Interplay between alexithymia, emotion regulation, and positive and negative affect as predictors of gambling and gaming disorders in adolescents and young adults

Introduction / Objectives: Gambling and gaming disorder are usually comorbid addictive behaviours in which alexithymia and emotional regulation have been proved to be of relevance. The present study aimed to analyse the relationship between those variables and their differences depending on the presence or absence of gambling and gaming behaviours. Method: The sample consisted of 1,219 people between 12 and 20 years of age (M = 15.55, SD = 2.07; 51.8% females). Results: The results showed significant differences between players and non-players in gambling disorder, alexithymia and emotional regulation. The findings also indicated that there were differences in alexithymia, emotional regulation, negative affect, gambling disorder and gaming disorder among the different profiles of video game players. The comparison of participants with gaming disorder, gambling disorder, both, or neither of them, showed differences in alexithymia, emotional regulation, negative affect, gambling disorder and gaming disorder. Furthermore, correlations between gambling disorder and age, gaming disorder, negative affect, alexithymia and emotional regulation were found. Similarly, gaming disorder was associated with gambling disorder, negative affect, alexithymia, emotional regulation and age. Conclusions: The hierarchical regression analyses demonstrated the predictive role of alexithymia and age in gambling disorder as well as the predictive role of age, sex and negative affect in gaming disorder.