Gambling Psychological Term
Click card to see definition 👆 where a person takes a substance or engages in a behaviour that brings pleasure which eventually becomes compulsive and leads to harmful effects. It is marked by physical and psychological dependency, withdrawal and tolerance. Click again to see term 👆 1/38. Enter any psychology term. Sign In Sign Up. Gamling Disorder. Gambling disorder is also known as gambling addiction and compulsive gambling. A diagnosis requires at.
What is gambling? Gambling is partaking in activity or game where you risk anything of value or money to a possible outcome that is not guaranteed. This definition demonstrates that Gambling can relate to anyone and most things. According to the guest speaker Carl Robertson gambling involves adolescents ages 12 to 17 in which they value material things and are willing to gamble those things to feed their addiction. Same as an adult expect they may have the money.I’ve learned that is newest form of an addiction. Gambling was once classified on the DSM as an ICD Impulse Control Disorder. Categorizing gambling as an addiction made it clear that people cannot control themselves. Adolescents are the primes example Carl Robertson says because the brain has not fully developed. After age 25 adults are then considered to understand the choices being made.- Gambling disorder is a behavioral addiction diagnosis introduced in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth edition (DSM-5). This was the first formal recognition of behavioral addiction in the psychiatry text, which is considered the 'gold standard' in the field of mental health.
- Therefore, psychological, socio-cultural, and spiritual factors influence whether we mature beyond our biological limitations. Until fairly recently, people with addictive disorders such as gambling addiction were viewed as selfish, weak-willed folks.
Our influences regardless of age but of social media and its influence are what encourage these behaviors. In the article “To play or not to play: A personal dilemma in pathological gambling” apply gambling to a cognitive identity. That it controls your mind in decision making, and all important implication. It can become an adrenaline thing where the higher the risk and reward regardless of the short outcome. Although the secondary article “Pathological Choice: The Neuroscience of Gambling and Gambling Addiction” stands to believe that it is a cognitive approach they focus more so on the mechanisms, or the economic understanding, and cognitive distortions associated with gambling.
In the article “To play or not to play: A personal dilemma in pathological gambling” this APA style paper demonstrates a focus on purpose of study. This article had more scientific study approach. They studied rather than only providing information human personality traits, economic situations, with doing self reports. There was major focus...
Compulsive gambling is being unable to resist impulses to gamble. This can lead to severe money problems, job loss, crime or fraud, and damage to family relationships.
Compulsive gambling most often begins in early adolescence in men, and between ages 20 and 40 in women.
People with compulsive gambling have a hard time resisting or controlling the impulse to gamble. The brain is reacting to this impulse in the same manner it reacts to a person addicted to alcohol or drugs. Although it shares features of obsessive compulsive disorder, compulsive gambling is likely a different condition.
Psychological Term Gambling Addict
In people who develop compulsive gambling, occasional gambling leads to a gambling habit. Stressful situations can worsen gambling problems.
People with compulsive gambling often feel ashamed and try to avoid letting other people know about their problem. The American Psychiatric Association defines pathological gambling as having 5 or more of the following symptoms:
- Committing crimes to get money to gamble.
- Feeling restless or irritable when trying to cut back or quit gambling.
- Gambling to escape problems or feelings of sadness or anxiety.
- Gambling larger amounts of money to try to make back past losses.
- Losing a job, relationship, education, or career opportunity due to gambling.
- Lying about the amount of time or money spent gambling.
- Making many unsuccessful attempts to cut back or quit gambling.
- Needing to borrow money due to gambling losses.
- Needing to gamble larger amounts of money in order to feel excitement.
- Spending a lot of time thinking about gambling, such as remembering past experiences or ways to get more money with which to gamble.
A psychiatric evaluation and history can be used to diagnose pathological gambling. Screening tools such as the Gamblers Anonymous 20 Questions www.gamblersanonymous.org/ga/content/20-questions can help with the diagnosis.
Treatment for people with compulsive gambling begins with recognizing the problem. Compulsive gamblers often deny they have a problem or need treatment.
Most people with pathological gambling only get treated when other people pressure them.
Treatment options include:
- Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).
- Self-help support groups, such as Gamblers Anonymous. Gamblers Anonymous www.gamblersanonymous.org/ is a 12-step program similar to Alcoholics Anonymous. Practices used to treat other types of addiction, such as substance use and alcohol use, can also be helpful in treating pathological gambling.
- A few studies have been done on medicines for treating compulsive gambling. Early results suggest that antidepressants and opioid antagonists (naltrexone) may help treat the symptoms of pathological gambling. However, it is not yet clear which people will respond to medicines.
Like alcohol or drug addiction, pathological gambling is a long-term disorder that tends to get worse without treatment. Even with treatment, it's common to start gambling again (relapse). However, people with pathological gambling can do very well with the right treatment.
Gambling Psychological Effects
Complications may include:
- Alcohol and drug use problems
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Financial, social, and legal problems (including bankruptcy, divorce, job loss, time in prison)
- Heart attacks (from the stress and excitement of gambling)
- Suicide attempts

Getting the right treatment can help prevent many of these problems.

Call your health care provider or mental health professional if you believe you have symptoms of pathological gambling.
Exposure to gambling may increase the risk of developing pathological gambling. Limiting exposure may be helpful for people who are at risk. Intervention at the earliest signs of pathological gambling may prevent the disorder from getting worse.
Gambling - compulsive; Pathological gambling; Addictive gambling
American Psychiatric Association website. Non-substance-related disorders. In: American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. 5th ed. Arlington, VA: American Psychiatric Publishing. 2013:585-589.
Balodis IM, Potenza MN. The biology and treatment of gambling disorder. In: Johnson BA, ed. Addiction Medicine: Science and Practice. 2nd ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2020:chap 33.
Weissman AR, Gould CM, Sanders KM. Impulse-control disorders. In: Stern TA, Fava M, Wilens TE, Rosenbaum JF, eds. Massachusetts General Hospital Comprehensive Clinical Psychiatry. 2nd ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2016:chap 23.
Updated by: Fred K. Berger, MD, addiction and forensic psychiatrist, Scripps Memorial Hospital, La Jolla, CA. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.