The relationship between gambling disorder, stressful life events, gambling-related cognitive distortions, difficulty in emotion regulation, and self-control

Thurm, A., Satel, J., Montag, C., Griffiths, M.D. ORCID: 0000-0001-8880-6524 and Pontes, H.M. ORCID: 0000-0001-8020-7623, 2023. The relationship between gambling disorder, stressful life events, gambling-related cognitive distortions, difficulty in emotion regulation, and self-control. Journal of Gambling Studies, 39, pp. 87-101. ISSN 1050-5350

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Abstract

Gambling Disorder (GD) is a prominent psychiatric disorder affecting individuals worldwide. Research suggests that key risk factors for GD include stressful life events (SLEs) and specific psychological factors, such as gambling-related cognitive distortions. The present study investigated the potential mediating role of specific psychological factors (i.e., gambling-related cognitive distortions, difficulty in emotion regulation, and self-control) in the relationship between SLEs and GD. A cross-sectional study using an online survey was developed to investigate the relationship between SLEs and GD in a mediation model. A total of 516 participants were initially recruited online to the present study, and data from 290 participants were fully included in the statistical analyses conducted. Sociodemographic and gambling-related data were collected in addition to data related to participants’ SLEs, GD, gambling-related cognitive distortions, difficulty in emotion regulation, and self-control. The results of the parallel multiple mediation analysis conducted found that gambling-related cognitive distortions and difficulty in emotion regulation mediated the relationship between SLEs events and GD. However, self-control was not found to mediate this relationship. The findings suggest that individuals who experience SLEs may be more vulnerable to the development of GD through their belief in gambling-related cognitive distortions and experience of difficulty regulating their emotions. Implications regarding potential preventive efforts for GD are discussed.

Item Type:	Journal article
Publication Title:	Journal of Gambling Studies
Creators:	Thurm, A., Satel, J., Montag, C., Griffiths, M.D. and Pontes, H.M.
Publisher:	Springer
Date:	March 2023
Volume:	39
ISSN:	1050-5350
Identifiers:	Number Type 10.1007/s10899-022-10151-5 DOI 1579105 Other
Divisions:	Schools > School of Social Sciences
Record created by:	Jonathan Gallacher
Date Added:	04 Aug 2022 08:40
Last Modified:	07 Mar 2023 16:06
URI:	https://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/46825

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