Screening for gambling-related harm: Scholarly commentary addictive behaviors

IF 3.7 2区医学 Q1 PSYCHOLOGY, CLINICAL

Addictive behaviors Pub Date : 2025-03-22 DOI:10.1016/j.addbeh.2025.108335

Amanda Roberts , Rebecca Clarke , Fay Laidler , Jim Rogers , Claire Harman , Henrietta Bowden-Jones , Lauren Smith , Steve Sharman

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

It has been surmised that there are approximately 1.6 million adults in England alone who may benefit from some type of support in relation to harmful gambling. Harmful gambling is a public health issue linked to psychological comorbidity, poor mental and physical health, and high levels of suicidality, and there is pressing need for initiatives and opportunities to identify gambling related harms before crisis level is reached.Harmful gambling is a term recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to mean gambling of any frequency that causes harm, problems or distress for the person.

People experiencing harmful gambling are shown to be high users of health services and support services, despite low levels of help-seeking behaviour for gambling itself, which can often be ‘crisis driven’ (i.e. only seeking help after experiencing severe harms like a suicide attempt). This leads to overutilisation and unnecessary burden on such services, addressing a symptom of the disorder (e.g., depression), rather than addressing the underlying cause (i.e., the harmful gambling). Consequently, support services such as healthcare services, third sector organisations and the criminal justice system are well placed to provide secondary prevention initiatives (i.e., routine screening/referral to treatment) for harmful gambling, before the individual reaches crisis point. The commentary highlights where secondary prevention initiatives can be placed.

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来源期刊

Addictive behaviors 医学-药物滥用

CiteScore

8.40

自引率

4.50%

发文量

283

审稿时长

46 days

期刊介绍： Addictive Behaviors is an international peer-reviewed journal publishing high quality human research on addictive behaviors and disorders since 1975. The journal accepts submissions of full-length papers and short communications on substance-related addictions such as the abuse of alcohol, drugs and nicotine, and behavioral addictions involving gambling and technology. We primarily publish behavioral and psychosocial research but our articles span the fields of psychology, sociology, psychiatry, epidemiology, social policy, medicine, pharmacology and neuroscience. While theoretical orientations are diverse, the emphasis of the journal is primarily empirical. That is, sound experimental design combined with valid, reliable assessment and evaluation procedures are a requisite for acceptance. However, innovative and empirically oriented case studies that might encourage new lines of inquiry are accepted as well. Studies that clearly contribute to current knowledge of etiology, prevention, social policy or treatment are given priority. Scholarly commentaries on topical issues, systematic reviews, and mini reviews are encouraged. We especially welcome multimedia papers that incorporate video or audio components to better display methodology or findings. Studies can also be submitted to Addictive Behaviors? companion title, the open access journal Addictive Behaviors Reports, which has a particular interest in ''non-traditional'', innovative and empirically-oriented research such as negative/null data papers, replication studies, case reports on novel treatments, and cross-cultural research.