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The role of avoidance coping and escape motives in problematic online gaming: a systematic literature review
Full text linkOver the past two decades, research into Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) has markedly increased due to worldwide spread of online videogames. The reasons and motivations for playing greatly contribute to its popularity. Escapism and avoidance coping strategies have been studied extensively and conceptualized as motives to play. A growing research base has demonstrated a strong association between these motives to play and negative gaming outcomes. Consequently, the aim of the present systematic review was to provide a comprehensive overview of the role of avoidance coping and escape motives in problematic online gaming. A systematic literature search was carried out using academic databases and a total of 26 empirical studies met the inclusion criteria. The results show that escapism and avoidance coping represent both a predictor of IGD and play a mediating role between many psychological factors (e.g., self-esteem, loneliness, self-concept, anxiety) and problematic online gaming. However, the review also highlights the paucity of longitudinal studies that hinder the determination of the causal direction of these associations. Despite this limitation, the evidence has important implication for developing more effective prevention programs and clinical interventions
The extent and distribution of gambling-related harms and the prevention paradox in a British population survey
Full text linkObjectives: To examine whether the "prevention paradox" applies to British individuals in relation to gambling- related harm.
Methods: Data were derived from 7,756 individuals participating in the British Gambling Prevalence Survey 2010, a comprehensive interview-based survey conducted in Great Britain between November 2009 and May 2010. Gambling-related harm was assessed using an adapted version of the DSM-IV Pathological Gambling criteria. The previous year’s prevalence of problem gamblers was examined using the Problem Gambling Severity Index. Gambling involvement was measured by gambling frequency and gambling participation (gambling volume as expressed by time and money spent gambling).
Results: The prevalence rates for past-year gambling harms were dependence harm (16.4%), social harm (2.2%), and chasing losses (7.9%). Gambling-related harms were distributed across low- to moderate-risk gamblers (and not limited to just problem gamblers) and were reported by the majority of gamblers who were non-high time and spend regular gamblers than high time and spend regular gamblers.
Conclusions: The prevention paradox is a promising way of examining gambling-related harm. This suggests that prevention of gambling might need to consider the population approach to minimizing gambling harm
Social networking addiction, attachment style, and validation of the Italian version of the Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale
Full text linkAim: Research into social networking addiction has greatly increased over the last decade. However, the number of
validated instruments assessing addiction to social networking sites (SNSs) remains few, and none have been
validated in the Italian language. Consequently, this study tested the psychometric properties of the Italian version of
the Bergen Social Media Addiction Scale (BSMAS), as well as providing empirical data concerning the relationship
between attachment styles and SNS addiction. Methods: A total of 769 participants were recruited to this study. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and multigroup analyses were applied to assess construct validity of the Italian version of the BSMAS. Reliability analyses comprised the average variance extracted, the standard error of
measurement, and the factor determinacy coefficient.
Results: Indices obtained from the CFA showed the Italian
version of the BSMAS to have an excellent fit of the model to the data, thus confirming the single-factor structure of
the instrument. Measurement invariance was established at configural, metric, and strict invariances across age
groups, and at configural and metric levels across gender groups. Internal consistency was supported by several
indicators. In addition, the theoretical associations between SNS addiction and attachment styles were generally
supported.Conclusion: This study provides evidence that the Italian version of the BSMAS is a psychometrically robust tool that can be used in future Italian research into social networking addiction
A large-scale national study of gambling severity among immigrant and non-immigrant adolescents: the role of the family
Full text linkAim: The primary aim of the present study was to examine the association between immigrant generation, family sociodemographic characteristics, and problem gambling severity in a large-scale nationally representative sample of Italian youth. Method: Data from the 2013–2014 Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) Survey were used for cross-sectional analyses of adolescent problem gambling. Self-administered questionnaires were completed by a representative sample of 20,791 15-year-old students. Respondents' problem gambling severity, immigrant status, family characteristics (family structure, family affluence, perceived family support) and socio-demographic characteristics were individually assessed. Findings: Rates of adolescent at-risk/problem gambling were twice as high among first generation immigrants than non-immigrant students; the odds of being at-risk/problem gamblers were higher among first-generation immigrants than adolescents of other immigrant generations or non-immigrant. Not living with two biological or adoptive parents appears to be a factor that increases the risk of becoming a problem gambler in first generation immigrants. Conclusions: Immigrant status and family characteristics may play a key role in contributing to adolescent problem gambling
Decision-making, cognitive distortions and alcohol use in adolescent problem and non-problem gamblers: an experimental study
No full textIn the psychological literature, many studies have investigated the neuropsychological and behavioral changes that occur developmentally during adolescence. These studies have consistently observed a deficit in the decision-making ability of children and adolescents. This deficit has been ascribed to incomplete brain development. The same deficit has also been observed in adult problem and pathological gamblers. However, to date, no study has examined decision-making in adolescents with and without gambling problems. Furthermore, no study has ever examined associations between problem gambling, decision-making, cognitive distortions and alcohol use in youth. To address these issues, 104 male adolescents participated in this study. They were equally divided in two groups, problem gamblers and non-problem gamblers, based on South Oaks Gambling Screen Revised for Adolescents scores. All participants performed the Iowa Gambling Task and completed the Gambling Related Cognitions Scale and the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test. Adolescent problem gamblers displayed impaired decision-making, reported high cognitive distortions, and had more problematic alcohol use compared to non-problem gamblers. Strong correlations between problem gambling, alcohol use, and cognitive distortions were observed. Decision-making correlated with interpretative bias. This study demonstrated that adolescent problem gamblers appear to have the same psychological profile as adult problem gamblers and that gambling involvement can negatively impact on decision-making ability that, in adolescence, is still developing. The correlations between interpretative bias and decision-making suggested that the beliefs in the ability to influence gambling outcomes may facilitate decision-making impairment
Decision making, cognitive distortions and emotional distress: a comparison between pathological gamblers and healthy controls
Full text linkBackground and objectives: The etiology of problem gambling is multifaceted and complex. Among others factors, poor decision making, cognitive distortions (i.e., irrational beliefs about gambling), and emotional factors (e.g., negative mood states) appear to be among the most important factors in the development and maintenance of problem gambling. Although empirical evidence has suggested that cognitive distortions facilitate gambling and negative emotions are associated with gambling, the interplay between cognitive distortions, emotional states, and decision making in gambling remains unexplored. Methods: Pathological gamblers (N=54) and healthy controls (N=54) completed the South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS), the Iowa Gambling Task (IGT), the Gambling Related Cognitions Scale (GRCS), and the Depression Anxiety Stress Scale (DASS-21). Results: Compared to healthy controls, pathological gamblers showed poorer decision making and reported higher scores on measures assessing cognitive distortions and emotional distress. All measures were positively associated with gambling severity. A significant negative correlation between decision making and cognitive distortions was also observed. No associations were found between poor decision making and emotional distress. Logistic regressi on analysis indicated that cognitive distortions, emotional distress, and poor decision making were significant predictors of problem gambling. Limitations: The use of self-report measures and the absence of female participants limit the generalizability of the reported findings. Conclusions: The present study is the first to demonstrate the mutual influence between irrational beliefs and poor decision making, as well as the role of cognitive bias, emotional distress, and poor decision making in gambling disorder
Risk-taking, delay discounting, and time perspective in adolescent gamblers: an experimental study
No full textPrevious research has demonstrated that adult pathological gamblers (compared to controls) show risk-proneness, foreshortened time horizon, and preference for immediate rewards. No study has ever examined the interplay of these factors in adolescent gambling. A total of 104 adolescents took part in the research. Two equal-number groups of adolescent non-problem and problem gamblers, defined using the South Oaks Gambling Screen-Revised for Adolescents (SOGS-RA), were administered the Balloon Analogue Risk Task (BART), the Consideration of Future Consequences (CFC-14) Scale, and the Monetary Choice Questionnaire (MCQ). Adolescent problem gamblers were found to be more risk-prone, more oriented to the present, and to discount delay rewards more steeply than adolescent non-problem gamblers. Results of logistic regression analysis revealed that BART, MCQ, and CFC scores predicted gambling severity. These novel finding provides the first evidence of an association among problematic gambling, high risk-taking proneness, steep delay discounting, and foreshortened time horizon among adolescents. It may be that excessive gambling induces shortsighted behaviors that, in turn, facilitate gambling involvement
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The interplay between chasing behavior, time perspective, and gambling severity: an experimental study
Full text linkBackground and aims: Chasing refers to continued gambling in an attempt to recoup previous losses and is one of the diagnostic criteria for gambling disorder. However, research on the topic is still in its infancy. This study investigated whether chasing behavior mediates the relationship between time perspective and gambling severity.
Methods: Non-problem gamblers (N = 26) and problem gamblers (N = 66) with the same demographic features (age and gender) were compared on the Consideration of Future Consequences and a computerized task assessing chasing. The Italian South Oaks Gambling Screen was used to discriminate participants in terms of gambling severity.
Results: Significant correlations were found relating to gambling severity, chasing, and time perspective. More specifically, the results showed that problem gamblers reported more chasing and a foreshortened time horizon. Chasers, compared to non-chasers, were found to be more oriented to the present. Regression analysis showed that male gender, present-oriented time perspective, and chasing were good predictors of gambling severity. Finally, to clarify if present orientation was on the path from chasing to gambling severity or if chasing was the mediator of the impact of present orientation on gambling severity, a path analysis was performed. The results indicated that present orientation had a direct effect on gambling severity and mediated the relationship between chasing and gambling involvement.
Conclusion: The findings support the exacerbating role of chasing in gambling disorder and for the first time show the relationship of time perspective, chasing, and gambling severity among adults
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
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