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Two-thirds
of the American adult population has gambled at least one time
(Ladouceur, Boisvert, and Dumont). However, it is when those occasional
actions progress into habitual behaviors that an issue arises, and
according to research, habits can generate neurological pathways that
make habit-breaking a difficult matter (Wein).
For pathological gamblers, or gambling addicts, these behaviors surface
during teenage years, as most are introduced to act of gambling before
age 16 and by the age of 19 have tried it themselves. Though, multiple
studies have been committed to analyzing and treating pathological
gambling in adults, rather than waiting until the problem becomes too
substantial, the same devotion should given to children who are at
at-risk. Thus, via Laval University in Québec, Ladouceur, Boisvert, and
Dumont seek to eradicate the disparity and find treatment for adolescent
pathological gamblers in an effort to alter their behavior before
entering into adulthood. Through methods involving “cognitive
restructuring, problem-solving, social skills training, and relapse
prevention,” these researchers evaluated the efficacy of their program
by measuring perception of control in the subjects and actual severity
of their respective gambling problems (Ladouceur, Boisvert, and Dumont).
To
begin with, previous research has merely provided insight on the
gradually increasing issue of gambling in adolescents, but has not
excavated beyond the surface to create any treatment to improve the
popular trend. In 1980, the American Psychiatric Association formally
acknowledged pathological gambling as a type of disorder, and with the
increase in the legalization of various forms of gambling, more people
are becoming susceptible to the pathological gambling. Furthermore, the
first experiment conducted to study the appearance of pathological
gambling in adolescents was executed by Lesieur and Klein. Of the 892
juniors and seniors examined in four New Jersey high schools, 96% had
gambled at least once, 86% had gambled in the year prior to the study,
and 5.6% were pathological gamblers. Subsequent studies have only
reaffirmed that gambling is becoming a more prevalent issue. However,
what is most detrimental about gambling is that the participants
maintain this prognosis that causes them to denounce that gambling is a
game of chance as opposed to skill. As several studies have found, such
extremes of thinking can lead to “disturbed family relationships,
disruption of school or work activities, and performing illegal acts to
obtain money or to pay gambling debts” (Ladouceur, Boisvert, and
Dumont).
Thenceforth,
to test the efficacy of their program, the researchers devised an
experiment that consisted of 4 male subjects and the administered
treatment. Amongst the subjects there was commonality of age, ranging
from 17-19, the fact that they all played video poker along with other
gambling forms, had incurred debts, and had no previous therapy for
their gambling habits. Initiating the study, the participants were to
record a self-monitored perception of the control and severity of their
gambling on a scale of 0-10 (0= no control) for varied intervals of
time: subject 1 for 1 week, subjects 2 and 3 for 2 weeks, and subject 4
for 3 weeks. In addition, they tape recorded the patients’ behaviors
during a simulated video poker session, especially capturing the
verbalizations. Then they proceeded with treatment that involved meeting
with a therapist for at least 1 hour/week until they displayed a high
level of self-control for two consecutive weeks (Ladouceur, Boisvert,
and Dumont).
Moreover,
the treatment was comprised of five aspects: information about
gambling, cognitive interventions, problem-solving training, relapse
prevention, and social skills training. The information stage of the
treatment provided a concrete definition for both social and
pathological gambling and the discernment to distinguish between games
of chance and skill and legal and illegal games. The cognitive
intervention portion of the treatment utilized the recordings to force
the patients to identify statements where they confuse chance with
skill, and then they were to correct them. As for problem solving, the
patients were to define the problem, advantages and disadvantages of
their behaviors, and discuss alternative solutions and ways to implement
them. Finally, the social skills training and relapse prevention entail
helping the patients to develop communication skills and to be aware of
high-risk situations respectively to prevent reverting back to the same
bad habits (Ladouceur, Boisvert, and Dumont).
Additionally,
the participants were monitored for a week at 1, 3 and 6-month
intervals after treatment had ended. The results from experimentation
showed that there was an improvement in the subjects 1 and 2’s
perception of control over the issue. Ultimately, all were able to
refrain from their former gambling habits and recognize misleading
statements regarding chance and skill. Unfortunately, one of the
subjects relapsed after 1 month post-treatment, but was revamped, and
after the 3 and 6-month period everyone was abstinent. Overall,
pathological gambling takes about 10 years to fully develop, and the
more that the person engaging in such activity feels that it is a game
of skill, the more detrimental the behaviors can become. These effects
can be prevented if caught early because treatment for adolescents is
shorter than the average chronic adult gambler (Ladouceur, Boisvert, and
Dumont). Nevertheless, the results of this experiment have rendered new
possible avenues for treatment using the components and demonstrate
that bad habits can be undone.
Works Cited-
Ladouceur, Robert, Jean-Marie Boisvert, and Jilda Dumont. "Cognitive-Behavioral
Treatment for Adolescent Pathological Gamblers." Behavior Modification 18 (1994): 1-14. Print.
Wein, Harrison, ed. "Breaking Bad Habits Why It’s So Hard to Change." News In
Health (Jan. 2012). News in Health. National Institute of Health, Jan. 2012.
Web. Mar. 2012. <http://newsinhealth.nih.gov/issue/jan2012/feature1>.
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