Skip to main content
MJH Life Sciences
  • Login
  • Register
  • Login
  • Register
Home
  • Topics
  • CME
  • Special Reports
  • Slideshows
  • Quizzes
  • Blogs
  • Contribute
  • Archives
  • Job Board
MJH Life Sciences

SUBSCRIBE: eNewsletter

Psychiatric Comorbidity Associated With Pathological Gambling

  • Donald W. Black, MD
  • Martha Shaw
October 1, 2008
Volume: 
25
Issue: 
12
  • Gambling, Addiction, Antisocial Personality Disorder, Comorbidity In Psychiatry, Dysthymia, Gambling, Impulse Control Disorders, Major Depressive Disorder, Mania, Mood Disorders

Gambling has become a major recreational activity in the United States. Formerly confined to a few states such as Nevada and New Jersey, legal gambling opportunities have exploded across the nation in the past 2 decades. Some form of legalized gambling now exists in all but 2 states: 37 have lotteries, and 27 have casino gambling. Recent estimates indicate that 70% to 90% of North Americans have engaged in some form of gambling.1 Between 1974 and 1997, gambling expenditures more than doubled as a percentage of personal income.

Although disordered gambling has been recognized for centuries, criteria for pathological gambling (PG) were first specified in 1980 in DSM-III. Although categorized as an impulse control disorder (ICD), the current criteria are patterned after those used for substance dependencies and emphasize the features of tolerance and withdrawal, both of which have been described in persons with PG and in those with substance dependence.2 Ten specific maladaptive behaviors are enumerated, and 5 or more are required for the diagnosis.

EPIDEMIOLOGY OF PG

Although most persons gamble responsibly, approximately 5.5% of those in the general population are problematic gamblers.3 PG—the most severe form of problematic gambling—affects 1% to 2% of the adult general population. These figures suggest that more than 2 million Americans suffer from PG; roughly twice that many have gambling-related difficulties but do not meet DSM-IV criteria.4,5 There is evidence that the prevalence of PG is increasing along with the ever-expanding availability of gambling venues.6-8

One-quarter to one-third of all persons with PG are women, but the gap is narrowing.9 (See the case vignette.) Women tend to begin gambling later in life, often in their early 30s, compared with men who start in their late teens or early 20s. Women tend to have a more rapid progression to PG.10,11

Special populations at risk for PG include adults with mental health or substance use disorders, persons who have been incarcerated, African Americans, and persons of lower socioeconomic status.12 However, the typical profile of a treatment-seeking gambler is one who is white, middle-aged, married, and employed, with a relatively low level of education.

Research has not empirically validated proposed subtypes, but the most widely discussed scheme is the distinction between “escape-seekers” and “sensation-seekers.”12,13 Escape-seekers are often older persons who gamble out of boredom or depression or to fill time, and they may choose passive forms of gambling, such as slot machines, lotteries, and scratch tickets. Sensation-seekers tend to be younger and prefer card games or table games, sports betting, or other gambling that involves some elements of skill and suspense.

PUBLIC HEALTH CONSEQUENCES OF PG

PG is increasingly being recognized as a major public health problem. The greater attention focused on PG was spurred in part by a commission formed by President Clinton that documented its negative impact on individuals and society.4 PG is estimated to cost society approximately $5 billion per year and an additional $40 billion in lifetime costs for reduced productivity, social services, and creditor losses.4 The disorder impairs quality of life,14 and is associated with comorbid psychiatric disorders, psychosocial impairment, and suicide.15,16 Family-related problems include financial distress, child and spousal abuse, and separation and divorce.17

PSYCHIATRIC COMORBIDITY

Psychiatric comorbidity is the rule, not the exception, for persons with PG. Clinicians who assess and treat these individuals benefit from understanding the scope and direction of these associations. In addition to evaluating the person’s gambling behavior and its considerable impact on their lives, clinicians need to thoroughly assess current and lifetime psychiatric comorbidity. The following case vignette illustrates how PG and depression can intertwine.18

Case Vignette

Mary, a 42-year-old accountant, had gambled recreationally for years. She had a history of depressive disorder and had brief contacts with a mental health center because of depression and marital discord. At age 38, she became hooked on casino slot machines. Her interest in gambling gradually escalated and, within a year, Mary was gambling during most business days.

To acquire funds to fuel her gambling, she created a fake company to which she transferred more than $300,000 from her accounting firm. The embezzlement was eventually detected and Mary was arrested. She became severely depressed and suicidal in the wake of the arrest and public humiliation and attempted a drug overdose. After a brief hospital stay, Mary entered counseling and was treated with paroxetine. In a plea bargain, she agreed to perform 400 hours of community service.

ASSESSING PSYCHIATRIC COMORBIDITY

The psychiatric history should be carefully explored because many persons with PG will meet criteria for comorbid psychiatric disorders (eg, alcohol dependence, major depression, anxiety disorder, personality disorder, or another disorder of impulse control). The presence of comorbid disorders may also suggest particular medication treatment strategies or psychotherapeutic approaches. For example, the depressed person who is a pathological gambler will benefit from antidepressant medication and cognitive-behavioral therapy. This dual approach may reduce the gambling behavior—particularly when the behavior had been prompted by the patient’s need to escape.

Inquire about past psychiatric treatment, including medications used, hospitalizations, and psychotherapy. Bipolar disorder should be ruled out as the cause of the disorder because some persons with PG may gamble excessively when manic. Typically, the patient’s unrestrained spending corresponds to episodes of mania that are accompanied by euphoric mood; grandiosity; unrealistic plans; and often a giddy, overly bright affect.

The pattern of gambling seen in the person with PG lacks the periodicity seen with bipolar patients, and points to an ongoing preoccupation.

The patient’s history of physical illness, surgeries, drug allergies, and medical treatment can help rule out medical causes that may be causing symptoms (eg, mass lesions) or may identify conditions that may contraindicate the use of certain medications prescribed to treat the disorder.

RESEARCH FINDINGS ON COMORBIDITY

Most comorbidity research in PG has been hampered by biased ascertainment, small samples, and unsystematic assessments. Yet both community- and clinic-based studies suggest that substance use disorders, mood and anxiety disorders, and personality disorders are highly prevalent in persons with PG.18,19

Substance use disorders

Substance misuse has a clear relationship with PG. The National Opinion Research Center study found that the rate of alcohol or drug abuse was nearly 7 times higher in persons with PG than in nongamblers or in recreational gamblers.4

Surveys from specific geographical areas support these findings: rates of alcohol and dependence were at least 4 times higher among persons identified as having a gambling disorder than among those without a gambling disorder.9,20-22 In a nationally representative sample, almost three-quarters (73.2%) of persons with PG had an alcohol use disorder as well.23 There is some evidence that PG predicts the subsequent onset of substance misuse.24

Gerstein and colleagues4 found that 8.1% of persons with PG and 16.8% of persons with problem gambling (ie, those who met 3 or 4 DSM-IV criteria for PG), reported illicit drug use in the past year. These figures compared with 4.2% in recreational gamblers and 2% in nongamblers. Bland and coworkers21 also found that the prevalence of illegal drug abuse and dependence among individuals with PG was about 4 times higher than among nongamblers. In a 1998 general population study, 15.5% of persons with PG evidenced illegal drug use disorders, compared with 7.8% of recreational gamblers and 3.5% of nongamblers.9 In a national survey, the lifetime prevalence rate for any drug use disorder was 38.1% among PG respondents.23 Conversely, from 9% to 16% of substance abusers are probable pathological gamblers.25,26

A number of differences emerge from looking at treatment-seeking persons with a history of substance misuse and at pathological gamblers who have no history of substance misuse. Those with such a history report greater psychiatric distress, more frequent gambling, and more years of disordered gambling; they were also more likely to be receiving mental health care treatment.27

Pages

  • 1
  • 2
  • next ›
  • last »
References: 

References
1. Raylu N, Oei TP. Pathological gambling: a comprehensive review. Clin Psychol Rev. 2002;22:1009-1061.
2. American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association; 2000.
3. Shaffer HJ, Hall MN, Vander Bilt J. Estimating the prevalence of disordered gambling behavior in the United States and Canada: a research synthesis. Am J Public Health. 1999;89:1369-1376.
4. Gerstein DR, Volberg RA, Toce MT, et al. Gambling Impact and Behavior Study: Report to the National Gambling Impact Study Commission. Chicago: National Opinion Research Center; 1999. http://cloud9.norc.uchicago.edu/dlib/ngis.htm. Accessed September 22, 2008.
5. Cunningham-Williams RM, Cottler LB. The epidemiology of pathological gambling. Semin Clin Neuropsychiatry. 2001;6:155-166.
6. Volberg RA, Steadman HJ. Problem Gambling in Iowa. Delmar, NY: Policy Research Associates, Inc; 1989.
7. Volberg RA. Gambling and Problem Gambling in Iowa—A Replication Survey. Report to the Iowa Department of Human Services. Roaring Spring, PA: Gemini Research; July 28, 1995.
8. Ladouceur R, Jacques C, Ferland F, Giroux I. Prevalence of problem gambling: a replication study 7 years later. Can J Psychiatry. 1999;44:802-804.
9. Cunningham-Williams RM, Cottler LB, Compton WM 3rd, Spitznagel EL. Taking chances: problem gamblers and mental health disorders—results from the St Louis Epidemiologic Catchment Area Study. Am J Public Health. 1998;88:1093-1096.
10. Grant JE, Kim SW. Gender differences in pathological gamblers seeking medical treatment. Compr Psychiatry. 2002;43:56-62.
11. Tavares H, Zilberman ML, Beites FJ, Gentil V. Gender differences in gambling progression. J Gambl Stud. 2001;17:151-159.
12. Potenza MN, Kosten TR, Rounsaville BJ. Pathological gambling. JAMA. 2001;286:141-144.
13. Petry NM. A comparison of treatment-seeking pathological gamblers based on preferred gambling activity. Addiction. 2003;98:645-655.
14. Black DW, Moyer T, Schlosser S. Quality of life and family history in pathological gambling. J Nerv Ment Dis. 2003;191:124-126.
15. Black DW, Moyer T. Clinical features and psychiatric comorbidity of subjects with pathological gambling behavior. Psychiatr Serv. 1998;49:1434-1439.
16. Petry NM, Kiluk BD. Suicidal ideation and suicide attempts in treatment-seeking pathological gamblers. J Nerv Ment Dis. 2002;190:462-469.
17. Shaw MC, Forbush KT, Schlinder J, et al. The effect of pathological gambling on families, marriages, and children. CNS Spectr. 2007;12:615-622.
18. Argo T, Black DW. The characteristics of pathological gambling. In: Grant J, Potenza M, eds. Understanding and Treating Pathological Gambling. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Publishing Inc; 2004:39-53.
19. Crockford DN, el-Guebaly N. Psychiatric comorbidity in pathological gambling: a critical review. Can J Psychiatry. 1998;43:43-50.
20. Grant JE, Kim SW. Comorbidity of impulse control disorders in pathological gamblers. Acta Psychiatr Scand. 2003;108:203-207.
21. Bland RC, Newman SC, Orn H, Stebelsky G. Epidemiology of pathological gambling in Edmonton. Can J Psychiatry. 1993;38:108-112.
22. Smart RG, Ferris J. Alcohol, drugs and gambling in the Ontario adult population, 1994. Can J Psychiatry. 1996;41:36-45.
23. Petry NM, Stinson FS, Grant BF. Comorbidity of DSM-IV pathological gambling and other psychiatric disorders: results from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions. J Clin Psychiatry. 2005;66:564-574.
24. Kessler RC, Hwang I, LaBrie R, et al. DSM-IV pathological gambling in the National Comorbid-ity Survey Replication. Psychological Medicine. Cambridge University Press; 2008. doi:10.1017/ S0033291708002900.
25. Lesieur HR, Blume SB, Zoppa RM. Alcoholism, drug abuse and gambling. Alcohol Clin Exp Res. 1986;10:33-38.
26. Spunt B, Lesieur H, Hunt D, Cahill L. Gambling among methadone patients. Int J Addict. 1995;30: 929-962.
27. Ladd GT, Petry NM. A comparison of pathological gamblers with and without substance abuse treatment histories. Exp Clin Psychopharmacol. 2003;11: 202-209.
28. Stinchfield R, Winters KC. Outcome of Minnesota’s gambling treatment programs. J Gambl Stud. 2001;17:217-245.
29. Ibáñez A, Blanco C, Donahue E, et al. Psychiatric comorbidity in pathological gamblers seeking treatment. Am J Psychiatry. 2001;158:1733-1735.
30. Specker SM, Carlson GA, Edmonson KM, et al. Psychopathology in pathological gamblers seeking treatment. J Gambl Stud. 1996;12:67-81.
31. Linden RD, Pope HD Jr, Jonas JM. Pathological gambling and major affective disorder: preliminary findings. J Clin Psychiatry. 1986;47:201-203.
32. Black DW, Goldstein RB, Noyes R Jr, Blum N. Compulsive behaviors and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD): lack of a relationship between OCD, eating disorders, and gambling. Compr Psychiatry. 1994;35: 145-148.
33. Bienvenu OJ, Samuels JF, Riddle MA, et al. The relationship of obsessive-compulsive disorder to possible spectrum disorders: results from a family study. Biol Psychiatry. 2000;48:287-293.
34. Goldstein L, Manowitz P, Nora R, et al. Differential EEG activation and pathological gambling. Biol Psychiatry. 1985;20:1232-1234.
35. Carlton PL, Manowitz P. Behavioral restraint and symptoms of attention-deficit disorder in alcoholics and pathological gamblers. Neuropsychobiology. 1992;25:44-48.
36. Rugle L, Melamed L. Neuropsychological assessment of attention problems in pathological gamblers. J Nerv Ment Dis. 1993;181:107-112.
37. Specker SM, Carlson GA, Christenson GA, Marcotte M. Impulse control disorders and attention deficit disorder in pathological gamblers. Ann Clin Psychiatry. 1995;7:175-179.
38. Castellani B, Rugle L. A comparison of pathological gamblers to alcoholics and cocaine misusers on impulsivity, sensation seeking, and craving. Int J Addict. 1995;30:275-289.
39. DeCaria CM, Hollander E, Grossman R, et al. Diagnosis, neurobiology, and treatment of pathological gambling. J Clin Psychiatry. 1996;57(suppl 8):80-84.
40. Grant JE, Kim SW. Demographic and clinical features of 131 adult pathological gamblers. J Clin Psychiatry. 2001;62:957-962.
41. Black DW, Kehrberg LL, Flumerfelt DL, Schlosser SS. Characteristics of 36 subjects reporting compulsive sexual behavior. Am J Psychiatry. 1997;154: 243-249.
42. McElroy SL, Keck PE Jr, Pope HG Jr, et al. Compulsive buying: a report of 20 cases. J Clin Psychiatry. 1994;55:242-248.
43. Schlosser S, Black DW, Repertinger S, Freet D. Compulsive buying: demography, phenomenology, and comorbidity in 46 subjects. Gen Hosp Psychiatry. 1994;16:205-212.
44. Bagby RM, Vachon DD, Bulmash E, Quilty LC. Personality disorders and pathological gambling: a review and re-examination of prevalence rates. J Personal Disord. 2008;22:191-207.
45. Blaszczynski A, Nower L. A pathways model of problem and pathological gambling. Addiction. 2002;97:487-499.
46. Fernández-Montalvo J, Echeburúa E. Pathological gambling and personality disorders: an exploratory study with the IPDE. J Personal Disord. 2004;18:500-505.
47. Slutske WS, Eisen S, XianH, et al. A twin study of the association between pathological gambling and antisocial personality disorder. J Abnorm Psychol. 2001;110:297-308.
48. Pietrzak RH, Petry NM. Antisocial personality disorder is associated with increased severity of gambling, medical, drug and psychiatric problems among treatment-seeking pathological gamblers. Addiction. 2005;100:1183-1193.
49. Nordin C, Nylander PO. Temperament and character in pathological gambling. J Gambl Stud. 2007; 23:113-120.
50. Cloninger CR, Przybeck TR, Svrakic DM, Wetzel RD. The Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI): a guide to its development and use. St Louis: Center for Psychobiology of Personality, Washington University; 1994.
51. Forbush KT, Shaw M, Graeber MA, et al. Neuro-psychological characteristics and personality traits in pathological gambling. CNS Spectr. 2008;13:306-315.

Related Articles

  • The Opioid Epidemic Settlements: Who Will Benefit?
  • Top Studies in Addiction: Research Recap
  • More Reasons for Concern About Adolescent Cannabis Use
  • Gaming Addiction in ICD-11: Issues and Implications
  • CBD and Pain: Issues Psychiatrists Should Consider

Resource Topics rightRail

  • Resource Topics
  • Partner Content
  • Video - Schizophrenia
  • Schizophrenia
  • Bipolar Disorder
  • Depression
  • Substance Use Disorder
Subtle Signs: Obstructive Sleep Apnea

Current Issue

Psychiatric Times Vol 36, Issue 11
Nov 18, 2019 Vol 36 No 11
Digital Edition
Subscribe
Connect with Us
  • Column 1
    • Home
    • About Us
    • Contact Us
  • Column 2
    • Editorial Info
    • Editorial Board
  • Column 3
    • Advertising Info
    • Reprints
    • Advertising Terms
  • Column 4
    • Terms of Use
    • Privacy Policy
Modern Medicine Network
© UBM 2019, All rights reserved.
Reproduction in whole or in part is prohibited.

We've noticed that you're using an ad blocker

Our content is brought to you free of charge because of the support of our advertisers. To continue enjoying our content, please turn off your ad blocker.

It's off now Dismiss How do I disable my ad blocker?
❌

How to disable your ad blocker for our site:

Adblock / Adblock Plus
  • Click on the AdBlock / AdBlock Plus icon on the top right of your browser.
  • Click “Don’t run on pages on this domain.” OR “Enabled on this site.”
  • Close this help box and click "It's off now".
Firefox Tracking Prevention
  • If you are Private Browsing in Firefox, "Tracking Protection" may casue the adblock notice to show. It can be temporarily disabled by clicking the "shield" icon in the address bar.
  • Close this help box and click "It's off now".
Ghostery
  • Click the Ghostery icon on your browser.
  • In Ghostery versions < 6.0 click “Whitelist site.” in version 6.0 click “Trust site.”
  • Close this help box and click "It's off now".
uBlock / uBlock Origin
  • Click the uBlock / uBlock Origin icon on your browser.
  • Click the “power” button in the menu that appears to whitelist the current website
  • Close this help box and click "It's off now".