Deakin University
Browse

File(s) under permanent embargo

Gaming maching addiction : the role of avoidance, accessibility and social support

journal contribution
posted on 2011-12-01, 00:00 authored by Anna Thomas, F Allen, J Phillips, Gery KarantzasGery Karantzas
Commonality in etiology and clinical expression plus high comorbidity between pathological gambling and substance use disorders suggest common underlying motives. It is important to understand common motivators and differentiating factors. An overarching framework of addiction was used to examine predictors of problem gambling in current electronic gaming machine (EGM) gamblers. Path analysis was used to examine the relationships between antecedent factors (stressors, coping habits, social support), gambling motivations (avoidance, accessibility, social) and gambling behavior. Three hundred and forty seven (229 females: M = 29.20 years, SD = 14.93; 118 males: M = 29.64 years, SD = 12.49) people participated. Consistent with stress, coping and addiction theory, situational life stressors and general avoidance coping were positively related to avoidance-motivated gambling. In turn, avoidance-motivated gambling was positively related to EGM gambling frequency and problems. Consistent with exposure theory, life stressors were positively related to accessibility-motivated gambling, and accessibility-motivated gambling was positively related to EGM gambling frequency and gambling problems. These findings are consistent with other addiction research and suggest avoidance-motivated gambling is part of a more generalized pattern of avoidance coping with relative accessibility to EGM gambling explaining its choice as a method of avoidance. Findings also showed social support acted as a direct protective factor in relation to gambling frequency and problems and indirectly via avoidance and accessibility gambling motivations. Finally, life stressors were positively related to socially motivated gambling but this motivation was not related to either social support or gambling behavior suggesting it has little direct influence on gambling problems.

History

Journal

Psychology of addictive behaviors

Volume

25

Issue

4

Pagination

738 - 744

Publisher

American Psychological Association

Location

Washington, D.C.

ISSN

0893-164X

eISSN

1939-1501

Language

eng

Publication classification

C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal

Copyright notice

2011, American Psychological Association.