Behavioral addiction as a comorbidity to pathological gambling: Implication for screening and intervention in health setting

Background: Gambling has been portrayed in many anecdotes in the culture of India as an addiction associated with psychosocial dysfunctions. The present study assessed pathological gambling and other behavioral addictions as a comorbid condition in an urban Indian community. Materials and Methods: A...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Manoj Kumar Sharma, Girish N Rao, Vivek Benegal, K Thennarasu, Divya Thomas
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications 2019-01-01
Series:Indian Journal of Social Psychiatry
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.indjsp.org/article.asp?issn=0971-9962;year=2019;volume=35;issue=1;spage=93;epage=97;aulast=Sharma
Description
Summary:Background: Gambling has been portrayed in many anecdotes in the culture of India as an addiction associated with psychosocial dysfunctions. The present study assessed pathological gambling and other behavioral addictions as a comorbid condition in an urban Indian community. Materials and Methods: A total of 3250 individuals were approached to report on gambling behavior and other behavioral addictions using a door-to-door survey approach and 2755 participated in the study. The Lie–Bet Tool for gambling, Behavioral Addiction Screening Checklist, and Internet Addiction Test were administered. Results: Of those surveyed in the age group of 18–50 years, 1.2% reported pathological gambling along with the presence of eating, mobile phone, or television addiction. Only 0.3% of the participants reported the need to change gambling behaviors. Conclusions: These findings have implications for screening and intervention for the management of behavioral addictions that are comorbid with gambling.
ISSN:0971-9962