Robert Williams

University of Lethbridge · Faculty of Health Sciences

Background and Objectives: Gambling disorder (GD) and substance use disorder (SUD) are diagnostically similar and share many etiological, clinical, and psychosocial factors. However, even among individuals who gamble, treatment-seeking (TS) rates appear much higher for SUD than GD. Methods: An analysis was conducted on data from an online survey of...

Gambling fallacies are a collection of error-stricken beliefs about gambling and how gambling works. Gambling fallacies, while common in the general public, appear to increase as a function of gambling severity. This being the case, many interventions have focused on reducing gambling fallacies as a means of treating problem-gambling. Less research...

Most forms of gambling have been legalized in Canada over the past 50 years. One of the main government justifications for legalization is to eliminate illegal gambling. The purpose of the present study is to shed some light on this issue by establishing the current prevalence of illegal gambling in Canada. A survey of 10,199 Canadian adults was co...

Casino employees regularly interact with problem and at-risk gamblers and thus have considerable potential to both prevent and reduce gambling-related harm. While harm minimization (HM) and responsible gambling (RG) are routinely espoused by the casino industry, the actual level of employee HM/RG training, knowledge, and behaviour is unknown. The p...

To investigate the impact of the coronavirus disease (COVID) pandemic on gambling and problem gambling in Canada. A stratified national cohort of regular gamblers (n=2790) completed a comprehensive online questionnaire 6 months before the onset of the pandemic (baseline; August-November 2019), during the nation-wide lockdown (May-June 2020), and 6...

Introduction: Cannabis use frequently co-occurs with gambling, and evidence indicates that both acute and chronic cannabis use may influence gambling behavior. The primary aim of the present study was to further contribute to the literature on this relationship by examining data collected from a Canadian national study of gambling. Methods: Resp...

This study analyzed the Responsible Gambling Check patron survey data from Canadian casinos and racinos collected from 2011-2019 (18,580 patrons and 75 venues). The results indicated increasing awareness and use over time of harm minimization tools among more frequent patrons. Despite these promising trends, it is concerning that a substantial perc...

In Canada, up to 3% of individuals have or are at risk of gambling disorder. Among these individuals, a lack of awareness of their problem gambling is common barrier to treatment and negatively affects treatment adherence. A secondary analysis was conducted on data from 1346 individuals (mean age = 43.4, SD = 14.4; 54.3% male) with problem gambling...

Objective This study examined past year attempts to reduce or quit gambling among people who gamble generally and those with gambling problems specifically. Methods Regular gamblers recruited from an online panel ( N = 10,054) completed a survey of gambling, mental health and substance use comorbidity and attempts to reduce or quit gambling. The s...

Objective: To conduct a large-scale national cohort study to identify the current etiological risk factors for problem gambling in Canada. Method: A cohort of 10,119 Canadian gamblers completed a comprehensive self-administered online questionnaire in 2018 and were reassessed in 2019. At baseline, the sample contained 1,388 at-risk gamblers, 1,346...

The current study investigated the impact of the COVID pandemic lockdown on gambling and problem gambling in Canada. The AGRI National Project’s online panel participants (N = 3449) provided baseline gambling data 6 months prior to the pandemic. Re-surveying this sample during the lockdown provided an opportunity to make quantitative comparisons of...

The purpose of the present investigation was to determine the prevalence, demographic profile, and correlates of financial specula- tion in Canada, with a focus on its relationship to gambling. In cooperation with Statistics Canada, a brief assessment of financial speculation was developed and included in the 2018 Canadian Community Health Survey (...

The present study provides a profile of Canadian Indigenous gambling and problem gambling using the 2018 Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS) (n = 23,952 adults; 1,324 Indigenous) and an online panel survey of 10,199 gamblers (n = 589 Indigenous). The relative popularity of different types of gambling was similar between Indigenous and non-Indig...

Background: All addictions have a recurring nature, but their comparative chronicity has never been directly investigated. The purpose of this study is to undertake this investigation. Method: A secondary analysis was conducted on two large scale 5-year Canadian adult cohort studies. A subset of 1,088 individuals were assessed as having either subs...

This article, currently in press, elaborates on the investigation of the impact(s) of the COVID pandemic lockdown on gambling and problem gambling in Canada using longitudinal data assessing gambling engagement. Baseline data collected 6 months prior to the national lockdown, and pandemic impacts assessed during the lockdown - prior to the re-openi...

Objectives The purpose of this study is to provide an updated profile of gamblers and problem gamblers in Canada and to identify characteristics most strongly associated with problem gambling.Methods An assessment of gambling participation and problem gambling was included in the 2018 Canadian Community Health Survey and administered to 23,952 indi...

Background There is little longitudinal evidence on the cumulative risk of harm from gambling associated with excess spending and frequency of play. The present study sought to assess the risk of gambling problems over a five-year period in adults who exceed previously derived low-risk gambling limits compared to those who remain within the limits...

Objective: The relationship between the level of gambling fallacy endorsement and type of gambler (nongambler, recreational gambler, at-risk gambler, and problem/pathological gambler) was assessed both concurrently and prospectively in a large national cohort of Canadian adults. Method: This cohort (n = 10,199 at baseline; 18-24 years, n = 481, 43...

Background There is little longitudinal evidence on the cumulative risk of harm from gambling associated with excess spending and frequency of play. The present study sought to assess over a five-year period the risk of gambling problems in adults who exceed previously derived low-risk gambling limits compared to those who remain within the limits...

Background. There is little longitudinal evidence on the cumulative risk of harm from gambling associated with excess spending and frequency of play. The present study sought to assess the risk of gambling problems over a five-year period in adults who exceed previously derived low-risk gambling limits compared to those who remain within the limits...

Background. There is little longitudinal evidence on the cumulative risk of harm from gambling associated with excess spending and frequency of play. The present study sought to assess the risk of gambling problems over a five-year period in adults who exceed previously derived low-risk gambling limits compared to those who remain within the limits...

Background and aims: The Conceptual Framework of Harmful Gambling moves beyond a symptoms-based view of harm and addresses a broad set of factors related to the risks and effects of gambling harmfully at the individual, family, and community levels. Coauthored by international research experts and informed by multiple stakeholders, Gambling Resear...

Background and Objectives The aim of this study was to develop measures to assess implicit memory associations for video gaming and to examine the relationship between implicit memory associations, video gaming involvement, and problem video gaming. Methods A survey of online panelists from across Canada was conducted that included 166 problem vid...

To examine the underlying dimensionality and structure of problem gambling using a comprehensive range of problem gambling assessments from an international online survey of gamblers. A total of 12,521 gamblers from 105 countries were recruited through banner advertising placed on a popular online gambling portal to take an online survey. Although...

Associations that people report in response to words or phrases (‘implicit associations’) may provide information about their interest and engagement in certain activities that might not have been reported if they had been directed asked. The present study investigated the word and behavioural associations reported by 494 university undergraduates...

Psychological needs are satisfied through leisure participation, which in turn influences subjective well-being. The present study explored the psychological needs reported to be satisfied through gambling participation and examined associations between need satisfaction, game preferences and subjective well-being. A heterogeneous, self-selected sa...

The relationship between video gaming and gambling was examined in a large cross-sectional sample of 3942 Canadian online panelists who responded to a solicitation recruiting individuals who regularly gambled or played video games. Most past year video gamers reported gambling in the past year (78.5%) and most past year gamblers reported playing vi...

The present study tested tenets of the Pathways Model of problem gambling by completing a cross-sectional latent class analysis using an existing dataset. The sample in this study consisted of 125 first-time adult problem gamblers from Ontario, Canada who participated in the Quinte Longitudinal study of Gambling and Problem Gambling. A three-class...

Erroneous beliefs about gambling, known collectively as gambling fallacies, are known to be prevalent in the general population. However, relatively little is understood about the individual differences that lead to increased susceptibility to this collection of fallacious beliefs. It was hypothesized that factors responsible for gambling fallacies...

The current study aimed to examine the relationship between implicit memory associations, gambling involvement, and problem gambling in a large representative group of Canadian adults. The sample consisted of 3078 (48.1% males, mean age 43.93, SD = 15.82) adult online panelists from across Canada that included 388 problem and pathological gamblers....

Background: The variables correlated with problem gambling are routinely assessed and fairly well established. However, problem gamblers were all 'at-risk' and 'recreational' gamblers at some point. Thus, it is instructive from a prevention perspective to also understand the variables which discriminate between recreational gambling and at-risk ga...

Objective: The purpose of this study was to provide an updated profile of gambling and problem gambling in Canada and to examine how the rates and pattern of participation compare to 2002.

In 2015, the first adult longitudinal cohort study of gambling and problem gambling was launched in Massachusetts. This report presents results from the first wave of the study with a focus on the establishment of the cohort and on the incidence of new cases of problem gambling since 2013/2014.

Objective: Relatively little is known about video game play and predictors of problematic play for adults. That which is known is based primarily on convenience samples and limited age ranges. The purpose of this study is to determine video game play and predictors of Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD) among Canadian adults. Methods: A total of 1238 Ca...

Abstract Background Little research has examined the potential protective influence of religiosity against problem gambling; a common addictive behavior, and one with a host of associated negative health and social outcomes. The aims of this study were to examine (1) the potential longitudinal association between religiosity and problem gambling am...

This report presents the results of the first patron survey at Plainridge Park Casino, completed in 2016. These surveys provide the only data collected directly from casino patrons regarding their geographic origin and expenditures. These data are important to ascertain the influx of new revenues to the venue and the Commonwealth, and to measure an...

Aims: To derive low-risk gambling limits using the method developed by Currie et al. (2006) applied to longitudinal data. Design: Secondary analysis of data from the Quinte Longitudinal Study (N = 3054) and Leisure, Lifestyle, and Lifecycle Project (N = 809), two independently conducted cohort studies of the natural progression of gambling in Ca...

The objective of the current study was to examine the possible temporal associations between alcohol misuse and problem gambling symptomatology from adolescence through to young adulthood. Parallel-process latent growth curve modeling was used to examine the trajectories of alcohol misuse and symptoms of problem gambling over time. Data were from a...

Background: The current study sought to explore the narrative accounts of individuals who underwent changes in their problem gambling severity, and identify subjective factors underlying these transitions. Additionally, respondents’ perceived change in their gambling behavior was compared with a validated measure of problem gambling severity. Metho...

Research suggests that high frequency gambling is a component of the “generality of deviance”, which describes the observation that various forms of risky and antisocial behavior tend to co-occur among individuals. Furthermore, risky and antisocial behaviors have been associated with such personality traits as low self-control, and impulsivity, and...

Background and aims To review the conceptual and empirical relationship between gambling, investing, and speculation. Methods An analysis of the attributes differentiating these constructs as well as identification of all articles speaking to their empirical relationship. Results Gambling differs from investment on many different attributes and s...

North American Aboriginals have an extensive cultural history of gambling. The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of modern western gambling on these traditional beliefs. This is the first large-scale study of this issue in Canada. A total of 1114 Aboriginals in 15 cities in Canada’s Prairie Provinces were surveyed, with recruit...

Objective: To assess the prevalence of gambling and problem gambling in urban Aboriginals in the Canadian Prairie provinces and to determine the predictors of problem gambling. Method: In total, 1114 Aboriginals living in 15 cities in Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba were recruited via posters and direct solicitation at Native Friendship Cent...

The cognitive model of problem gambling posits that erroneous gambling-related fallacies are key in the development and maintenance of problem gambling. However, this contention is based on cross-sectional rather than longitudinal associations between these constructs, and gambling fallacy instruments that may have inflated this associated by their...

Disordered gambling is best conceptualized as a continuum of severity. Previous research has demonstrated the utility of studying individuals at all points of this spectrum. The sequence of the development of gambling problems and change in gambling involvement along this continuum of severity is not well understood. The present study examined the...

The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) plays a major role in goal-directed behaviours, but it is unclear whether it plays a role in breaking away from a high-value reward in order to explore for better options. To address this question, we designed a novel 3-arm Bandit Task in which rats were required to choose one of three potential reward arms, each...

The purpose of the present study was to investigate whether or not there is an association between engaging in traditional forms of gambling and engaging in high-risk stock trading and, if so, to examine game play patterns of high-risk stock traders, as well as identify any socio-demographic similarities or differences between the two groups. Logis...

Most tests of video game addiction have weak construct validity and limited ability to correctly identify people in denial. The purpose of the present research was to investigate the reliability and validity of a new test of video game addiction (Behavioral Addiction Measure-Video Gaming [BAM-VG]) that was developed in part to address these deficie...

Poker is characterized as a “mixed” game: a game that includes both skill and chance components. But what individual differences are characteristic of skilled poker players? No previous study has sought to evaluate the full scope of characteristics contributing to playing skill. The purpose of this study was to fill this void by attempting to compr...

The purpose of this study was to compare the influence of two survey modes – telephone random digit dialling (RDD) and stratified sampling of an online panel – on Canadian Problem Gambling Index (CPGI) scores and co-morbidities. An identical gambling survey was administered to 4000 South Koreans selected via random dialling of cell phone numbers an...

Background: Resolving the theoretical controversy on the labeling of an increasing number of excessive behaviors as behavioral addictions may also be facilitated by more empirical data on these behavioral problems. For instance, an essential issue to the classification of psychiatric disorders is information on their natural course. However, longi...

Objective: Gambling fallacies are believed to be etiologically related to the development of problem gambling. However, this evidence is tenuous due to the lack of consensus on which things constitute gambling fallacies and the adequacy of instruments that ostensibly measure them. The purpose of this paper is to comprehensively identify the main ga...

The Conceptual Framework of Harmful Gambling (the “Framework”) is designed to achieve three key objectives, namely to: 1. Reflect the current state of knowledge (across disciplines and existing models) as it relates to factors impacting harmful gambling. While there is some discussion of linkages among factors, this publication does not provide an...

Introduction. To report on highlights of a longitudinal study of gamblers, the Alberta Leisure, Lifestyle, Lifecycle Project (LLLP) as well as comparisons with the Ontario Quinte Study. Method. Five LLL cohorts of gamblers (ages 13–15, 18–20, 23–25, 43–45, and 63–65) have been recruited through Random Digit Dialing (RDD) since February 2006. The co...

Major depression is among the most common comorbid conditions in problem gambling. However, little is known about the effects of comorbid depression on problem gambling. The present study examined the prevalence of current major depression among problem gamblers (N = 105) identified from a community sample of men and women in Alberta, and examined...

Existing research has demonstrated that poker is a game predominated by skill. Little is known about the specific characteristics of good poker players however, likely due in part to the lack of a readily available measure of poker skill. In the absence of an available and easily administered poker skill measure, laboratory studies of poker player...

Most research on the assessment, epidemiology, and treatment of problem gambling has occurred in Western jurisdictions. This potentially limits the cross-cultural validity of problem gambling assessment instruments as well as etiological models of problem gambling. The primary objective of the present research was to investigate the reliability and...

Improved methodology was used to re-examine the weak correspondence between problem and pathological gamblers identified in population surveys and subsequent classification of these individuals in clinical interviews. The SOGS-R, the CPGI, the NODS and the Problem and Pathological Gambling Measure (PPGM), as well as questions about gambling partici...

One of the main justifications used for the expansion of legal gambling is that gambling provides increased revenue to governments and community groups. However, critics argue that the social costs of legal gambling offset these benefits. One particularly controversial social cost of gambling is the impact that gambling has on crime. The academic l...

Epidemiological research is a cornerstone of the public health approach to health and illness. This chapter outlines some critical issues related to the epidemiology of problem and disordered gambling. It begins by identifying the main instruments used to assess problem and disordered gambling in population studies. The chapter then discusses the p...

The Province of Alberta in 2001 implemented The First Nations Gaming Policy (FNGP) To improve First Nations development potential by permitting The construction of reserve casinos. This article argues That during The policy development stages provincial and First Nations leaders failed To consider The geographic placement of reserve communities, bo...

En 2001, l'Alberta a mis en place une politique, la First Nations Gaming Policy, qui permet aux Autochtones de construire des casinos dans les réserves, mais qui stipule que 30% des revenus du jeu réalisés par ces casinos doivent être versés au gouvernement qui les utilise ensuite à des fins caritatives dans la province. Durant les six années qui o...

The past 15 years has seen a considerable amount of interest and effort being put into developing strategies to prevent problem gambling. Unfortunately, the development, implementation, and evaluation of most of these initiatives has been a haphazard process. Most have been put in place because they ‘seemed like good ideas’ and/or were being used i...

Purpose: To establish the current prevalence of gambling and problem gambling in South Korea and to determine the associated demographic and game play patterns. Methods: Administration of a gambling survey over the phone to 4,000 randomly selected South Korean adults (19+), supplemented by an online survey of 4,330 members of a South Korean onli...

BACKGROUND: When gambling opportunities are made available to the public in a given jurisdiction, some individuals participate occasionally and others more frequently. Among frequent gamblers, some individuals develop problematic involvement and some do not. This study addresses the association among demographic and social risk factors, frequency o...

There is a surprising paucity of information about urban Aboriginal gambling behaviours and practices, considering that the urban Aboriginal community is the fastest-growing demographic group in Canada and that indigenous people have some of the highest rates of gambling and problem gambling. Interpreting the focus group findings from First Nations...