Abstract
This chapter discusses abstinence control and relapse prevention. Unless controlled gambling is the therapeutic goal, abstinence control is the primary focus in gambling treatment. Developing initial abstinence usually is a threefold process: (1) discovering the triggers or links in the chain leading to gambling, (2) containing the impulse by managing the environmental triggers or building a fence around the impulse, and (3) controlling the impulse by managing the urges, negative emotions, and cognitive expectations that lead to gambling. Finally, the chapter reviews the major aspects of stimulus control or ways for gamblers to manage their environments to reduce risk of gambling: (1) a functional analysis of thinking, feeling, and behaving that leads to gambling, (2) assessing the methods that the gambler used to obtain money to gamble or cover it up, (3) developing methods to restrict access to money through the help of support persons and thus, prevent impulsive gambling, and (4) developing strategies to cope with the physical situations that increase the probability of gambling.
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