Prevalence and correlates of gambling disorder in Spain: findings from a national survey

Abstract

ABSTRACT The aim of the study was to estimate the prevalence of gambling disorder (GD) in a sample of Spanish adults and analyze the sociodemographic variables, addictive behaviors (i.e. gambling-related characteristics, substance use, and problematic internet use), and lifetime clinical diagnoses related to the severity of GD. Participants from the 2020 Spanish Survey on Alcohol and Drugs (N = 17,105; 50.52% men; M age = 38.38 ± 13.07) were included. Individuals were classified as gamblers with GD when scored ≥4 points in the DSM-5 criteria. ANOVA and Pearson correlations were carried out to analyze differences in GD scores according to the variables noted above. The results showed that the rate of GD was 0.63% in the total sample and 1.05% in past-year gamblers. Characteristics which showed significantly higher GD scores were as follows: being a man, younger age, unmarried, greater gambling involvement both online and offline, gambling both online and offline, betting on both strategic and non-strategic games or on exclusively strategic games, lower gambling risk perception, greater substance use, higher problematic alcohol, cannabis, or internet use, or a lifetime diagnosis of anxiety, insomnia, or substance use disorder (all p-values ≤.001). The findings may guide future legal regulation policies and promote actions to prevent gambling-related problems.