Skip to main content
Key Specialties
Cardiology Diabetology Endocrinology Gastroenterology Geriatrics and Gerontology Gynecology and Obstetrics Hematology Infectious Disease Internal Medicine Nephrology Neurology Oncology Pediatrics Respiratory Medicine Rheumatology Surgery
Congress Coverage
2024 ACC Congress 2023 ESMO Congress 2023 EASD Congress 2023 ERS Congress 2023 ESC Congress
Clinical Collections
Advances in Alzheimer’s

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on medication adherence

LIVE: Thursday 27th June 2024, 18:00-19:30 (CEST)
Join our expert panel to discover why you need to understand the drivers of non-adherence in your patients, and how you can optimize medication adherence in your clinics to drastically improve patient outcomes.
ADVANCED SEARCH
Log in
Top
International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction
Published in: International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction 3/2013

01-06-2013

All Mixed Up Together: Women’s Experiences of Problem Gambling, Comorbidity and Co-occurring Complex Needs

Authors: Louise Holdsworth, Elaine Nuske, Helen Breen

Published in: International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction | Issue 3/2013

Login to get access

Abstract

While there has been minimal recent gendered gambling research conducted in Australia and elsewhere, there is some evidence to suggest that gender differences do exist in various ways including gambling motivations such as gambling used as a coping strategy to alleviate or ‘escape’ from stress and anxiety, help-seeking and prevalence of comorbidity. In this Australian qualitative study we explored the experiences and concerns of 20 women electronic gaming machine players through in-depth interviews. Ten women self-identified as recreational gamblers and 10 had received help for their gambling. We present findings as they relate to specific issues of comorbidity and complex needs. For the 10 women who had received gambling help the range of comorbid issues was extensive. Greater understandings of the range of complex issues often involved for women who gamble problematically will assist in the identification of moving from recreational to problem gambling and in the implementation of effective treatment strategies.
Literature
Antonetti, E., & Horn, M. (2001). Gambling the home away: A study of the impact of gambling on homelessness. Research report commissioned by Hanover Welfare Services. Melbourne: Hanover Welfare Services.
Battersby, M., & Tolchard, B. (1996). The effect of treatment of pathological gamblers referred to a behavioural psychotherapy unit: II—Outcome of three kinds of behavioural intervention. In B. Tolchard (Ed.), Towards 2000: The future of gambling: Proceedings of the 7th annual conference of the National Association for Gambling Studies (pp. 219–227). Adelaide, South Australia.
Bicego, B. (2002). When a woman’s best friend is doing her harm, Paper presented at Expanding Our Horizons Conference, 2002, Sydney, NSW.
Blanco, C., Hasin, D., Petry, N., Stinso, S., & Grant, B. (2006). Sex differences in subclinical and DSM-IV pathological gambling: results from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions. Psychological Medicine, 36, 943–953.PubMedCrossRef
Blaszczynski, A., & Nower, L. (2002). A pathways model of problem and pathological gambling. Addiction, 97, 487–499.PubMedCrossRef
Boughton, R., & Falenchuk, O. (2007). Vulnerability and comorbidity factors of female problem gambling. Journal of Gambling Studies, 23, 323–334.PubMedCrossRef
Charmaz, K. (2005). Grounded theory in the 21st century: Applications for advancing social justice studies. In N. Denzin & Y. Lincoln (Eds.), The Sage handbook of qualitative research (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks: Sage.
Cowling, S. (1998). Submission from the Women’s Electoral Lobby, Victoria, Productivity Commission into Australia’s gambling industries. Canberra: Australian Federal Government.
Crisp, B., Thomas, S., Jackson, A., Smith, S., Borrell, J., Ho, W., et al. (2004). Not the same: a comparison of female and male clients seeking treatment from problem gambling counselling services. Journal of Gambling Studies, 20(3), 283–299.PubMedCrossRef
Cultural Perspectives. (2005). Research into health promotion and best practice services for indigenous communities. Melbourne: Office for Gaming and Racing, Victorian Government Department of Justice.
Cunningham-Williams, R. M., Cottler, L. B., Compton, W. M., Spitznagel, E. L., & Ben-Abdallah, A. (2000). Problem gambling and co-morbid psychiatric and substance use disorders among drug users recruited from treatment and community settings. Journal of Gambling Studies, 16, 347–376.PubMedCrossRef
Delfabbro, P. (2009). Australian gambling review, Fourth Edition (1992–2008). Adelaide: Independent Gambling Authority.
Desai, R. A., & Potenza, M. N. (2008). Gender differences in the association between gambling problems and psychiatric disorders. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 43(3), 173–183.PubMedCrossRef
Dowling, N. (2009). Client characteristics associated with treatment attrition and outcome in female pathological gambling. Addiction Research and Theory, 16(6), 618–632.
Dowling, N., Smith, D., & Thomas, T. (2006). Treatment of female pathological gambling: efficacy of a cognitive-behavioural approach. Journal of Gambling Studies, 22, 355–372.PubMedCrossRef
Dowling, N., Smith, D., & Thomas, T. (2007a). A comparison of individual and group cognitive-behavioral treatment for female pathological gambling. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 45(9), 2192–2202.PubMedCrossRef
Dowling, N., Smith, D., & Thomas, T. (2007b). A preliminary investigation of abstinence and controlled gambling as self-selected goals of treatment for female pathological gambling. Journal of Gambling Studies, 23, 335–345.PubMedCrossRef
Dowling, N., Smith, D., & Thomas, T. (2007c). The family functioning of female pathological gamblers. International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction, 7(1), 29–44.CrossRef
Ferris, J., & Wynne, H. (2001). The Canadian Problem Gambling Index: Final Report [CPGI]. Ottawa: Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse.
Flatau, P., Conroy, E., Clear, A., & Burns, L. (2010). The integration of homelessness, mental health and drug and alcohol services in Australia, Positioning Paper, Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI), August 2010, Western Australia Research Centre and UNSW-UWS Research Centre.
Getty, H. A., Watson, J., & Frisch, G. R. (2000). A comparison of depression and styles of coping in male and female GA members and controls. Journal of Gambling Studies, 16(4), 377–391.PubMedCrossRef
Gordon, A. (2008). Co-morbidity of mental disorders and substance use: A brief guide for the primary care clinician. Report for Commonwealth of Australia, Drug and Alcohol Services South Australia (DASSA), Adelaide: Clinical Services and Research.
Grant, J., & Potenza, M. (2004). Pathological gambling: A clinical guide to treatment. Arlington: American Psychiatric Publishing.
Hodgins, D. C., Currie, S. R., & el-Guebaly, N. (2001). Motivational enhancement and self-help treatments for problem gambling. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 69, 50–57.PubMedCrossRef
Hraba, J., & Lee, G. (1996). Gender, gambling and problem gambling. Journal of Gambling Studies, 12, 83–101.CrossRef
Ibanez, A., Blanco, C., Donahue, E., Lesieur, H. R., Perez de Castro, I., Fernandez-Piqueras, J., et al. (2001). Psychiatric comorbidity in pathological gamblers seeking treatment. The American Journal of Psychiatry, 158, 1733–1735.PubMedCrossRef
Kofoed, L., Morgan, T., Buchkoski, J., & Carr, R. (1997). Dissociative experiences scale and MMPI-2 scores in video poker gamblers, other gamblers, and alcoholic controls. The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 185, 58–60.PubMedCrossRef
LaPlante, D. A., Nelson, S. E., LaBrie, R. A., & Shaffer, H. J. (2006). Men and women playing games: gender and the gambling preferences of Iowa Gambling Treatment Program participants. Journal of Gambling Studies, 22, 65–80.PubMedCrossRef
Layder, D. (1998). Modern social theory: Key debates and new direction. London: UCL Press.
McGowan, V. (2003). Counter-story, resistance and reconciliation in online narratives of women in recovery from problem gambling. International Gambling Studies, 3, 115–131.CrossRef
McMillen, J., Marshall, D., Murphy, L., Lorenzen, S., & Waugh, B. (2004). Help-seeking by problem gamblers, friends and families: A focus on gender and cultural groups. Acton: Gambling and Racing Commission.
Mental Health Council of Australia [MHCA]. (2009). Home truths: Mental health, housing and homelessness in Australia. Canberra: Mental Health Council of Australia.
Mental Health Council of Australia [MHCA]. (2010). The impact of a sustained gender pay gap on the economy. Canberra: Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs, Commonwealth Government.
Merriam, S. (1998). Qualitative research and case study applications in education. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
National Statement on Ethical Research [NSER]. (2007). National Health and Medical Council (NHMRC). Canberra: Commonwealth Government.
Nelson, S. E., LaPlante, D. A., LaBrie, R. A., & Shaffer, H. J. (2006). The proxy effect: gender and gambling problem trajectories of Iowa Gambling Treatment Program participants. Journal of Gambling Studies, 22, 221–240.PubMedCrossRef
Neuman, W. (2006). Social research methods: Qualitative and quantitative approaches. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Petry, N. M., & Steinberg, K. L. (2005). Childhood maltreatment in males and females treatment-seeking pathological gamblers. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 19, 226–229.PubMedCrossRef
Petry, N. M., Stinson, F. S., & Grant, B. F. (2005). Co-morbidity of DSM-IV pathological gambling and other psychiatric disorders: results from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions. The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 66, 564–574.PubMedCrossRef
Pierce, M., Wentzel, J., & Loughnan, T. (1997) Male gamblers/female gamblers—Mapping the differences. Paper presented at the Proceedings of the 8th National Association of Gambling Studies Conference. Melbourne, Victoria,
Productivity Commission. (2010). Gambling: Inquiry Report, No. 50. Canberra, ACT, February: Australian Federal Government.
Puchta, C., & Potter, J. (2004). Qualitative social research. London: Sage.
Pulford, J., Bellringer, M., Abbott, M., Clarke, D., Hodgins, D., & Williams, J. (2009). Reasons for seeking help for a gambling problem: the experiences of gamblers who have sought specialist assistance and the perceptions of those who have not. Journal of Gambling Studies, 25, 19–32.PubMedCrossRef
Scannell, E., Quirk, M., Smith, K., Maddern, R., & Dickerson, M. (2000). Females’ coping styles and control over poker machine gambling. Journal of Gambling Studies, 16(4), 417–432.
Schull, S. (2002). Escape mechanism: Women, caretaking, and compulsive machine gambling. Berkley: University of California, Centre for Working Families, Department of Anthropology.
Shaffer, H., & Korn, D. (2002). Gambling and related mental disorders: a public health analysis. Annual Review of Public Health, 23, 171–212.PubMedCrossRef
Specker, S. M., Carlson, G. A., Edmonson, K. M., Johnson, P. E., & Marcotte, M. (1996). Psychopathology in pathological gamblers seeking treatment. Journal of Gambling Studies, 12, 67–81.CrossRef
Straus, A., & Corbin, J. (1999). Basics of qualitative research (2nd ed.). London: Sage Publications.
Surgey, D. (2000). Playing for time: Exploring the impacts of gambling on women. Melbourne: Department of Human Services.
Thomas, S., & Jackson, A. (2008). Risk and protective factors, depression and co-morbidities in problem gambling. Melbourne, Victoria: Report to beyondblue.
Thomas, S., & Moore, S. (2001). Do women gamble for the same reasons as men? In A. Blaszczynski et al. (Eds.), Sydney: Culture and the gambling phenomenon: Proceedings of the 7th Annual Conference of the National Association for Gambling Studies.
Tolchard, B., & Battersby, M. (1997). The effect of treatment of pathological gamblers referred to a behavioural psychotherapy unit: II—Outcome of three kinds of behavioural intervention. In B. Tolchard (Ed.), Towards 2000: The future of gambling. Proceedings of the 7th conference of the National Association for Gambling Studies (pp. 219–227). Adelaide: National Association for Gambling Studies.
Toneatto, T., Boughton, R., & Borsi, D. (2002). A comparison of male and female pathological gamblers. Ontario: Ministry of Health and Long Term Care.
United States National Centre for Responsible Gaming, and Institute for Research on Gambling Disorders. (2009). Call to action. Washington DC: National Centre for Responsible Gaming.
Victorian Department of Justice. (2009). Problem gambling, community awareness and education strategy. Victorian Department of Justice, March 2009, Melbourne.
Wolcott, H. (1994). Transforming qualitative data: Description, analysis and interpretation. Thousand Oaks: Sage.
Metadata
Title
All Mixed Up Together: Women’s Experiences of Problem Gambling, Comorbidity and Co-occurring Complex Needs
Authors
Louise Holdsworth
Elaine Nuske
Helen Breen
Publication date
01-06-2013
Publisher
Springer-Verlag
Published in
International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction / Issue 3/2013
Print ISSN: 1557-1874
Electronic ISSN: 1557-1882
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11469-012-9415-0

Other articles of this Issue 3/2013

International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction 3/2013 Go to the issue

OriginalPaper

Characteristics of Treatment Seeking Finnish Pathological Gamblers: Baseline Data from a Treatment Study

OriginalPaper

Perception of Problem Severity, Treatment Motivations, Experiences, and Long-term Plans among Pregnant Women in a Detoxification Inpatient Unit

OriginalPaper

All in the Family: Help-Seeking by Significant Others of Problem Gamblers

OriginalPaper

Detection of Problem Gambler Subgroups Using Recursive Partitioning

OriginalPaper

Practice Makes Poorer: Practice Gambling Modes and Their Effects on Real-Play in Simulated Roulette

OriginalPaper

Careless and Random Responding on Clinical and Research Measures in the Addictions: A Concerning Problem and Investigation of their Detection