The Brief Addiction Science Information Source (BASIS)

The WAGER, Vol 4(4) -The Changing Geography of Casino Gambling

In 1998, more people visited the casinos of Indiana than Disney World. Gaming taxes collected from Indiana casinos brought in three times the revenue of the cigarette tax. And the money spent on slot machines last year could have paid for the state’s annual budget for two years straight. The gaming industry in Indiana is one of the top four revenue-producers in the nation.* Indiana is just one of the many states that enjoyed a lucrative 1998. During the first 11 months of last year, casinos in Mississippi brought in over $2 billion in revenue with an annual growth rate... Read more →

The WAGER, Vol 4(3) -Big Easy Dispatch

The political discourse surrounding compulsive gambling and the gaming industry changed course earlier this month in New Orleans. Doubting the objectivity of the federally mandated National Gambling Impact Study Commission, a group of state and local legislators united to create the National Council of Legislators from Gaming States. According to its founders, the new group will have no ideological agenda other than research on policy implications, law enforcement, and other topics related to legalized gambling. Florida State Senator Steven Geller, president of the new group, has criticized the composition of the National Gambling Impact Study Commisssion. In particular, he has... Read more →

The WAGER, Vol 4(2) -Half Full, Half Empty?

Learned helplessness is the psychological condition that arises in a person who has repeatedly tried and failed to influence a particular outcome. For example, the student who consistently receives poor grades regard­less of the magnitude of his or her efforts will eventually experience learned helplessness. It is a phenomenon that can produce profound effects on motivation, cognition, and emotion.* Since its formulation, helplessness theory has been studied in the context of depression, occupational performance, and physical health. Atlas and Peterson (1990)** used this paradigm to examine the explanatory styles of racetrack bettors. Their sample consisted of 53 harness track patrons... Read more →

The WAGER, Vol 4(1) - Luvox Populi

Fluvoxamine maleate, commonly known as Luvox, is commonly prescribed for patients suffering from obsessive-compulsive disorder. Its proven efficacy and relatively low incidence of side effects have made it a popular first-line treatment. Although chemically unrelated to the antidepressants Prozac and Zoloft, it shares the same pharmacodynamic mechanism and acts by selectively blocking the reuptake of serotonin. Noting the phenomenological and clinical similarities between pathological gambling and other obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorders, Hollander et al. (1998) performed a single-blind, preliminary trial investigating the efficacy of Luvox for gambling disorders.* It should be noted that Luvox is readily available and frequently prescribed. What... Read more →