Abstract
Cognitive distortions are a central feature in the development and maintenance of gambling disorder, despite not being a diagnostic criterion. A substantial clinical literature confirms that targeting distortions in the context of cognitive behavioral treatment adds efficacy in individual and group settings, across demographics. Several current instruments measure illusion of control, gambler’s fallacy, and other distortions. However, they are subject to criticism such as lack of content validity through incompleteness or including noncognitive factors such as emotion or excessively broad cognitive factors such as cognitive bias, lack of factor analytic confirmation, and lack of measurement invariance confirmation. We advocate that the next step is to clarify what is and what is not a contributing cognitive distortion in gambling disorder, including clarification of illusion of control and other concepts with multiple definitions. It is concluded that a next generation of instruments, improved on these metrics, will contribute to increased understanding and treatment efficacy.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Ejova A, Delfabbro PH, Navarro DJ. Erroneous gambling-related beliefs as illusions of primary and secondary control: a confirmatory factor analysis. J Gambl Stud. 2015;31(1):133–60.
Goodie AS, Fortune EE. Measuring cognitive distortions in pathological gambling: review and meta-analyses. Psychol Addict Behav. 2013;27:730–43.
Hong X, Shah KR, Phillips SM, Scherrer JF, Volberg R, Eisen SA. Association of cognitive distortions with problem and pathological gambling in adult male twins. Psychiatry Res. 2009;160:300–7.
Ladouceur R. Perceptions among pathological and non-pathological gamblers. Addict Behav. 2004;29:555–65.
Leonard CA, Williams RJ, Vokey J. Gambling fallacies: what are they and how are they best measured? J Addict Res Ther. 2015;6:256.
Yakovenko I, Hodgins DC, el-Guebaly N, Casey DM, Currie SR, Smith GJ, Williams RJ, Schopflocher DP. Cognitive distortions predict future gambling involvement. Int Gambl Stud. 2016;2:175–92.
Kahneman D, Tversky A. Subjective probability: a judgment of representativeness. Cogn Psychol. 1972;3:430–54.
Kahneman D, Tversky A. Judgment under uncertainty: heuristics and biases. Science. 1974;185:1124–31.
Blaszczynski A, Nower L. A pathways model of problem and pathological gambling. Addiction. 2002;97:487–99.
Walker MB. Irrational thinking among slot machine players. J Gambl Stud. 1992;8:245–61.
Delfabbro P, King D. On finding the C in CBT: the challenges of applying gambling-related cognitive approaches to video-gaming. J Gambl Stud. 2015;31(1):315–29.
Langer EJ. The illusion of control. J Pers Soc Psychol. 1975;32:311–28.
Joukhador J, MacCallum F, Blaszczynski A. Differences in cognitive distortions between problem and social gamblers. Psychol Rep. 2003;92:1203–14.
Wood WS, Clapham MM. Development of the drake beliefs about chance inventory. J Gambl Stud. 2005;21:411–30.
Steenbergh TA, Meyers AW, May RK, Whelan JP. Development and validation of the gamblers’ beliefs questionnaire. Psychol Addict Behav. 2002;16:143–9.
Raylu N, Oei TPS. The Gambling Related Cognitions Scale (GRCS): development, confirmatory factor validation and psychometric properties. Addiction. 2004;99:757–69.
Breen RB, Kruedelbach NG, Walker HI. Cognitive changes in pathological gamblers following a 28-day inpatient program. Psychol Addict Behav. 2001;15:246–8.
Toneatto T, Gunaratne M. Does the treatment of cognitive distortions improve clinical outcomes for problem gambling? J Contemp Psychother. 2009;39:221–9.
Daughters SB, Lejuez CW, Lesieur HR, Strong DR, Zvolensky MJ. Towards a better understanding of gambling treatment failure: implications of translational research. Clin Psychol Rev. 2003;23:573–86.
Rossini-Dib D, Fuentes D, Tavares H. A naturalistic study of recovering gamblers: what gets better and when they get better. Psychiatry Res. 2015;227(1):17–26.
Oei TP, Gordon LM. Psychological factors related to gambling abstinence and relapse in members of gamblers anonymous. J Gambl Stud. 2008;24:91–105.
Fortune EE, Goodie AS. Cognitive distortions as a component and treatment focus of pathological gambling: a review. Psychol Addict Behav. 2012;26:298–310.
Gooding P, Tarrier N. A systematic review and meta-analysis of cognitive-behavioural interventions to reduce problem gambling—hedging our bets? Behav Res Ther. 2009;47:592–607.
Tavares H, Zilberman ML, el-Guebaly N. Are there specific cognitive and behavioral approaches specific to the treatment of pathological gambling? Can J Psychiatr. 2003;48(1):22–7.
Lambos C, Delfabbro P. Numerical reasoning ability and irrational beliefs in problem gambling. Int Gambl Stud. 2007;7:157–71.
Williams RJ, Connolly D. Does learning about the mathematics of gambling change gambling behavior? Psychol Addict Behav. 2006;20:62–8.
Rizeanu S. The efficacy of cognitive-behavioral intervention in pathological gambling treatment. Procedia Soc Behav Sci. 2014;127:626–30.
Ladouceur R, Sylvain C, Letarte H, Giroux I, Jacques C. Cognitive treatment of pathological gamblers. Behav Res Ther. 1998;36:1111–9.
Gaboury A, Ladouceur R. Erroneous perceptions and gambling. J Soc Behav Pers. 1989;4:411–20.
Echeburúa E, Báez C, Fernández-Montalvo J. Comparative effectiveness of three therapeutic modalities in the psychological treatment of pathological gambling: long-term outcome. Behav Cogn Psychother. 1996;24:51–72.
Bujold A, Ladouceur R, Sylvain C, Boisvert J. Treatment of pathological gamblers: an experimental study. J Behav Ther Exp Psychiatry. 1994;25:275–82.
Ladouceur R, Sylvain C, Boutin C, Lachance S, Doucet C, Leblond J. Group therapy for pathological gamblers: a cognitive approach. Behav Res Ther. 2003;41:587–96.
Sylvain C, Ladouceur R, Boisvert J. Cognitive and behavioral treatment of pathological gambling: a controlled study. J Consult Clin Psychol. 1997;65:727–32.
Lesieur HR, Blume SB. The South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS): a new instrument for the identification of problem gamblers. Am J Psychiatr. 1987;144:1184–8.
Ladouceur R, Sylvain C, Boutin C, Lachance S, Doucet C, Leblond J, Jacques C. Cognitive treatment of pathological gambling. J Nerv Ment Dis. 2001;189:774–80.
Myrseth H, Litlerè I, Støylen IJ, Pallesen S. A controlled study of the effect of cognitive-behavioural group therapy for pathological gamblers. Nord J Psychiatry. 2009;63:22–31.
Dowling N, Smith D, Thomas T. A comparison of individual and group cognitive-behavioural treatment for female pathological gambling. Behav Res Ther. 2007;45:2192–202.
Smith DP, Battersby MW, Harvey PW, Pols RG, Ladouceur R. Cognitive versus exposure therapy for problem gambling: randomised controlled trial. Behav Res Ther. 2015;69:100–10.
Morasco BJ, Weinstock J, Ledgerwood DM, Petry NM. Psychological factors that promote and inhibit pathological gambling. Cogn Behav Pract. 2007;14(2):208–17.
Kang Y, Gruber J, Gray JR. Mindfulness and de-automatization. Emot Rev. 2013;5:192–201.
Lakey CE, Campbell WK, Brown KW, Goodie AS. Dispositional mindfulness as a predictor of the severity of gambling outcomes. Personal Individ Differ. 2007;43:1698–710.
Riley B. Experiential avoidance mediates the association between thought suppression and mindfulness with problem gambling. J Gambl Stud. 2014;30:163–71.
de Lisle SM, Dowling NA, Sabura Allen J. Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for problem gambling. Clin Case Stud. 2011;10:210–28.
Toneatto T, Nguyen L. Does mindfulness meditation improve anxiety and mood symptoms? A review of the controlled research. Can J Psychiatr. 2007;52:260–6.
Toneatto T, Pillai S, Courtice EL. Mindfulness-enhanced cognitive behavioral therapy for problem gambling: a controlled pilot study. Int J Ment Health Addict. 2014;12:197–205.
Jimenez-Murcia S, Aymamí N, Gómez-Peña M, Santamaría JJ, Álvarez-Moya E, Fernández-Aranda F, et al. Does exposure and response prevention improve the results of group cognitive-behavioral therapy for male slot machine pathological gamblers? Br J Clin Psychol. 2012;51:54–71.
Shaffer HJ, Martin R. Disordered gambling: etiology, trajectory, and clinical considerations. Annu Rev Clin Psychol. 2011;7:483–510.
Griffiths MD. The role of cognitive bias and skill in fruit machine gambling. Br J Psychol. 1994;85:351–69.
Yurica CL, DiTomasso RA. Cognitive distortions. In: Encyclopedia of cognitive behavior therapy. New York: Springer; 2005. p. 117–22.
Toneatto T, Blitz-Miller T, Calderwood K, Dragonetti R, Tsanos A. Cognitive distortions in heavy gambling. J Gambl Stud. 1997;13:253–66.
Delfabbro PH, Winefield AH. Predictors of irrational thinking in irregular slot machine gamblers. J Psychol. 2000;134(2):117–28.
Baboushkin HR, Hardoon KK, Derevensky JL, Gupta R. Underlying cognitions in gambling behavior among university students. J Appl Soc Psychol. 2001;31:1409–30.
Hardoon KK, Baboushkin HR, Derevensky JL, Gupta R. Underlying cognitions in the selection of lottery tickets. J Clin Psychol. 2001;57:749–63.
Coventry KR, Norman AC. Arousal, erroneous verbalizations and the illusion of control during a computer-generated gambling task. Br J Psychol. 1998;89:629–45.
Petry NP. Pathological gambling: etiology, comorbidity, and treatment. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association; 2004.
Wagenaar WA. Paradoxes of gambling behaviour. London: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates; 1988.
Tversky A, Kahneman D. Belief in the law of small numbers. Psychol Bull. 1971;76:105–10.
Koriat A, Lichtenstein S, Fischhoff B. Reasons for confidence. J Exp Psychol Hum Learn Mem. 1980;6:107–18.
Goodie AS. The role of perceived control and overconfidence in pathological gambling. J Gambl Stud. 2005;21:481–502.
Lakey CE, Goodie AS, Lance CE, Stinchfield R, Winters KC. Examining DSM-IV criteria in gambling pathology: psychometric properties and evidence from cognitive biases. J Gambl Stud. 2007;23:479–98.
Haigh J. The statistics of the national lottery. J R Stat Soc Ser A Stat Soc. 1997;160:187–206.
Holtgraves T, Skeel J. Cognitive biases in playing the lottery: estimating the odds and choosing the numbers. J Appl Soc Psychol. 1992;22:934–52.
Rogers P, Webley P. “It could be us!”: cognitive and social psychological factors in UK national lottery play. Appl Psychol Int Rev. 2001;50:181–99.
Haynes SN, Richard D, Kubany ES. Content validity in psychological assessment: a functional approach to concepts and methods. Psychol Assess. 1995;7(3):238–47.
Guion RM. Content validity—the source of my discontent. Appl Psychol Methods. 1977;1:1–10.
Breen RB, Zuckerman M. ‘Chasing’ in gambling behavior: personality and cognitive determinants. Personal Individ Differ. 1999;27:1097–111.
Jefferson S, Nicki R. A new instrument to measure cognitive distortions in video lottery terminal users: the informational biases scale (IBS). J Gambl Stud. 2003;19:387–403.
Brown TA. Introduction to CFA (Ch. 3). In Brown TA, editor. Confirmatory factor analysis for applied research. 2006. Retrieved from http://www.ophi.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/Brown-Ch-3.pdf.
Gorsuch RL. Exploratory factor analysis: its role in item analysis. J Pers Assess. 1997;68:532–60.
Brown TA. The common factor model and exploratory factor analysis (Ch. 2). In Brown TA, editor. Confirmatory factor analysis for applied research. 2006. Retrieved from http://www.ophi.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/Brown-Ch-2.pdf.
Vandenberg RJ, Lance CE. A review and synthesis of the measurement invariance literature: suggestions, practices, and recommendations for organizational research. Organ Res Methods. 2000;3(1):4–70.
Horn JL, McArdle JJ. A practical and theoretical guide to measurement invariance in aging research. Exp Aging Res. 1992;18:117–44.
Strong DR, Breen RB, Lejuez CW. Using item response theory to examine gambling attitudes and beliefs. Personal Individ Differ. 2004;36:1515–29.
Tochkov K. The effects of anticipated regret on risk preferences of social and problem gamblers. Judgm Decis Mak. 2009;4:227–34.
Neighbors C, Lostutter TW, Larimer ME, Takuski RY. Measuring gambling outcomes among college students. J Gambl Stud. 2002;18:339–60.
Callan MJ, Ellard JH, Shead NW, Hodgins DC. Gambling as a search for justice: examining the role of personal relative deprivation in gambling urges and gambling behavior. Personal Soc Psychol Bull. 2008;34:1514–29.
Strong DR, Daughters SB, Lejuez CW, Breen RB. Using the Rasch model to develop a revised gambling attitudes and beliefs scale (GABS) for use with male college student gamblers. Subst Use Misuse. 2004;39:1013–24.
Bouju G, Hardouin JB, Boutin C, Gorwood P, Le Bourvellec JD, Feuillet F, Venisse JL, Grall-Bronnec M. A shorter and multidimensional version of the Gambling Attitudes and Beliefs Survey (GABS-23). J Gambl Stud. 2014;30:349–67.
Grant LD, Bowling AC. Gambling attitudes and beliefs predict attentional bias in non-problem gamblers. J Gambl Stud. 2015;31(4):1487–503.
Marchetti D, Whelan JP, Verrocchio MC, Ginley MK, Fulcheri M, Relyea GE, Meyers AW. Psychometric evaluation of the Italian translation of the Gamblers’ Beliefs Questionnaire. Int Gambl Stud. 2016;16(1):17–30.
Moore SM, Ohtsuka K. Beliefs about control over gambling among young people, and their relation to problem gambling. Psychol Addict Behav. 1999;13:339–47.
Mattson RE, MacKillop J, Castelda BA, Anderson EJ, Donovick PJ. The Factor structure of gambling-related cognitions in an undergraduate university sample. J Psychopathol Behav Assess. 2008;30:229–34.
Shaffer HJ, LaBrie R, Scanlan KM, Cummings TN. Pathological gambling among adolescents: Massachusetts Gambling Screen (MAGS). J Gambl Stud. 1994;10:339–62.
Winfree WR, Ginley MK, Whelan JP, Meyers AW. Psychometric evaluation of the Gamblers’ Beliefs Questionnaire with treatment-seeking disordered gamblers. Addict Behav. 2015;43:97–102.
Winfree WR, Meyers AW, Whelan JP. Validation of a Spanish translation of the Gamblers’ Beliefs Questionnaire. Psychol Addict Behav. 2013;27(1):274.
Wong SS, Tsang SK. Validation of the Chinese version of the gamblers’ belief questionnaire (GBQ-C). J Gambl Stud. 2012;28(4):561–72.
Tang CSK, Wu AM. Gambling-related cognitive biases and pathological gambling among youths, young adults, and mature adults in Chinese societies. J Gambl Stud. 2012;28(1):139–54.
MacKay TL, Bard N, Bowling M, Hodgins DC. Do pokers players know how good they are? Accuracy of poker skill estimation in online and offline players. Comput Hum Behav. 2014;31:419–24.
MacKillop J, Anderson EJ, Castelda BA, Mattson RE, Donovick PJ. Convergent validity of measures of cognitive distortions, impulsivity, and time perspective with pathological gambling. Psychol Addict Behav. 2006;20:75–9.
Mitrovic DV, Brown J. Poker mania and problem gambling: a study of distorted cognitions, motivation and alexithymia. J Gambl Stud. 2009;25:489–502.
Doiron JP, Nicki RM. Prevention of pathological gambling: a randomized controlled trial. Cogn Behav Ther. 2007;36:74–84.
Wohl MJA, Young MM, Hart KE. Untreated young gamblers with game-specific problems: self-concept involving luck, gambling ecology and delay in seeking professional treatment. Addict Res Ther. 2005;13:445–59.
Wohl MJA, Young MM, Hart KE. Self-perceptions of dispositional luck: relationship to DSM gambling symptoms, subjective enjoyment of gambling and treatment readiness. Subst Use Misuse. 2007;42:43–63.
Young MM, Wohl MJA, Matheson K, Baumann S, Anisman H. The desire to gamble: the influence of outcomes on the priming effects of a gambling episode. J Gambl Stud. 2008;24:275–93.
Moodie C. An exploratory investigation into the erroneous cognitions of pathological and social fruit machine gamblers. J Gambl Iss. 2007;19:31–50.
Moodie C. Student gambling, erroneous cognitions, and awareness of treatment in Scotland. J of Gambl Iss. 2008;21:30–54.
Gerstein DR, Volberg RA, Harwood R, Christiansen EM. Gambling impact and behavior study: report to the national gambling impact study commission. Chicago, IL: National Opinion Research Center, University of Chicago; 1999.
Ferris J, Wynne H. The Canadian Problem Gambling Index: final report. Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse; 2001.
MacLaren V, Ellery M, Knoll T. Personality, gambling motives and cognitive distortions in electronic gambling machine players. Personal Individ Differ. 2015;73:24–8.
Wohl MJ, Gainsbury S, Stewart MJ, Sztainert T. Facilitating responsible gambling: the relative effectiveness of education-based animation and monetary limit setting pop-up messages among electronic gaming machine players. J Gambl Stud. 2013;29(4):703–17.
Ciccarelli M, Griffiths MD, Nigro G, Cosenza M. Decision-making, cognitive distortions and alcohol use in adolescent problem and non-problem gamblers: an experimental study. J Gambl Stud. 2016;32(4):1203–13.
Oei TP, Lin J, Raylu N. Validation of the Chinese version of the Gambling Related Cognitions Scale (GRCS-C). J Gambl Stud. 2007;23:309–22.
Edmond MS, Marmurek HHC. Gambling related cognitions mediate the association between thinking style and problem gambling severity. J Gambl Stud. 2010;26:257–67.
Taylor RN, Parker JD, Keefer KV, Kloosterman PH, Summerfeldt LJ. Are gambling related cognitions in adolescence multidimensional?: factor structure of the gambling related cognitions scale. J Gambl Stud. 2014;30(2):453–65.
Smith D, Woodman R, Drummond A, Battersby M. Exploring the measurement structure of the Gambling Related Cognitions Scale (GRCS) in treatment-seekers: a Bayesian structural equation modelling approach. Psychiatry Res. 2016;237:90–6.
Oei TP, Lin J, Raylu N. The relationship between gambling cognitions, psychological states, and gambling: a cross-cultural study of Chinese and Caucasians in Australia. J Cross-Cult Psychol. 2008;39:147–61.
Arcan K, Karanci AN. Adaptation study of the Turkish version of the Gambling-Related Cognitions Scale (GRCS-T). J Gambl Stud. 2015;31(1):211–24.
Potenza MN. The neural bases of cognitive processes in gambling disorder. Trends Cogn Sci. 2014;18(8):429–38.
Worhunsky PD, Malison RT, Rogers RD, Potenza MN. Altered neural correlates of reward and loss processing during simulated slot-machine fMRI in pathological gambling and cocaine dependence. Drug Alcohol Depend. 2014;145:77–86.
Iliceto P, Fino E, Cammarota C, Giovani E, Petrucci F, Desimoni M, et al. Factor structure and psychometric properties of the Italian version of the Gambling Related Cognitions Scale (GRCS-I). J Gambl Stud. 2015;31(1):225–42.
Yokomitsu K, Takahashi T, Kanazawa J, Sakano Y. Development and validation of the Japanese version of the Gambling Related Cognitions Scale (GRCS-J). Asian J Gambl Issues Public Health. 2015;5(1):1.
Kale S, Dubelaar C. Assessment of reliability and validity of the Gambling Related Cognitions Scale (GRCS). Gambl Res. 2013;25(1):25.
Xian H, Shah KR, Phillips SM, Scherrer JF, Volberg R, Eisen SA. The association of cognitive distortions with problem and pathological gambling in adult male twins. Psychiatry Res. 2008;160(3):300–7.
Wohl MJA, Stewart MJ, Young MM. Personal luck usage scale (PLUS): psychometric validation of a measure of gambling-related belief in luck as a personal possession. Int Gambl Stud. 2011;11(1):7–11.
McInnes A, Hodgins DC, Holub A. The gambling cognitions inventory: scale development and psychometric validation with problem and pathological gamblers. Int Gambl Stud. 2014;14(3):410–31.
Darke PR, Freedman JL. The belief in good luck scale. J Res Pers. 1997;31:486–511.
Wohl MJA, Enzle ME. The deployment of personal luck: sympathetic magic and illusory control in games of pure chance. Personal Soc Psychol Bull. 2002;28:1388–97.
Ferland F, Ladouceur R, Vitaro F. Prevention of problem gambling: modifying misconceptions and increasing knowledge. J Gambl Stud. 2002;18:19–29.
Maltby J, Day L, Gill P, Colley A, Wood AM. Beliefs around luck: confirming the empirical conceptualization of beliefs around luck and the development of the Darke and Freeman beliefs around luck scale. Personal Individ Differ. 2008;45:655–60.
Thompson ER, Prendergast GP. Belief in luck and luckiness: conceptual clarification and new measure validation. Personal Individ Differ. 2013;54:501–6.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2019 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Goodie, A.S., Fortune, E.E., Shotwell, J.J. (2019). Cognitive Distortions in Disordered Gambling. In: Heinz, A., Romanczuk-Seiferth, N., Potenza, M. (eds) Gambling Disorder. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03060-5_4
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03060-5_4
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-030-03058-2
Online ISBN: 978-3-030-03060-5
eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)