Prevention of Problem Gambling: Modifying Misconceptions and Increasing Knowledge (original) (raw)
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The Journal of Primary Prevention, 2004
Research on gambling demonstrates that youths are involved in gambling activities. As they take part in these activities, young people develop and maintain irrational thoughts about gambling and become at risk for developing severe gambling problems. In a previous study, a French video was designed specifically to correct misconceptions and increase knowledge about gambling (Ferland, Ladouceur, & Vitaro, 2002). Findings indicated that the video significantly improves subjects' knowledge about gambling and corrects their misconceptions. The present study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of the English version of that video. The sample comprised 506 grade 7 and 8 English speaking students from Canada. The results confirmed the efficacy of the video in increasing knowledge of gambling and correcting misconceptions concerning the outcome of these games. The implications of these results for the prevention of gambling problems are discussed.
Journal of Behavioral Addictions, 2019
Background and aims Gambling education programs typically focus on promoting gambling as a high-risk activity with harmful effects; however, these programs demonstrate limited effects on the prevention of gambling problems. This paper proposes a clear theoretical framework to inform the content and delivery of gambling education initiatives and draws on psychological and pedagogical research to address some of the practical issues associated with its implementation. Methods Literature was reviewed across fields of psychology, public health, and pedagogy to provide key recommendations to improve the outcomes of gambling education. Results Four key recommendations were made for the development of future gambling education programs centering on theoretical approach, specialized content, and delivery. Discussion and conclusions Recommended advancements are as follows: (a) evidence suggests shifting away from messages about gambling harms and instead applying a cognitive-developmental fr...
Gambling Prevention Program Among Children
Journal of Gambling Studies, 2012
Gambling becomes a more frequent activity among children as they have an easy access to the world of the games. In the same time children are at a higher risk for developing problem and/or pathological gambling having erroneous information about how games of chance and games of skill work. The purpose of the study was to compare the influence of specific primary prevention with rational emotive education (REE) on the subjects' knowledge about games. The experimental design randomly assigned children (N = 81, age 12-13, 37 male and 44 female) into three groups: 1. control, 2. specific information about games using the interactive software ''Amazing Chateau'', and 3. REE. All children completed a questionnaire with 38 items at the beginning of the study and after 10 weekly interventional meetings. Each item had three answering options, children choosing only one correct answer. Findings indicated that the use of the software significantly improved subjects' knowledge about gambling and corrected their information about how games work. The results of the study confirmed that using specific primary prevention tools for changing erroneous conceptions about games is more efficient than using only REE. The implications of these results for the prevention of gambling problems especially in schools are discussed.
Last year, the Responsibility in Gambling Trust (RiGT) commissioned Tacade and the International Gaming Research Unit to produce education materials on youth gambling to be used in schools and other youth education settings. This initiative was featured in a previous issue of Education and Health (see Buczkiewicz & Griffiths, 2006) and the project led to the publication of two sets of comprehensive resources (You Bet! and Just Another Game?). Given the investment by RiGT in these educational materials, the obvious questions to ask are whether these - and other similar materials - actually work? Are they cost-effective? How long do any effects last? If there is little evidence of behaviour change, is awareness raising enough?
Modifying youths' perception toward pathological gamblers
Addictive Behaviors, 2005
This study evaluates the effectiveness of a video specifically designed to provide relevant information on gambling and to correct the perceptions that adolescents have about pathological gamblers. Results indicate that the video significantly improved participants' knowledge about gambling and corrected their misconceptions toward excessive gamblers. The implications of these results for the prevention of gambling problems are discussed. D
Program findings that inform curriculum development for the prevention of problem gambling
The development of effective problem gambling prevention programs is in its infancy. The present paper discusses results of randomized control trials of two programs that have been implemented in Alberta, Canada. The first is a 10 session program delivered to several classes of university students taking Introductory Statistics. This program focused primarily on teaching the probabilities associated with gambling and included several hands-on demonstrations of typical casino table games. The second is a 5 session program delivered to high school students at several sites in southern Alberta. This program was more comprehensive, containing information and exercises on the nature of gambling and problem gambling, gambling fallacies, gambling odds, decision-making, coping skills, and social problem-solving skills. Data concerning gambling attitudes, gambling fallacies and gambling behaviour at 3 and 6-months post-intervention are presented. The findings of these studies are somewhat counter-intuitive and have important implications for the design of effective prevention programs.
Journal of Gambling Studies, 2013
This study aimed at testing the efficacy of an integrative intervention to prevent adolescent problem gambling acting on a multidimensional set of factors including gambling related knowledge and misconceptions, economic perception of gambling, and superstitious thinking. A pre-and post-test design was performed with 181 Italian adolescents (64 % boys; Mean age = 15.95) randomly assigned to two groups (Training and No Training). Results revealed that the intervention was effective in improving correct knowledge about gambling and reducing misconceptions, perception of gambling's profitability, and superstitious thinking. Except for misconceptions, these effects were obtained both in participants who were classified as Non-problem and At-Risk/Problem gamblers at the beginning of the intervention. Findings attested also that the training effects were stable over time, and that some changes in gambling behavior were produced. Findings were discussed referring to indications for future research aiming at confirming and extending the present results.
Gambling Awareness for Youth: An Analysis of the Don\u27t Gamble Away Our Future Program
2009
Gambling has become increasingly popular among minors and is easily accessible to them. This is alarming since research has indicated that minors are more susceptible to gambling pathology than adults. Additionally, gambling has devastating effects on minors that gamble as well as their families and communities. The Illinois Institute for Addiction Recovery (IIAR) developed a gambling awareness prevention program called “Don’t Gamble Away our Future™” to educate minors about gambling and the dangers associated with it. The IIAR started collecting data for the purpose of evaluation in 2005. The purpose of the current study was to evaluate the program’s effectiveness at changing knowledge about gambling and to assess the frequencies of problem and pathological gambling among participants at program implementation (year one). The program was evaluated with a sample of 8,455 Midwestern youth. Findings indicated that 10% of the participants were probable pathological gamblers and that th...
Systematic Review of Empirically Evaluated School-Based Gambling Education Programs
Journal of Gambling Studies, 2016
Adolescent problem gambling prevalence rates are reportedly five times higher than in the adult population. Several school-based gambling education programs have been developed in an attempt to reduce problem gambling among adolescents; however few have been empirically evaluated. The aim of this review was to report the outcome of studies empirically evaluating gambling education programs across international jurisdictions. A systematic review following guidelines outlined in the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) Statement searching five academic databases: PubMed, Scopus, Medline, PsycINFO, and ERIC, was conducted. A total of 20 papers and 19 studies were included after screening and exclusion criteria were applied. All studies reported intervention effects on cognitive outcomes such as knowledge, perceptions, and beliefs. Only nine of the studies attempted to measure intervention effects on behavioural outcomes, and only five of those reported significant changes in gambling behaviour. Of these five, methodological inadequacies were commonly found including brief follow-up periods, lack of control comparison in post hoc analyses, and inconsistencies and misclassifications in the measurement of gambling behaviour, including problem gambling. Based on this review, recommendations are offered for the future development and evaluation of school-based gambling education programs relating to both methodological and content design and delivery considerations.
American Journal of Health Education, 2003
This study evaluated the effectiveness of a gambling prevention program that aimed to correct the notions of chance and randomness among primary school students. The relative effectiveness of two prevention programs aiming to modify erroneous perceptions of gambling as well as the teacher's and specialist's on the psychology of gambling efficiencies to deliver the prevention programs were compared. Results showed that the program administered by a specialist of the psychology of gambling was more effective at decreasing erroneous perceptions than that provided by the teacher. The discussion raises the practical implications of these results for preventing gambling problems among primary school students, as well as the potential role that teachers could play in the implementation of such programs.