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Recovery Capital and Symptom Improvement in Gambling Disorder: Correlations with Spirituality and Stressful Life Events in Younger but Not Older Adults

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Abstract

Although age-related differences have been reported in gambling disorder, prior studies have not examined how age may influence recovery in gambling disorder. Recovery may be influenced by positive factors (e.g., spirituality and recovery capital) and negative factors (e.g., depression, anxiety, and stressful life events). The current study examined associations between these positive and negative factors and gambling disorder DSM-5 symptom improvement in younger and older adults. Younger (less than 55 years of age; n = 86) and older (55 years or older; n = 54) adults, with lifetime gambling disorder treated currently or within the past 5 years in five treatment centers in Israel were assessed using structured scales on past-year and lifetime DSM-5 gambling disorder, intrinsic spirituality, recovery capital, anxiety, depression and stressful life-events. Among younger adults, recovery capital and intrinsic spirituality were associated with gambling disorder symptom improvement. Among older adults, only recovery capital was associated with gambling disorder symptom improvement. Correlations between recovery capital and spirituality (z = 2.34, p = 0.02) and recovery capital and stressful life events (z = 2.29, p = 0.02) were stronger in younger than in older adults. Recovery capital is an important resource that should be considered across older and younger adults with gambling disorder. Spirituality and stressful life events may operate differently across age groups in gambling disorder. Future studies should investigate whether the findings may extend to other groups and the extent to which promoting recovery capital should be integrated into treatments for gambling disorder.

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Funding

This study was supported by a seed Grant awarded to Belle Gavriel-Fried by the National Center for Responsible Gaming (NCRG) in 2017. Marc N. Potenza’s involvement was supported by the National Center for Responsible Gaming, the Connecticut Council on Problem Gambling, and the Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Bob Shapell School of Social Work, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel

    Belle Gavriel-Fried

  2. Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, Padua, Italy

    Tania Moretta

  3. Departments of Psychiatry, Child Study, and Neuroscience, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA

    Marc N. Potenza

  4. Connecticut Council on Problem Gambling, Clinton, CT, USA

    Marc N. Potenza

  5. Connecticut Mental Health Center, USA, New Haven, CT, USA

    Marc N. Potenza

Authors
  1. Belle Gavriel-Fried
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  2. Tania Moretta
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  3. Marc N. Potenza
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Correspondence to Belle Gavriel-Fried.

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Belle Gavriel-Fried: Visiting scholar at Yale University (2018–2019).

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Gavriel-Fried, B., Moretta, T. & Potenza, M.N. Recovery Capital and Symptom Improvement in Gambling Disorder: Correlations with Spirituality and Stressful Life Events in Younger but Not Older Adults. J Gambl Stud 36, 1379–1390 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-019-09905-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-019-09905-5

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