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Can Temperament Type Predict Online Gambling Addiction?
As part of a CasinosBlockchain scholarship initiative, we asked students studying psychology around the globe for their input on the topic of online gambling addiction. With a reward of $1,000 for the best submission up for grabs, the competition was pretty stiff. Even so, we managed to settle on a clear winner…
The Winner
Congratulations to Samanta Fernández from Peru, South America. This budding psychology student is enrolled at Radboud University, located in the Netherlands, and will begin her tertiary education in September 2023.
Samanta is deeply passionate about psychology, and her dream is to create a worthwhile project to contribute to improving many individuals’ mental health. Her winning submission is as follows:
Can Temperament Type Predict Online Gambling Addiction?
Online gambling is a type of gambling activity that embraces the range of wagering and gaming activities available on Internet-enabled devices.
Gambling addiction is a chronic disease included in the fifth edition of the DSM-5, which, according to the University of Nevada, is often identified by symptoms that include constantly needing to gamble, gambling with growing amounts of money, or feeling anxious when not gambling.
Some individuals with gambling addiction develop the condition because of the excitement gambling ensures – regardless of whether they win or not. Others develop it as an unhealthy coping mechanism to deal with difficult situations and emotions.
Gambling addiction is a significant issue because it has several negative consequences. For instance, according to the Nevada Council on Problem Gambling, excessive gambling can:
- Lead to changes in the brain’s reward system
- Change a person’s behavior completely
- Cause occupational problems
- Raise suicide risk
On the last point, approximately 50% of individuals in treatment for gambling disorder develop suicidal thoughts, and about 17% of them attempt suicide.
Understandably, online gambling has raised some concerns, primarily because it’s:
- Especially convenient
- Significantly more accessible
- Easier to hide
- More anonymous
- Faster to make bets
- Quicker to receive notifications
- More immersive
- Greater value for money in terms of bonuses
- Includes more free-play trials
Studies suggest that the availability of gambling opportunities and the development of addiction problems are positively associated. Besides, spending money online is easier (leading to increased gambling) because people feel they are not spending “real” money, due to the lack of the physical exchange of money.
Indeed, surveys indicate that 19–28% of online gamblers feel it is easier to spend more money online, and 15% consider online gambling to be more addictive than land-based gambling. For these reasons, concerns have been expressed that the convenience and accessibility of online gambling offers could contribute to the development and prevalence of gambling addiction.
Online Gambling Addiction (OGA) is especially worrying since the online gambling market and popularity are growing quickly. Because of this, it is crucial and urgent to understand the depth of OGA and how to prevent it.
A possible predictor could be temperament types, as it is useful to predict other phenomena like mood disorders. The concept “temperament” in psychology is described as “the basic foundation of personality, usually assumed to be biologically determined and present early in life, including such characteristics as energy level, emotional responsiveness, demeanor, mood, response tempo, behavioral inhibition, and willingness to explore” by the American Psychological Association.
Although temperament features are mostly present in early childhood, there can still be signs of them during adulthood and adolescence (though altered by environmental and developmental factors). Analyzing those signs will be my main aim. I will rely on the definitions provided above to develop this essay, aiming to answer the question: “Can Temperament Type Predict Online Gambling Addiction?”.
OGA Predictors
Among the many studies that have been conducted aiming to find OGA predictors, some have focused on factors related to temperament features. Relying on those studies, the factors I will analyze (and their relation with temperament features) are:
- Impulsivity
- Negative affectivity
- Dissociation
- Proneness to boredom
- Altered emotional processes
- Risk-taking behaviors
- Excessive behaviors
- Self-esteem
- Alienation from society
Impulsivity & Negative Affectivity
Several studies found that impulsivity, negative affectivity (a tendency to experience distressed emotional states including anger, contempt, disgust, guilt, fear, nervousness, depression, anxiety, and stress), dissociation, and high boredom proneness are predictors for OGA. If these characteristics were present since early childhood and further developed during adulthood, some temperament features may be predictors of OGA.
For example, impulsivity may be an indicator of really high emotional responsiveness and short response tempo, because of the intensity and speed that characterize impulsive responses. Various longitudinal studies have also indicated that childhood impulsivity levels can predict gambling addiction development in adulthood, so it can be suggested that the temperament characteristics associated with it (because they were present during childhood) can predict OGA as well.
Regarding negative affectivity, it can indicate negative mood, high behavioral inhibition, and low willingness to explore. Because negative affectivity includes negative emotional states, it can be expected for people that experience it constantly to have a negative mood.
Research suggests that some of the emotional states that negative affectivity embraces (for example, anxiety) are predictors of high behavioral inhibition; and due to that proneness to high behavioral inhibition, anxiety, and fear, it can be expected for individuals to be less willing to explore new situations and leave their comfort zone.
Regarding high boredom proneness, it can be an indicator of low energy levels and low emotional responsiveness, considering that low energy levels have been associated with boredom proneness, and low emotional responsiveness can be expected because of the lack of interest and feelings of insignificance involved in boredom. Hence, low energy levels and low emotional responsiveness may also be predictors of OGA.
Contrary to impulsivity, dissociation can be an indicator of very low (or null) emotional responsiveness and long response tempo, since dissociation propensity implies a tendency to be emotionally detached. These suggestions differ from the ones provided by the association of impulsivity and OGA.
However, something that suggestions of both associations have in common is the tendency to have extreme emotional responsiveness (especially high or low) and response tempo (very short or long) to an unhealthy extent. That can be expected since gambling disorder has already been significantly associated with altered emotional processes.
Thus, extreme emotional responsiveness (regardless of whether it’s high or low) and response tempo (regardless of it being short or long) are expected to be predictors of online gambling disorder, and can also be observed in demeanor because of body language.
Substance Use & Abuse
Other studies have also observed increased rates of health and mental health comorbidities (involving smoking, alcohol and drug consumption, self-harm, substance abuse, and mood disorders) among individuals addicted to online gambling. Because of the nature of substance abuse and mood disorders, these studies could further support a link between OGA, impulsivity, excessive behaviors, and engagement in risk-taking behaviors.
If that were the case, (in addition to) impulsivity, excessive behaviors, and risk-taking behaviors could be proven to be predictors of OGA by establishing a relationship.
Indeed, according to a study made with a sample size of 465 university undergraduates, individuals classified as gamblers addicts had a greater risk-taking motivation than non-gamblers, especially, individuals addicted to online gambling, since they had greater risk-taking motivation than individuals addicted to land-based gambling. The results of this study suggest that a higher risk-taking predisposition predicts OGA.
Besides, other studies observed that increased levels of irrational and erroneous cognitions significantly predicted OGA. These studies also indicate that engagement in risk-taking behaviors, excessive behaviors, and impulsivity can predict OGA since irrational cognitions lead to dysfunctional decision-making (promoting increased and unnecessary risky decisions), excessive behaviors, and impulsivity.
Similar to the associations between impulsivity and temperament features, excessive and risk-taking behaviors imply high emotional responsiveness and short response tempo, further supporting the presence of these features and altered emotional processes in OGA.
Low Self-Esteem
Lower self-esteem has been associated with gambling addiction as well. Relying on the information stated above, it is understandable, because it is also correlated with depression, anxiety, self-harm, and suicide risk. A study observed that people addicted to gambling invariably expect others to think of them badly, hence, they feel shame, and their self-esteem decreases. Hence, individuals addicted to gambling have also been found to be more alienated from society.
Moreover, in a meta-analysis study of 29 research papers, self-esteem was recognized as one of the most significant variables related to adolescent gambling behavior; and in an explorative study, self-esteem was one of the significant predictors of a gambling problem among college students. Additionally, several studies suggest that people with low self-esteem are more vulnerable to different types of addictive behavior.
Thus, isolation from others, feelings of worthlessness, and other reactions and characteristics of people with low self-esteem can predict OGA.
Lower self-esteem may indicate a negative mood (because of the negative emotions it is associated with) and a shy demeanor (because of fear of rejection). Regarding the tendency to be alienated from society, it suggests high behavioral inhibition and low willingness to explore, because of the fear that engaging in new situations and thus, interacting with new people (and being vulnerable to rejection and judgment) causes.
TL:DR?
Temperament Feature | Factors Suggesting Association with OGA |
---|---|
High emotional responsiveness | Impulsivity, engagement in risk-taking behaviors, excessive behaviors, and altered emotional processes. |
Low emotional responsiveness | Boredom proneness, dissociation, and altered emotional processes. |
Short response tempo | Impulsivity, engagement in risk-taking behaviors, excessive behaviors, and altered emotional processes. |
Long response tempo | Dissociation and altered emotional processes. |
Negative mood | Negative affectivity and low self-esteem. |
High behavioral inhibition | Negative affectivity and tendency to alienate from society. |
Low willingness to explore | Negative affectivity and tendency to alienate from society. |
Low energy levels | Boredom proneness |
Shy demeanor | Low self-esteem |
Intensely emotional or especially unemotional demeanor | Altered emotional processes |
Conclusion
Now, to answer the question “Can Temperament Type Predict Online Gambling Addiction?”
Yes. Relying on what has been stated above, it can be hypothesized that the following temperament types can predict online gambling addiction:
- Either very high or low emotional responsiveness
- Either especially short or long response tempo
- Negative mood proneness
- High behavioral inhibition
- Low willingness to explore
- Low energy levels
- Shy demeanor
- Intensely emotional demeanor
- Specially unemotional demeanor
However, it is essential to highlight that specific personal and behavioral predictors of OGA are still unclear and require further research. Because of this, further research focusing on temperament types (preferably during early childhood) is needed and would lead to better identification of temperament types that can serve as predictors of OGA to prevent it.
Sources
You can find the full list of sources and studies by reading through Samanta’s submission in PDF format.