Problem Gambling News and Research

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Homeless people in Toronto are nearly 9 times more likely to have history of pathological gambling

Homeless clients using services at Toronto's Good Shepherd Ministries are nearly nine times more likely to have a history of problem or pathological gambling than the general population, a new study from St. Michael's Hospital has found.

22 May 2014

Research: Stimulation of certain population of neurons within brain can alter learning process

Stimulation of a certain population of neurons within the brain can alter the learning process, according to a team of neuroscientists and neurosurgeons at the University of Pennsylvania.

14 May 2014

Study links gambling and sexual behaviors in African-American adolescents

Late adolescence is a period when many youth become involved in high-risk behaviors with adverse consequences. Researchers at the Mailman School of Public Health with colleagues at Johns Hopkins University studied the degree to which two such behaviors, adolescent sexual behaviors and gambling, affected African American youth in nine primary schools in Baltimore, MD.

26 Feb 2014

Parental supervision at ages 11-14 lowers risk for problem gambling by age 22

Keeping an eye on your child can lower their odds for gambling by young adulthood, according to research conducted at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health. Adolescents who had poor parental supervision at age 11, and which continued to decline through age 14, were significantly more likely than their peers to be problem gamblers between ages 16-22.

12 Nov 2013

Rat study shows compulsive gambling behaviours can be reduced in humans

With the help of a rat casino, University of British Columbia brain researchers have successfully reduced behaviours in rats that are commonly associated with compulsive gambling in humans.

31 Oct 2013

Problem gambling, substance abuse problems are correlated, finds new study

Problem gamblers are a hidden population among people with mental health or substance abuse issues who often don't get the treatment they need, a new study shows.

5 Sep 2013

Mental health risk increased in problem gamblers

Individuals with a gambling problem are at increased risk for developing Axis I psychiatric disorders, results from a US study show.

5 Feb 2013

Highly impulsive behavior leads to problem gambling in boys

Boys who show a pattern of impulsivity from their early school years are likely to end up with a gambling problem in their late adolescence, research suggests.

23 Nov 2012

Study links developmental pattern of impulsivity with late-adolescent gambling

Results of a new study by researchers at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health indicate that a developmental pattern of impulsiveness in young males is linked with gambling problems in late adolescence.

22 Nov 2012

Tips to assess when gambling could be leading to process addiction

Whether it's a March Madness office betting pool or sitting in the sports books in Las Vegas placing bets on the Masters Golf Tournament and opening week of Major League Baseball, the coming months are fraught with sporting events which lure millions of gamblers to place their bets.

5 Mar 2012

Naltrexone for problem gamblers

According to new practice guidelines Australian doctors treating gambling addicts now can consider prescribing an anti-heroin drug, naltrexone, to help problem gamblers control their impulses. Australia has one of the world’s highest rates of problem gamblers, with about 2.1 per cent of Australians experiencing some form of gambling problem.

22 Nov 2011

Impulsive men have lower levels of GABA in dorsolateral prefrontal cortex

Impulsive individuals tend to display aggressive behavior and have challenges ranging from drug and alcohol abuse, to problem gambling and difficult relationships. They are less able to adapt to different social situations. Impulsivity is also a common feature of psychiatric disorders.

4 Nov 2011

Money now preferred to cocaine later

When a research team asked cocaine addicts to choose, hypothetically, between money now or cocaine of greater value later, "preference was almost exclusively for the money now," said Warren K., Bickel, professor in the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute, director of the Advanced Recovery Research Center, and professor of psychology in the College of Science at Virginia Tech.

12 Aug 2011

Impulsivity linked to superstitions in pathological gamblers

Research led by the University of Cambridge has found a link between impulsivity and flawed reasoning (such as believing in superstitious rituals and luck) in problem gamblers.

29 Jun 2011

Study finds gambling more common among U.S. adults than alcohol dependence

After age 21, problem gambling is considerably more common among U.S. adults than alcohol dependence, even though alcohol dependence has received much more attention, according to researchers at the University at Buffalo's Research Institute on Addictions.

25 Mar 2011

Classifying gambling subtypes does not predict treatment outcomes

Approximately two million adults in the United States meet criteria for pathological gambling, and another four to six million are considered problem gamblers, according to the National Council on Problem Gambling. A study by researchers at Wayne State University reveals that gambling addiction treatment is not one-size-fits-all, but it is difficult to predict which style of treatment is best for the various forms of gambling addiction.

16 Mar 2011

Pennsylvanians to observe Problem Gambling Awareness Week

The state departments of Health, Revenue and Agriculture – along with the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board – are working together to highlight "Problem Gambling Awareness Week," March 6-12, to ensure that Pennsylvanians with gambling addiction problems know that help is available.

5 Mar 2011

Personalized feedback can serve as effective tool for people with addictive behaviors

As mental health care costs and problem gambling rates continue to rise, University of Missouri researchers are developing a personalized feedback tool that could serve as an effective and inexpensive way for people with addictive behavior-related problems to get the help they need.

7 Feb 2011

OSDUHS Mental Health and Well-Being Report reveals important trends in overall health of students

An ongoing survey of Ontario students in Grades 7 to 12 conducted for the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health shows that the number of students who rate their health as poor has significantly increased over the past two decades. The 2009 Ontario Student Drug Use and Health Survey Mental Health and Well-Being Report released today reveals important trends in mental health, physical health, and risk behaviours among Ontario students.

13 Jul 2010