Perceptions of Blame in Intimate Partner Violence: The Role of the Perpetrator\u27s Ability to Arouse Fear of Injury in the Victim

Men are more likely to be blamed more for intimate partner violence (IPV) than are women who commit the same offense. However, because men are typically stronger and perceived as more physically aggressive than women are, perpetrator sex is confounded with masculinity and the ability to arouse fear in the victim. This study disentangled the construct of gender in understanding bystanders’ attributions of blame in IPV. Participants (N = 639) read a scenario in which the perpetrator’s sex (male/female) and gender identity (masculine/feminine), and the victim’s sex (male/female) were manipulated and rated how much they blamed the perpetrator and the perpetrator’s ability to arouse fear of injury in the victim. Results showed that male perpetrators (regardless of gender identity) who assaulted a female victim were attributed the most blame and were perceived as having the greatest ability to arouse victim fear. In contrast, feminine female perpetrators were attributed the least blame and perceived as arousing the least victim fear regardless of the victim’s gender. Furthermore, controlling for the perpetrator’s ability to arouse fear in the victim resulted in the elimination of the interaction effects for blame. This finding suggests that perpetrators’ ability to arouse fear is an underlying factor in bystanders’ attributions of blame

Sports Wagering in the United States: What We Do and Don\u27t Know

Abstract In the wake of the Murphy vs. NCAA decision by the Supreme Court of the United States, over 30 states now permit sports betting and a majority of Americans now have access to this activity. Even so, much remains unknown about the effects of widespread access to sports betting in the U.S. The present work reports interim results of multi-year data collection efforts in the U.S. In April of 2022, a U.S. nationally representative sample of 2,806 Americans and an additional sample of 1,553 sports wagering people were recruited by YouGov opinion polling, with follow up data collected in October of 2022, and planned data collections for January of 2023 and April of 2023, prior to the IGI conference, with more planned throughout 2023 and 2024. Initial results suggest that sports wagering remains a relatively niche gambling activity, but one that is associated with risk for and symptoms of gambling disorder. Additionally, sports betting is associated with a range of other addictive behaviors such as substance use and compulsive sexual behavior. Collectively, these results suggest that sports betting, though not especially common in the American populace, should be thought of as a risk-taking behavior that warrants further empirical study. Implications Statement Sports betting in the U.S. is now more accessible than ever, though many questions remain about the effects of this accessibility. The present study suggests that sports wagering is a unique risk-taking behavior associated with a range of other impulsive and addictive behaviors

Common Features in Compulsive Sexual Behavior, Substance Use Disorders, Personality, Temperament and Attachment—a Narrative Review

Do addictions share common traits of an “addictive personality” or do different addictions have distinct personality profiles? This narrative review examines the differences in the associations between substance use disorder (SUD) and compulsive sexual behavior disorder (CSBD), on the one hand, and personality traits, attachment dispositions, and temperament, on the other hand. We found that both people with a SUD and people with CSBD tended to be more spontaneous, careless, and less reliable, to place self-interest above getting along with others, to show emotional instability and experience negative emotions such as anger, anxiety, and/or depression, to be less able to control their attention and/or behavior, and to be engulfed with a constant sensation of “wanting”. Only people with CSBD, but not SUD, noted concerns with their social ties, fear of losing close others, and/or trusting others around them. Results also suggested that people with a SUD and people with CSBD share high commonalities in personality traits and temperament, yet there are noted differences in their social tendencies, especially with close others. People with CSBD reported more concerns with possible relationship losses compared to people with SUD issues, who may be more worried about losing their source of escapism

Differences in Positive Play Among Specific Sports Wagering Behaviors

Presentation Abstract: Since the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Murphy vs. NCAA, a majority of states have legalized and launched sports gambling. With the increased prevalence of sports wagering, there are many concerns about possible increases in problem gambling and the effects of specific wagering behaviors (e.g., in-game bets vs. pre-game bets; money-line wagers vs. parlay cards) on problem gambling outcomes. More generally, while the literature surrounding sports gambling is increasing, little is known about specific wagering practices. Similarly, little is known about how responsible gaming practices (i.e., as measured by the Positive Play Scale) might be related to specific sports wagering habits. The present research aims to address this gap in research by exploring the differences in responsible play between the most popular forms of sports wagering. We assess these factors in a sample of adults in the United States who have recently bet on sports (N = 1,553) and a more general, representative sample of the U.S. population (N = 2,806). Results generally indicate that specific sports wagering behaviors are indeed related to positive play behaviors, which suggests that responsible gaming practices do influence the types of wagering people engage in. Implications Statement: Understanding the differences between responsible gambling behaviors of various forms of sports gambling could help understand what behaviors to look for in potential problem gamblers. If it can be determined which types of sports gambling are more associated with irresponsible gambling behavior, new targets for education and prevention efforts can be generated

Examining the Interaction between Financial Gambling Motives and Socioeconomic Status in Predicting Gambling in a U.S. Nationally Representative Sample

Presentation Abstract: There is still much unknown about the socioeconomic (SES) roots of Problem Gambling (PG), especially given recent evidence that SES should be understood both in objective and subjective terms. Further, the motivation to gambler for financial gain has been identified as a key factor in the transition from recreational gambling to problem gambling. A such, there is a need for research seeking to understand how SES and perceived financial deprivation influence the relationship between motivations for gambling—particularly financial motives—and outcomes of gambling. Using a weighted, nationally representative sample of adults in the U.S. (N = 2,806), as well as a sample of adults in the U.S. who have recently bet on sports (N = 1,500), the present work will test the interaction between financial gambling motives and both objective (e.g., income) and subjective (e.g., perceived deprivation) SES in predicting problem gambling. Implications Statement: The study will allow us to draw inferences about the role of gambling motives and SES in Problem Gambling (PG). Findings will help to identify clear risk factors for problem gambling behavior among economically and socially disadvantaged populations

Self-reported Addiction to Pornography in a Nationally Representative Sample: The Roles of Use Habits, Religiousness, and Moral Incongruence

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Despite controversies regarding its existence as a legitimate mental health condition, self-reports of pornography addiction seem to occur regularly. In the United States, prior works using various sampling techniques, such as undergraduate samples and online convenience samples, have consistently demonstrated that some pornography users report feeling dysregulated or out of control in their use. Even so, there has been very little work in US nationally representative samples to examine self-reported pornography addiction. METHODS: This study sought to examine self-reported pornography addiction in a US nationally representative sample of adult Internet users (N = 2,075). RESULTS: The results indicated that most participants had viewed pornography within their lifetimes (n = 1,461), with just over half reporting some use in the past year (n = 1,056). Moreover, roughly 11% of men and 3% of women reported some agreement with the statement I am addicted to pornography. Across all participants, such feelings were most strongly associated with male gender, younger age, greater religiousness, greater moral incongruence regarding pornography use, and greater use of pornography. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: Collectively, these findings are consistent with prior works that have noted that self-reported pornography addiction is a complex phenomenon that is predicted by both objective behavior and subjective moral evaluations of that behavior

Problem Gambling and Cognitive Distortions among Macao VIP Hosts: A Brief Report

This report investigates the understudied group of VIP Hosts in Macao casinos, who cater to high rollers and may be more vulnerable to problem gambling due to their exposure to heavy betting. To comprehensively profile their gambling behaviors and cognitions, we conducted an anonymous online survey using the Chinese Version of South Oaks Gambling Screen (C-SOGS) and the Gambling Fallacies Measure (GFM). Given the difficulty of accessing this population, we employed the snowball sampling technique to recruit eligible participants. Our analysis included data from 41 participants, and the findings revealed high levels of gambling-related cognitive distortions among VIP Hosts. In addition, 83% of the respondents were classified as non-problem gamblers, with 10% of respondents classified as at-risk gamblers, and 7% classified as pathological gamblers. Despite the small sample size, this report offers a preliminary understanding of VIP Hosts’ gambling behaviors in Macao, paving the way for future research

Recommendations for increasing research on co-occurring serious mental illness and gambling problems : Commentary on: Disordered gambling and psychosis: Prevalence and clinical correlates (Cassetta et al., 2018)

Psychiatric disorders frequently co-occur with gambling disorder. Although community and clinical samples show frequent co-occurrence between gambling and psychotic disorders, relatively little research has been conducted on this population. Here, we comment on a recent study conducted in Brazil on the clinical correlates of psychotic disorders in treatment-seeking individuals with gambling disorder, relate the findings to those from the northeastern region of the United States, and discuss implications with respect to promoting responsible gambling in the setting of the expansion of legalized gambling

Probing the Large Faraday Rotation Measure Environment of Compact Active Galactic Nuclei

Knowing how the ambient medium in the vicinity of active galactic nuclei (AGNs) is shaped is crucial to understanding generally the evolution of such cosmic giants as well as AGN jet formation and launching. Thanks to the new broadband capability now available at the Jansky Very Large Array (JVLA), we can study changes in polarization properties, fractional polarization, and polarization angles, together with the total intensity spectra of a sample of 14 AGNs, within a frequency range from 1 to 12 GHz. Depolarization modeling has been performed by means of so-called "qu-fitting" to the polarized data, and a synchrotron self absorption model has been used for fitting to the total intensity data. We found complex behavior both in the polarization spectra and in the total intensity spectra, and several Faraday components with a large rotation measure (RM) and several synchrotron components were needed to represent these spectra. Here, results for three targets are shown. This new method of analyzing broadband polarization data through qu-fitting successfully maps the complex surroundings of unresolved objects