Interference-based methods to mitigate gambling craving: a proof-of-principle pilot study

Craving is central in the prognosis of gambling disorder. The elaborated intrusion theory (EIT) provides a sound framework to account for craving in addictive disorders, and interference methods inspired from the EIT have substantiated their effectiveness in mitigating substance and food-related cravings. The principle of these methods is to recruit the cognitive resources underlying craving (e.g., visuospatial skills, mental imagery) for another competitive and cognitively demanding task, thus reducing the vividness and overwhelming nature of craving. Here we conducted two experiments employing a between-subjects design to test the efficacy of interference methods for reducing laboratory-induced craving. In these experiments, gamblers (n = 38 for both experiments) first followed a craving induction procedure. They then performed either a visuospatial interference task (making a mental and vivid image of a bunch of keys [experiment 1] or playing the video game Tetris [experiment 2]; experimental conditions) or another task supposed not to recruit visuospatial skills and mental imagery (exploding bubble pack [experiment 1] or counting backwards [experiment 2]; control conditions). Results show that all methods successively mitigated induced craving. Although previous research evidenced the superiority of visuospatial tasks to reduce substance-related craving, our findings question their superiority in the context of gambling craving

A cognitive approach to gambling craving : conceptualization, assessment and intervention

Research has highlighted the pivotal role of craving in the onset and perpetuation of gambling disorder. This has led to a growing interest about craving in research and in clinical practice, even though it is not included as a diagnostic criterion in international nosography manuals. Craving was systematically studied by reusing existing models and assessment instruments related to substance-use disorders and by applying a confirmatory approach, which might have resulted in neglecting the unique features of gambling craving. In this PhD thesis, we instead adopted an exploratory approach to improve the conceptualization, assessment, and treatment of gambling craving. In a first study, a mixed-method approach was used to explore the phenomenology of gambling craving. The results were put into perspective with the elaborated intrusion theory (EIT) of desire, an increasingly popular cognitive theory of desire and craving that has been applied to substance and food craving in the recent years. This first study supports the relevance of the EIT to account for gambling craving. The next two studies investigated the properties of two instruments that aim to assess gambling craving. On the one hand, the gambling craving scale is a widely used tool that is used to evaluate gambling craving in research. Yet, we found that this scale rather measures urge, a motivational component of craving that corresponds to positive and negative expectations. On the other hand, and by capitalizing on the results from our first study, we adapted and validated in the context of gambling the Craving Experience Questionnaire, which is theorized in the EIT. Our gambling version of the questionnaire presented the same factorial structure as the original one. In a fourth study composed of two experiments, we tested the effect of interference-based methods, also grounded in the EIT, on laboratory induced gambling craving. We found that these interventions successfully diminished laboratory-induced gambling. These encouraging results should be reproduced in clinical samples. The final chapter consists in a study protocol presenting a multiple single-case design that aims to test the interference-based methods among clinical gamblers and in a real clinical setting. Overall, this PhD thesis offers perspectives of tailored assessment and psychological intervention among individuals presenting problematic gambling patterns, and it supports the relevance for further clinical investigation.Le trouble lié au jeu d’argent est reconnu comme un trouble addictif dans les dernières éditions des principaux manuels diagnostiques. Bien qu’il ne soit pas inclus comme un critère diagnostique, de nombreuses études considèrent le craving comme un facteur favorisant ce trouble. Dans cette thèse, nous avons investigué la phénoménologie du craving au jeu d’argent avec une méthode mixte dans une optique exploratoire. Les résultats ont été mis en perspective avec une théorie cognitive du craving : la théorie de l’intrusion élaborée, démontrant la pertinence de cette dernière pour rendre compte du craving au jeu. Les propriétés psychométriques de deux échelles ont ensuite été investiguées afin de mesure adéquatement ce phénomène. Finalement, nous avons testé la méthode d’interférence, une intervention visant à réduire le craving au jeu d’argent. Cette thèse offre des perspectives d’interventions adaptées pour les personnes souffrant d’un trouble lié au jeu d’argent et encourage à poursuivre la recherche en population clinique.(PSYE - Sciences psychologiques et de l'éducation) -- UCL, 202

Integrating Desire Thinking into the I-PACE Model: a Special Focus on Internet-Use Disorders

Purpose of Review This manuscript aims to propose an integration of desire thinking into the Interaction of Person-Affect-Cognition-Execution (I-PACE) model based on theoretical considerations within the Elaborated Intrusion Theory of Desire and Self-Regulatory Execution Function model and empirical evidence from the field of internet-use disorders. Recent Findings Theory and research on desire thinking in the context of internet-use disorders suggest considerable relations to craving, metacognitive beliefs, and emphasizes its nature when initiated as a reaction towards unpleasant triggers. Accordingly, we postulate that desire thinking may be located at the position for affective and cognitive reactions towards triggers within the I-PACE model. Summary The suggested integration of desire thinking into the I-PACE model specifically implies the assumption of a relief-oriented and pleasure-oriented entry pathway into desire thinking and a feedback loop between desire thinking and the experience of gratification and compensation. The model pathways proposed here may serve as a theoretical basis for future research and need further empirical verification

Probing gambling urge as a state construct: Evidence from a sample of community gamblers

Little effort has been made to systematically test the psychometric properties of the Gambling Craving Scale (GACS; Young & Wohl, 2009). The GACS is adapted from the Questionnaire on Smoking Urges (Tiffany & Drobes, 1991) and thus measures gambling-related urge. Crucially, the validation of scales assessing gambling urge is complex, as this construct is better conceptualized as a state (a transient and context-determined phenomenon). In the present study, we tested the psychometric properties of the French version of the GACS with 2 independent samples of community gamblers following an induction procedure delivered through an audio-guided imagery sequence aimed at promoting gambling urge. This procedure was specifically used to ensure the assessment of gambling urge as a state variable. Participants also completed measures of gambling severity, gambling cognitions and motives, impulsivity, and affect. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) showed that the original 3-factor solution (anticipation, desire, relief) did not fit the data well. Additional exploratory factor analysis (EFA) suggested instead a 2-factor solution: intention and desire to gamble dimension and a relief dimension. The factorial structure resulting from the EFA was tested with CFA in a second independent sample, resulting in an acceptable fit. The 2 dimensions presented good internal reliability and correlated differentially with the other study’s variables. The current study showed that, similar to what has been reported for substance-related urges, gambling urges are adequately probed with a bidimensional model. The findings suggest that the French GACS has good psychometric properties, legitimizing its use in research and clinical practice

Probing gambling urge as a state construct: Evidence from a sample of community gamblers.

Little effort has been made to systematically test the psychometric properties of the Gambling Craving Scale (GACS; Young & Wohl, 2009). The GACS is adapted from the Questionnaire on Smoking Urges (Tiffany & Drobes, 1991) and thus measures gambling-related urge. Crucially, the validation of scales assessing gambling urge is complex because this construct is better conceptualized as a state (a transient and contextdetermined phenomenon). In the present study, we tested the psychometric properties of the French version of the GACS with 2 independent samples of community gamblers following an induction procedure delivered through an audio-guided imagery sequence aimed at promoting gambling urge. This procedure was specifically used to ensure the assessment of gambling urge as a state variable. Participants also completed measures of gambling severity, gambling cognitions and motives, impulsivity, and affect. Confirmatory factor analysis showed that the original 3-factor solution (anticipation, desire, relief) did not fit the data well. Additional exploratory factor analysis suggested instead a 2-factor solution: an intention and desire to gamble dimension and a relief dimension. The factorial structure resulting from the exploratory factor analysis was tested with confirmatory factor analysis in a second independent sample, resulting in an acceptable fit. The 2 dimensions presented good internal reliability and correlated differentially with the other study’s variables. The current study showed that, similar to what has been reported for substance-related urges, gambling urges are adequately probed with a bidimensional model. The findings suggest that the French GACS has good psychometric properties, legitimizing its use in research and clinical practice

The gambling craving experience questionnaire: Psychometric properties of a new scale based on the elaborated intrusion theory of desire

Both research and clinical practice acknowledge the importance of craving as a maintenance and relapse factor in gambling disorder. The elaborated intrusion theory (EIT; Kavanagh et al., 2005) of desire has been extensively investigated in relation to psychoactive substance or food cravings but, to date, has scarcely been studied in relation to gambling. In such a context, developing an assessment tool of gambling craving based on the EIT is warranted. To fill this gap in the literature, we aimed to develop and test the psychometric properties of a gambling-adapted version of the Craving Experience Questionnaire (CEQ; May et al., 2014), which is the best established measure of craving theoretically anchored in the EIT. An online survey that included the gambling CEQ (g-CEQ) and a craving induction procedure was administered to 274 community participants involved in gambling at least a few times a year. Concurrent and convergent validity were explored through correlations with a scale that measured gambling urge and with a series of questionnaires that measured disordered gambling symptoms, gambling cognitions, and gambling motives. The confirmatory factor analyses supported the validity of the expected three-factor model of the "strength" and "frequency" forms of the g-CEQ and showed better model fit than a one-factor solution, corroborating the initial structure of the CEQ. Furthermore, the scale has good internal consistency and its validity is supported by correlations with gambling-related constructs. The g-CEQ is thus a theoretically and psychometrically sound instrument to measure gambling craving based on the EIT

Validation of the Transaddiction Craving Triggers Questionnaire in alcohol use disorders

International audienc

The Mediating Effects of Perceived Family Support in the Relationship Between Anxiety and Problematic Smartphone Use : A Cross-Cultural Validation

Problematic smartphone use (PSU) is frequently considered a public health issue, especially in East Asia and Europe. Yet, there is a paucity of research focusing on cultural and familial determinants of PSU. This cross-cultural study aimed to investigate smartphone usage patterns and possible mediating effects of perceived family support (PFS) from a stress-coping perspective. Convenience samples of 790 Chinese and 439 Belgian undergraduates completed an online survey that focused on sociodemographics and psychological variables (i.e., anxiety, depression, PFS, and PSU). In both samples, PSU was positively associated with anxiety and depression, and negatively associated with PFS. However, after controlling for sex and age in structural equation models, the consistent mediating effects of PFS were only found between anxiety and PSU in both cultural settings. These findings suggest that psychological interventions that take into account familial factors could be helpful for young people presenting with anxiety and PSU