The Brief Addiction Science Information Source (BASIS)

The WAGER, Vol 6(26) - Gambling Treatment and the Processes of Change

The transtheoretical model of change describes the process of behavioral change (Prochaska et. al, 1988). The model consists of three constructs: stages of change, processes of change, and levels of change. Hodgins (2001) studies the processes of change construct with regard to problem gambling resolution. Hodgins & el-Guebaly (2000) recently recruited resolved problem gamblers (n=43) to examine the process of recovery from a gambling disorder. They administered the Process of Change Questionnaire (PoC; Prochaska, Velicer, DiClemente, & Fava, 1988) to thirty-seven of these participants, modified to capture gambling data with respect to consciousness-raising, self-reevaluation, counter conditioning, stimulus control, self-liberation, helping... Read more →

The WAGER, Vol 6(25) - Staying Focused: Video Lottery Gambling

Some video lottery players report that they are oblivious to their surroundings when playing (Wynne, 1994). In a new study, Diskin and Hodgins (2001) explore problem (i.e., level 2) versus occasional gamblers' response time to external light stimuli when playing a video lottery game. Forty-two experienced video lottery terminal (VLT) players (i.e., problem and non problem gamblers as identified by the South Oaks Gambling Screen; SOGS; Lesieur & Blume, 1987) participated in one of two research conditions: Baseline First and VLT First. The Baseline First condition required that participants respond to light stimuli, controlled by the researchers, atop a covered... Read more →

Op-Ed/Editorials - Who Won The 2000 Election?

Professor I. Nelson Rose, Whittier Law School, Costa Mesa, CA. While the media focused on the close race between Al Gore and George W. Bush for President, little attention was given to other contests in the November 2000 election. Legal gambling was directly and indirectly involved in some very close races, including ones which also required recounts. The National Coalition Against Legalized Gambling sends out a self-congratulatory (and fund-raising) newsletter to its followers after nearly every election. The Rev. Tom Grey, Executive Director, portrayed the results of the Nov. 7, 2000 races across the United States as a victory for... Read more →

The WAGER, Vol 6(24) - Risky Choices: Decision Making with Huntington's and Parkinson's Diseases

People with Huntington's disease1 (HD) often display impulsivity and poor judgment, regardless of their pre-morbid personalities (Stout, Rodawalt, & Siemers, 2001). Parallels might exist between such behavior and research results on frontal lobe2 damage (e.g., Mega & Cummings, 1994) that employs methods to simulate gambling tasks (e.g., Bechara, Damasio, Tranel, & Anderson, 1998). Stout, Rodawalt, and Siemers (2001) suggest that people with HD will show deficits in performance on simulated gambling tasks when compared to patients with Parkinson's disease3 (PD) and healthy controls. Stout, Rodawalt, and Siemers (2001) recruited sixty-nine research participants: fourteen with HD, twenty-two with PD, and thirty-three... Read more →

The WAGER, Vol. 6(23) - Adolescent Gambling in the Transition Years:A Special 3- Part WAGER.

A note from the Editor: The following WAGER was written by Dr. Winters and Dr. Stinchfield, from the University of Minnesota. Following the WAGER are comments by Dr. Rugle, Clinical and Research Director of Trimeridian/Custer Gambling Treatment Program and Dr. Federman, President of GamblingSolutions. Ken C. Winters, Ph.D.; Randy D. Stinchfield, Ph.D.; Center for Adolescent Substance Abuse Research Department of Psychiatry, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis The rapid expansion of legalized gambling has increased concerns that our country is producing a young generation of over-involved gamblers. We now have in this country children who are exposed to high-stakes gambling throughout their... Read more →