Abstract
Background and Objectives: Gambling disorder (GD) is a recurrent and persistent problematic gambling behavior that impairs multiple areas of an individual's life. GD can persist through two modes: online or offline. This study aims to compare sociodemographic, clinical, and psychological characteristics between treatment-seeking online and offline gamblers and analyze the effect of the gambling mode (online or offline) on anxiety, depression, impulsivity, and debts.Methods: Seventy-nine treatment-seeking gamblers (96.2% males), who were simultaneously receiving treatment at a specialized Pathological Gambling and Behavioral Addictions Unit, participated in this study. The sample was divided into two subsamples: online (n = 29, 100% males) and offline (n = 50, 94% males); the characteristics of these two groups were compared and analyzed using Chi-Square test (χ2), t-Test or Mann–Whitney U-test (p < 0.05). Multiple linear regression analyses were performed to determine the effects of gambling mode on significant variables (lack of premeditation and debts).Results: The online sample with a mean age of 29.4 years mainly chose to engage in sports betting (45%, p < 0.05) and showed a higher lack of premeditation levels (25.8 points, p < 0.05) than the offline sample. In addition, the online sample was younger with respect to their onset to gambling (20.2 years, p < 0.05) and the beginning of their gambling problems (25 years, p < 0.05) compared to the offline sample. Online gambling increased the levels of lack of premeditation by an average of 5.43 points compared to offline gambling (p < 0.05). Accumulated debts of the online sample were lower (€11,000) than those of the offline sample (€12,000). However, the interaction between age and gambling mode revealed that online gamblers increased their debt amounts with age at an average increase of €2,726.33 per year compared to offline gamblers (p < 0.05). No significant influence of gambling mode was found on GD severity, anxiety, and depression levels.Conclusions: Gambling mode has a significant relationship with lack of premeditation—a component of impulsivity—and accumulation of debts in treatment-seeking people with GD; however, no relationship was found with the rest of the variables analyzed. Future research with larger samples is needed to confirm these findings.
Highlights
Gambling disorder (GD) has been defined as a recurrent and persistent gambling behavior that deteriorates multiple areas of an individual’s life and generates significant emotional distress [1]
Most gambling advertisements on television are concerned with online gambling [10], which has a significant impact on the probability of developing GD [8]
The demographics showed that online sample had higher levels of unmarried (52%), educated (41%, secondary; 31%, university) and employed (62%) individuals than the offline gambling sample; the offline sample had a higher level of family gambling history (22%), than the online sample
Summary
Gambling disorder (GD) has been defined as a recurrent and persistent gambling behavior that deteriorates multiple areas of an individual’s life and generates significant emotional distress [1]. Such maladaptive gambling behavior can occur in two modes: online (i.e., on the Internet) and offline [2]. In Spain, online sports betting has grown rapidly in recent years, contributing largely to the gambling industry’s profits. Since 2012, more than half of the online gamblers have indulged in sports betting (52.2%) [12]; it has become a frequent gambling activity among the younger population [13]. This study aims to compare sociodemographic, clinical, and psychological characteristics between treatmentseeking online and offline gamblers and analyze the effect of the gambling mode (online or offline) on anxiety, depression, impulsivity, and debts
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