The Brief Addiction Science Information Source (BASIS)

The WAGER, Vol 2(12) - Cognitive-Behavioral Model of Problem Gambling Treatment

Several models have been constructed to explain the nature of problem gambling. Sharpe & Tarrier* recently proposed a comprehensive model to explain the development and maintenance of problem gambling. This model can help clinicians treat problem gambling and can direct future research. The model considers the relationships among the physiological, cognitive, and behavioral factors that contribute to the development and maintenance of gambling behavior. Physiologically, gambling increases autonomic arousal (e.g., heart rate, electrodermal activity), which is experienced by the gambler as excitement. This excitement, in combination with monetary awards (only on a win), encourage individuals to continue to gamble. Over... Read more →

The WAGER, Vol 2(11) - Borrowing Money & Gambling: The Adolescent Experience

On average, adolescents have less expendable money than adults. Recent studies, however, have found that adolescents have similar or higher rates of problem gambling than adults. To be classified as a pathological gambler by the DSM-IV*, a person must meet 5 or more of 10 specific criteria, or indications of problematic gambling. One of these criteria is borrowing money to gamble or to pay back gambling debts. Not surprisingly, borrowing is one way that adolescents can support their gambling activity. All studies that use instruments based on the DSM criteria (e.g., SOGS, MAGS) assess the extent of borrowing. Two recent... Read more →

The WAGER, Vol 2(10) - Face-to-face Interviewing & Telephone Surveys: The Meaning of Different Rates

Researchers have long debated which instrument most accurately measures the occurrence of problem gambling. Less attention has been paid to which interview method yields the most valid estimate. A recent study surveyed 400 Native Americans residing in the four counties in North Dakota having the greatest proportion of Native Americans.* The researchers surveyed both a telephone sample and a face-to-face household sample to avoid bias resulting from sampling only households with telephones. This study found that the prevalence rates of problem gambling varied depending on the method of interview (telephone or face-to-face). The combined current prevalence rate (pathological & problem)... Read more →

The WAGER, Vol 2(9) - Various Gambling Activities: Addiction & The Nature of The Game

Several observers of gambling have referred to instant games as the “crack-cocaine of gambling.” The analogy seems to imply that instant games or other games of chance have the ability to get a player “hooked” on the game. If so, do some games contribute more to causing addiction than other games? Researchers have started examining this question of varying degrees of appeal of certain gambling activities. In Alberta, Canada, Wynne, Smith, & Volberg1 approached the question in an innovative way by calculating “conversion rates” to assess how likely people are to become weekly players if they have ever tried a... Read more →