Pathological Versus Professional Gamblers: Differences in Personality, Beliefs and Comorbidity

Abstract

The studying of professional gamblers has very rarely been done, which is why there is a need for this research. Differences in personalities, beliefs, impulsivity, depression, and gambling severity between professional and pathological gamblers are addressed. Self-reports given by the participants were challenged by the availability of a gambling environment. One hundred participants, predominantly male and middle-aged (M=30 years old) were tested. All four types of gamblers (non-problem, at-risk, pathological and professional) were given the Canadian Problem Gambling Index (CPGI; Ferris & Wynne, 2001), to determine gambling severity, the Belief in Good Luck scale (BIGL: Darke & Freedman, 1997), to determine belief in luck, the Gambling Attitude Scale (GAS; Kassinove, 1998), to determine gambling attitudes, the Impulsive Non-Conformity subscale (lmpNon; Mason & Claridge, 2006), to determine impulsivity, the Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire (16PF; Cattell, Eber, & Tatsuoka, 1970), to determine personality traits, and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI; Beck, Ward, Mendelson, Mock, & Erbaugh, 1961) to determine depression severity. The results show a clear distinction between professional gamblers and pathological gamblers that will allow for a fundamental change in treatment efficacy programs and an improvement on the screening tools for better predictive ability.