The intergenerational transmission of problem gambling : the mediating role of parental psychopathology
- Authors: Dowling, Nicki , Shandley, Kerrie , Oldenhof, Erin , Youssef, George , Thomas, Shane
- Date: 2016
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Addictive Behaviors Vol. 59, no. (2016), p. 12-17
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- Description: The present study investigated the intergenerational transmission of problem gambling and the potential mediating role of parental psychopathology (problem drinking, drug use problems, and mental health issues). The study comprised 3953 participants (1938 males, 2015 females) recruited from a large-scale Australian community telephone survey of adults retrospectively reporting on parental problem gambling and psychopathology during their childhood. Overall, 4.0% [95%CI 3.0, 5.0] (n = 157) of participants reported paternal problem gambling and 1.7% [95%CI 1.0, 2.0] (n = 68) reported maternal problem gambling. Compared to their peers, participants reporting paternal problem gambling were 5.1 times more likely to be moderate risk gamblers and 10.7 times more likely to be problem gamblers. Participants reporting maternal problem gambling were 1.7 times more likely to be moderate risk gamblers and 10.6 times more likely to be problem gamblers. The results revealed that the relationships between paternal-and-participant and maternal-and-participant problem gambling were significant, but that only the relationship between paternal-and-participant problem gambling remained statistically significant after controlling for maternal problem gambling and sociodemographic factors. Paternal problem drinking and maternal drug use problems partially mediated the relationship between paternal-and-participant problem gambling, and fully mediated the relationship between maternal-and-participant problem gambling. In contrast, parental mental health issues failed to significantly mediate the transmission of gambling problems by either parent. When parental problem gambling was the mediator, there was full mediation of the effect between parental psychopathology and offspring problem gambling for fathers but not mothers. Overall, the study highlights the vulnerability of children from problem gambling households and suggests that it would be of value to target prevention and intervention efforts towards this cohort. © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. **Please note that there are multiple authors for this article therefore only the name of the first 5 including Federation University Australia affiliate “Shane Thomas” is provided in this record**
“It runs in your blood” : reflections from treatment seeking gamblers on their family history of gambling
- Authors: Dowling, Nicki , Francis, K. , Dixon, R. , Merkouris, Stephanie , Thomas, Shane
- Date: 2021
- Type: Text , Journal article
- Relation: Journal of Gambling Studies Vol. 37, no. 2 (2021), p. 689-710
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- Description: There are considerable gaps in our understanding of the familial transmission of gambling problems. This convergent mixed-methods study aimed to explore the: (1) sources of heterogeneity in the familial (paternal, maternal, and sibling) transmission of gambling problems; (2) degree to which family-of-origin characteristics are associated with family-of-origin problem gambling; and (3) beliefs of gamblers about the nature of the familial transmission of problem gambling. The sample consisted of 97 treatment-seeking gamblers in Australia. One-quarter (25.5%) of participants reported that at least one family member (16.5% father, 7.5% mother, 7.6% siblings) living with them when they were growing up had a gambling problem. Most participants reported that family members with a positive history of problem gambling were biological relatives, lived with them full-time, and experienced long-term difficulties with gambling. Participants with a family history of problem gambling were young (less than 12 years of age) at the onset of parental, but not sibling, problem gambling, were women, and reported difficulties with the same gambling activity as their family member. Participants raised in families with problem gambling were more likely to report parental separation (risk ratio [RR] = 2.32) and divorce (RR = 2.83), and extreme family financial hardship (RR = 1.80), as well as low levels of paternal authoritative parenting than participants raised in non-problem gambling families. Qualitatively, both social learning and genetics were perceived to play a central role in the familial transmission of gambling problems. These findings inform theories of the familial transmission of gambling problems and the design of targeted prevention and intervention strategies. © 2020, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature. **Please note that there are multiple authors for this article therefore only the name of the first 5 including Federation University Australia affiliate “Shane Thomas” is provided in this record**