Compulsive Gambling

Compulsive Gambling 1

Running Head : The Psychological Perspectives of Compulsive Gambling

An Integration of Psychological Perspectives on Compulsive Gambling

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May 2007

Compulsive Gambling 2

Compulsive or pathological gambling has been identified as a clinical disease and categorized in the DSM III as an impulse dis since it basically is a condition wherein the individual cannot control the compulsion to gamble . Gambling as a recreational sport has been differentiated from compulsive gambling in terms of the degree to which the gambling behavior

disrupts the normal functioning of the individual how it affects the person 's ability to earn a living , to maintain relationships , to provide for the family , and to fulfill his /her varied duties and responsibilities . Compulsive gambling is associated with alcoholism and other risk taking behavior which may negatively impact the quality of life of the individual . Many studies had been conducted on the nature and treatment of compulsive gambling but there has been fewer investigations done on the why and how of compulsive gambling . At present there are two schools of thought that explain the development of compulsive gambling the biological approach and the psychological approach . The biological approach says that the compulsion to gamble is caused by the short circuit of neural activities and responses as well as the abnormal amount of neurotransmitters in the brain that affects the ability of the brain to control the impulses of the body (DeCaria Hollander , Grossman et al , 1996 . Compulsive gambling is a form of addiction that is based on the interplay of the hormones in the body This perspective says that compulsive gambling is similar to obsessive compulsive dis in the sense that the person cannot control these impulses because it is caused by internal drives and signals which are anxiety provoking and can only be resolved by satisfying that compulsion . The other perspective is psychological and within which has offered various ways of examining

Compulsive Gambling 3

compulsive gambling , these include the psychoanalytic perspective social behavioral learning perspective and cognitive perspective

The psychological approach states that compulsive gambling is a human behavior and which can be explained by using the psychological viewpoint in the sense that the addiction to gambling is not biological in nature but rather one that is rooted in the id , socialization , operant conditioning and irrational thinking . The psychoanalytic perspective as postulated by Freud argued that compulsive gambling is associated with the Oedipal complex and it is likened to the act of deriving sexual or pleasurable gratification as gambling is gratifying to the individual and hence becomes an addictive behavior as the person derives intense satisfaction from the behavior (Rosenthal , 1986 . At present , Rosenthal (1986 ) has proposed that compulsive gambling is developed in relation to the anal stage and pre-Oedipal stage since pathological gamblers are narcissistic and tend to have a greater need to satisfy the needs of the id . Compulsive gambling is therefore viewed as a form of addiction that is mainly based on the instinctual demands of...