gender, socioeconomic status, education, and religion are less of a focus in treatment than are the “mutable variables” such as lottery play, money spent on gambling, alcohol consumption, and the illusion of control as an attitude about gambling. Clinicians may focus on the “mutable variables” to offer alternative associations and attitudes which the gambler can choose to adopt. Recent research attempted to quantify the variance in problem gambling; that is,... Read more →
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Getting soberEditor's Note: Today's op-ed comes from a woman who describes her experiences with addiction, trauma, coming out, and a supportive same-sex relationship. We thank her for generously sharing her story with our readers. We hope that readers with the same kinds of experiences will feel less alone after reading this piece. This piece includes explicit descriptions of sexual violence, as well as drug use and its psychoactive effects, and readers who might struggle with cravings, especially for opioids or stimulants, should use their best judgement in reading this story. The 2018 Special Series on Addiction in the LGBTQ Community is...
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Gloria's StoryEditor’s Note: Today’s op-ed comes from a woman named Gloria who describes her experiences with gambling disorder. We thank Gloria for sharing her story with BASIS readers, because we believe that stories such as hers help raise awareness, reduce stigma, and, ultimately, improve lives. This op-ed is part of our Special Series on Gambling Disorder. My name is Gloria. I am 71 years old, a wife, a mother, a grandmother and I have a major gambling problem. Nine years ago my life fell apart. I got in trouble because of my gambling. When it all came out, my family was...
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Challenging addiction treatment: The intersection of policy, practice, & scienceEditor’s Note: Anjali Talcherkar authored this op-ed while completing the Division on Addiction’s Summer Research Mentorship. Anjali is working on a PhD in Mind Body Medicine and Integrative Mental Health from Saybrook University. You can learn more about her here. For more on Anjali Talcherkar's story, look for her soon-to-be-published book. Every year, about 27 million people worldwide misuse illicit drugs in a manner that puts them at risk for adverse health problems and even death. Too often we hear reports of famous people who suffer and die from substance misuse. On the local level, addiction can rip apart communities...