Abstract
Although alcohol, tobacco and cannabis are the most prevalent drugs used by adolescents, gambling is a growing concern due to its increasing popularity. To date there have been few studies exploring the existing patterns of concurrent use of drugs and gambling in adolescents. This study aims to identify subpopulations of adolescents using different substances and gambling activities, to explore gender differences and to examine impulsivity as a predictor of class membership. A cross-sectional survey was carried out in 22 high-schools, and 1644 adolescents were assessed (54.1% males; mean age = 15.21 years, SD = .75). Participants reported their last-year frequency of using alcohol, tobacco and cannabis, as well as bingo, poker, other casino games, sports betting, lottery, scratch tickets and electronic gaming machines. Problem drinking was evaluated with the Rutgers Alcohol Problems Index, and gambling severity with the South Oaks Gambling Scale for Adolescents. Impulsivity was assessed using a Delay Discounting task, the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale and the Impulsive Sensation-Seeking Scale. Based on a latent class model of drugs and gambling activities, four subpopulations of males and five of females were found. General impulsivity and sensation seeking were the most consistent predictors of class membership. These novel findings support the need to consider specific groups of adolescents engaging in different patterns of addictive behaviors when implementing selective prevention strategies.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Balevich, E. C., Wein, N. D., & Flory, J. D. (2013). Cigarette smoking and measures of impulsivity in a college sample. Substance Abuse, 34(3), 256–262. https://doi.org/10.1080/08897077.2012.763082.
Becoña, E. (1997). Pathological gambling in Spanish children and adolescents: An emerging problem. Psychological Reports, 81(1), 275–287.
Boldero, J. M., Bell, R. C., & Moore, S. M. (2010). Do gambling activity patterns predict gambling problems? A latent class analysis of gambling forms among Australian youth. International Gambling Studies, 10(2), 151–163. https://doi.org/10.1080/14459795.2010.501808.
Bowerman, B. L., & O’Connell, R. T. (1990). Linear statistical models: An applied approach (2nd ed.). Belmont, CA: Duxbury.
Buja, A., Lion, C., Scioni, M., Vian, P., Genetti, B., Vittadello, F., et al. (2017). SOGS-RA gambling scores and substance use in adolescents. Journal of Behavioral Addictions, 6(3), 425–433. https://doi.org/10.1556/2006.6.2017.043.
Calado, F., Alexandre, J., & Griffiths, M. D. (2016). Prevalence of adolescent problem gambling: A systematic review of recent research. Journal of Gambling Studies. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-016-9627-5.
Chamberlain, S. R., Stochl, J., Redden, S. A., Odlaug, B. L., & Grant, J. E. (2017). Latent class analysis of gambling subtypes and impulsive/compulsive associations: Time to rethink diagnostic boundaries for gambling disorder? Addictive Behaviors, 72, 79–85. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2017.03.020.
Choi, H. J., Lu, Y., Schulte, M., & Temple, J. R. (2018). Adolescent substance use: Latent class and transition analysis. Addictive Behaviors, 77, 160–165. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2017.09.022.
De Luigi, N., Gibertoni, D., Randon, E., & Scorcu, A. E. (2018). Patterns of gambling activities and gambling problems among Italian high school students: Results from a latent class analysis. Journal of Gambling Studies, 34(2), 339–359. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-017-9694-2.
Del Pino-Gutierrez, A., Jimenez-Murcia, S., Fernandez-Aranda, F., Aguera, Z., Granero, R., Hakansson, A., et al. (2017). The relevance of personality traits in impulsivity-related disorders: From substance use disorders and gambling disorder to bulimia nervosa. Journal of Behavioral Addictions, 6(3), 396–405. https://doi.org/10.1556/2006.6.2017.051.
Deleuze, J., Rochat, L., Romo, L., Van der Linden, M., Achab, S., Thorens, G., et al. (2015). Prevalence and characteristics of addictive behaviors in a community sample: A latent class analysis. Addictive Behaviors Reports, 1, 49–56. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.abrep.2015.04.001.
Delfabbro, P., King, D. L., & Derevensky, J. L. (2016). Adolescent gambling and problem gambling: Prevalence, current issues, and concerns. Current Addiction Reports, 3(3), 268–274. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40429-016-0105-z.
Di Nicola, M., Ferri, V. R., Moccia, L., Panaccione, I., Strangio, A. M., Tedeschi, D., et al. (2017). Gender differences and psychopathological features associated with addictive behaviors in adolescents. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 8, 256. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2017.00256.
Elton-Marshall, T., Leatherdale, S. T., & Turner, N. E. (2016). An examination of internet and land-based gambling among adolescents in three Canadian provinces: Results from the youth gambling survey (YGS). BMC Public Health, 16(1), 277. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-016-2933-0.
Estevez, A., Jauregui, P., Sanchez-Marcos, I., Lopez-Gonzalez, H., & Griffiths, M. D. (2017). Attachment and emotion regulation in substance addictions and behavioral addictions. Journal of Behavioral Addictions, 6(4), 534–544. https://doi.org/10.1556/2006.6.2017.086.
European Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug Addiction. (2009a). Polydrug use: Patterns and responses. Lisbon: European Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug Addiction.
European Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug Addiction. (2009b). The European school survey project on alcohol and other drugs. Lisbon: European Monitoring Center for Drugs and Drug Addiction.
European School Survey Project on Alcohol and Other Drugs. (2007). ESPAD student questionnaire. www.espad.org.
Fernandez-Artamendi, S., Martinez-Loredo, V., Fernandez-Hermida, J. R., & Carballo, J. L. (2016). The impulsive sensation seeking (ImpSS): Psychometric properties and predictive validity regarding substance use with Spanish adolescents. Personality and Individual Differences, 90, 163–168. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2015.11.003.
Fonseca-Pedrero, E., Paino-Piñeiro, M., Lemos-Giráldez, S., Villazón-García, U., & Muñiz, J. (2009). Validation of the schizotypal personality questionnaire—Brief form in adolescents. Schizophrenia Research, 111, 53–60.
Fossati, A., Barratt, E. S., Acquarini, E., & Di Ceglie, A. (2002). Psychometric properties of an adolescent version of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale-11 for a sample of Italian high school students. Perceptual and Motor Skills, 95(2), 621–635.
Gonzalez-Roz, A., Fernandez-Hermida, J. R., Weidberg, S., Martinez-Loredo, V., & Secades-Villa, R. (2017). Prevalence of problem gambling among adolescents: A comparison across modes of access, gambling activities, and levels of severity. Journal of Gambling Studies, 33(2), 371–382. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-016-9652-4.
Goodie, A. S. (2015). Associations between gambling games and gambling problems: Whole games compared with temporal, skill characteristics, and other structural characteristics. Current Addiction Reports, 2(3), 249–253. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40429-015-0068-5.
Grande-Gosende, A., Martinez-Loredo, V., & Fernandez-Hermida, J. R. (in press). Gambling motives questionnaire validation in adolescents: Differences based on gambling severity and activities. Adicciones. https://doi.org/10.20882/adicciones.1057.
Griffiths, M. D., & Auer, M. (2012). The irrelevancy of game-type in the acquisition, development, and maintenance of problem gambling. Frontiers in Psychology, 3, 621. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2012.00621.
Harris, N., Newby, J., & Klein, R. G. (2015). Competitiveness facets and sensation seeking as predictors of problem gambling among a sample of university student gamblers. Journal of Gambling Studies, 31(2), 385–396. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-013-9431-4.
Hing, N., Russell, A. M. T., Li, E., & Vitaras, P. (2018). Does the uptake of wagering inducements predict impulse betting on sport? Journal of Behavioral Addictions, 7(1), 146–157. https://doi.org/10.1556/2006.7.2018.17.
Jauregui, P., Estevez, A., & Urbiola, I. (2016). Pathological gambling and associated drug and alcohol abuse, emotion regulation, and anxious-depressive symptomatology. Journal of Behavioral Addictions, 5, 251–260. https://doi.org/10.1556/2006.5.2016.038.
Johnston, L. D., O’Malley, P. M., Miech, E. A., Bachman, J. G., & Schulenberg, J. E. (2017). Monitoring the Future national survey results on drug use, 1975–2016: Overview, key findings on adolescent drug use. Ann Arbo: Institute for Social Research, The University of Michigan.
Kelly, A. B., Evans-Whipp, T. J., Smith, R., Chan, G. C., Toumbourou, J. W., Patton, G. C., et al. (2015). A longitudinal study of the association of adolescent polydrug use, alcohol use and high school non-completion. Addiction, 110(4), 627–635. https://doi.org/10.1111/add.12829.
Kong, G., Tsai, J., Krishnan-Sarin, S., Cavallo, D. A., Hoff, R. A., Steinberg, M. A., et al. (2014). A latent class analysis of pathological-gambling criteria among high school students: Associations with gambling, risk and health/functioning characteristics. Journal of Addiction Medicine, 8(6), 421–430. https://doi.org/10.1097/adm.0000000000000074.
Lamont, A. E., Woodlief, D., & Malone, P. S. (2014). Predicting high-risk versus higher-risk substance use during late adolescence from early adolescent risk factors using latent class analysis. Addiction Research & Theory, 22(1), 78–89. https://doi.org/10.3109/16066359.2013.772587.
Lanza, S. T., Bray, B. C., & Collins, L. M. (2012). An introduction to latent class and latent transition analysis. In J. A. Schinka, W. F. Velicer, & I. B. Weiner (Eds.), Handbook of psychology (Vol. 2, pp. 691–716). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.
Lanza, S. T., Collins, L. M., Lemmon, D. R., & Schafer, J. L. (2007). PROC LCA: A SAS procedure for latent class analysis. Structural Equation Modeling, 14(4), 671–694.
Lanza, S. T., Dziak, J. J., Huang, L., Wagner, A. T., & Collins, L. M. (2015). Proc LCA and Proc LTA users’ guide (version 1.3.2). University Park: The Methodology Center, Penn State. Retrieved from https://methodology.psu.edu/.
Lanza, S. T., & Rhoades, B. L. (2013). Latent class analysis: An alternative perspective on subgroup analysis in prevention and treatment. Prevention Science, 14(2), 157–168. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-011-0201-1.
Lawrence, A. J., Luty, J., Bogdan, N. A., Sahakian, B. J., & Clark, L. (2009). Impulsivity and response inhibition in alcohol dependence and problem gambling. Psychopharmacology (Berl), 207(1), 163–172. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00213-009-1645-x.
Ledgerwood, D. M., & Petry, N. M. (2006). Subtyping pathological gamblers based on impulsivity, depression and anxiety. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 24, 680–688. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0019906.
Liu, W., Lee, G. P., Goldweber, A., Petras, H., Storr, C. L., Ialongo, N. S., et al. (2013). Impulsivity trajectories and gambling in adolescence among urban male youth. Addiction, 108(4), 780–788. https://doi.org/10.1111/add.12049.
Lopez-Gonzalez, H., Estévez, A., & Griffiths, M. D. (2018). Internet-based structural characteristics of sports betting and problem gambling severity: Is there a relationship? International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11469-018-9876-x.
López-Nuñez, C., Fernández-Artamendi, S., Fernández-Hermida, J. R., Campillo-Álvarez, A., & Secades-Villa, R. (2012). Spanish adaptation and validation of the Rutgers Alcohol Problems Index (RAPI). International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology, 12(2), 251–264.
Maldonado-Molina, M. M., Collins, L. M., Lanza, S. T., Prado, G., Ramirez, R., & Canino, G. (2007). Patterns of substance use onset among hispanics in Puerto Rico and the United States. Addictive Behaviors, 32(10), 2432–2437. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.addbeh.2007.04.007.
Maldonado-Molina, M. M., & Lanza, S. T. (2010). A framework to examine gateway relations in drug use: An application of latent transition analysis. Journal of Drug Issues, 40(4), 901–924. https://doi.org/10.1177/002204261004000407.
Marchica, L., Zhao, Y., Derevensky, J., & Ivoska, W. (2017). Understanding the relationship between sports-relevant gambling and being at-risk for a gambling problem among American adolescents. Journal of Gambling Studies, 33(2), 437–448. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-016-9653-3.
Martinez-Loredo, V., Fernandez-Hermida, J. R., Fernandez-Artamendi, S., Carballo, J. L., & Garcia-Rodriguez, O. (2015). Spanish adaptation and validation of the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale for early adolescents (BIS-11-A). International Journal of Clinical and Health Psychology, 15, 274–282. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijchp.2015.07.002.
Mazur, J. E. (1987). An adjusting procedure for studying delayed reinforcement. In M. L. Commons, J. E. Mazur, J. A. Nevin, & H. Rachlin (Eds.), Quantitative analysis of behavior: The effects of delay and intervening events on reinforcement value (pp. 55–73). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Menard, S. (1995). Applied logistic regression analysis. Sage university paper series on quantitative applications in the social sciences (pp. 07–106). Thousand, CA: Sage.
Messerlain, C., Gillespie, M., & Derevensky, J. L. (2007). Beyond drugs and alcohol: Including gambling in a high-risk behavioural framework. Paediatrics & Child Health, 12, 199–204. https://doi.org/10.1093/pch/12.3.199.
Miguez, M. C., & Becoña, E. (2015). Do cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption associate with cannabis use and problem gambling among Spanish adolescents? Adicciones, 27, 8–16.
Mitchell, M. R., & Potenza, M. N. (2014). Addictions and personality traits: Impulsivity and related constructs. Current Behavioral Neuroscience Reports, 1(1), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40473-013-0001-y.
Moragas, L., Granero, R., Stinchfield, R., Fernández-Aranda, F., Fröberg, F., Aymamí, N., et al. (2015). Comparative analysis of distinct phenotypes in gambling disorder based on gambling preferences. BMC Psychiatry, 15(1), 86. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-015-0459-0.
Mutti-Packer, S., Hodgins, D. C., El-Guebaly, N., Casey, D. M., Currie, S. R., Williams, R. J., et al. (2017). Problem gambling symptomatology and alcohol misuse among adolescents: A parallel-process latent growth curve model. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 31(4), 447–456. https://doi.org/10.1037/adb0000261.
Nordmyr, J., Forsman, A. K., & Österman, K. (2016). Problematic alcohol use and problem gambling: Associations to structural and functional aspects of social ties in a Finnish population sample. Nordic Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, 33(4), 381–397. https://doi.org/10.1515/nsad-2016-0032.
Peeters, M., Monshouwer, K., van de Schoot, R., Janssen, T., Vollebergh, W. A., & Wiers, R. W. (2014). Personality and the prediction of high-risk trajectories of alcohol use during adolescence. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, 75(5), 790–798.
Plan Nacional Sobre Drogas. (2018). Encuesta estatal sobre uso de drogas en estudiantes de enseñanzas secundarias (ESTUDES) 2016–2017. Madrid: Delegación del Gobierno para el Plan Nacional sobre Drogas. Retrieved from http://www.pnsd.msssi.gob.es/profesionales/sistemasInformacion/sistemaInformacion/pdf/ESTUDES_2016_Presentacion.pdf. Accessed 17 Dec 2018.
Potenza, M. N., Wareham, J. D., Steinberg, M. A., Rugle, L., Cavallo, D. A., Krishnan-Sarin, S., et al. (2011). Correlates of at-risk/problem internet gambling in adolescents. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 50(2), 150–159 e153. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaac.2010.11.006.
Rash, C. J., Weinstock, J., & Van Patten, R. (2016). A review of gambling disorder and substance use disorders. Substance Abuse and Rehabilitation, 7, 3–13. https://doi.org/10.2147/SAR.S83460.
Shaffer, H. J., LaPlante, D. A., LaBrie, R. A., Kidman, R. C., Donato, A. N., & Stanton, M. V. (2004). Toward a syndrome model of addiction: Multiple expressions, common etiology. Harvard Review of Psychiatry, 12(6), 367–374. https://doi.org/10.1080/10673220490905705.
Shin, S. H., Hong, H. G., & Hazen, A. L. (2010). Childhood sexual abuse and adolescent substance use: A latent class analysis. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 109(1–3), 226–235. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2010.01.013.
Smith, G. T., Fischer, S., Cyders, M. A., Annus, A. M., Spillane, N. S., & McCarthy, D. M. (2007). On the validity and utility of discriminating among impulsivity-like traits. Assessment, 14(2), 155–170. https://doi.org/10.1177/1073191106295527.
Stewart, S. H., & Zack, M. (2008). Development and psychometric evaluation of a three-dimensional gambling motives questionnaire. Addiction, 103, 1110–1117. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1360-0443.2008.02235.x.
Studer, J., Baggio, S., Mohler-Kuo, M., Simon, O., Daeppen, J., & Gmel, G. (2016). Latent class analysis of gambling activities in a sample of young Swiss men: Association with gambling problems, substance use outcomes, personality traits and coping strategies. Journal of Gambling Studies, 32, 421–440. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-015-9547-9.
Su, J., Supple, A. J., & Kuo, S. I. (2018). The role of individual and contextual factors in differentiating substance use profiles among adolescents. Substance Use and Misuse, 53(5), 734–743. https://doi.org/10.1080/10826084.2017.1363237.
Swendsen, J., Burstein, M., Case, B., Conway, K. P., Dierker, L., He, J., et al. (2012). Use and abuse of alcohol and illicit drugs in US adolescents. Results of the national comorbidity survey–adolescent supplement FREE. Archives of General Psychiatry, 69(4), 390–398. https://doi.org/10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2011.1503.
Tanaree, A., Assanangkornchai, S., & Kittirattanapaiboon, P. (2017). Pattern and risk of developing alcohol use disorders, illegal substance use and psychiatric disorders after early onset of alcohol use: Results of the Thai National Mental Health Survey 2013. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 170, 102–111. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2016.11.001.
Tomczyk, S., Isensee, B., & Hanewinkel, R. (2016). Latent classes of polysubstance use among adolescents—A systematic review. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 160, 12–29. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2015.11.035.
Volberg, R. A., Gupta, R., Griffiths, M. D., Olason, D. T., & Delfabbro, P. (2010). An international perspective on youth gambling prevalence studies. International Journal of Adolescent Medicine and Health, 22(1), 3–38.
Whelan, R., Watts, R., Orr, C. A., Althoff, R. R., Artiges, E., Banaschewski, T., et al. (2014). Neuropsychosocial profiles of current and future adolescent alcohol misusers. Nature, 512(7513), 185–189. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature13402.
White, H. R., & Labouvie, E. W. (1989). Towards the assessment of adolescent problem drinking. Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, 50(1), 30–37. https://doi.org/10.15288/jsa.1989.50.30.
Winters, K. C., Stinchfield, R. D., & Fulkerson, J. (1993). Toward the development of an adolescent gambling problem severity scale. Journal of Gambling Studies, 9, 63–84. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01019925.
Zuckerman, M., Kuhlman, D. M., Joireman, J., Teta, P., & Kraft, M. (1993). A comparison of three structural models for personality: The big three, the big five, and the alternative five. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 65(4), 757–768. https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.65.4.757.
Funding
This work was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Health, Social Services and Equality (MSSSI-12-2012/131), the Council for Economy and Work (FC-15-GRUPIN14-047) and by two pre-doctoral Grants (BES-2015-073327 and BP-16071). Neither of these funding sources played any role in the study design, data collection, analysis and interpretation of results or decision to submit the article for publication.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Martínez-Loredo, V., Grande-Gosende, A., Fernández-Artamendi, S. et al. Substance Use and Gambling Patterns Among Adolescents: Differences According to Gender and Impulsivity. J Gambl Stud 35, 63–78 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-018-09824-x
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-018-09824-x