Exploring the experience of Gamblers Anonymous meetings during COVID-19: a qualitative study

Whilst much research has explored the possible causes and consequences of gambling, Gamblers Anonymous (GA) − one of the most accessed forms of support for gamblers - has been largely overlooked and, to date, only a few studies have explored how members experience this programme. Core to GA is the social interaction between members. From March 2020, however, the COVID-19 pandemic forced GA to move their meetings online. The present qualitative study therefore explored how GA members experienced these online meetings in the absence of actual face to face interactions with others. Individual telephone or video call interviews (n = 21) were carried out with members of GA in the UK and analysed using Thematic Analysis. The results described three main themes: (1) ‘practicalities of GA in lockdown’, which highlighted the practical benefits of online meetings such as more opportunity to attend different meetings, which in turn expanded participants’ perspectives and social networks; (2) ‘the importance of relationships in GA’, reflecting strong and enduring social networks that were created, maintained, and strengthened by feelings of solidarity; and (3) ‘therapeutic elements of the meetings’, such as psychological contract making which helped participants to stay abstinent. Transcending these themes was a tension between individual versus group identity with interviewees reporting a shift to focusing more on their own needs rather than those of the group. Overall, whilst still providing a lifeline during COVID-19 and offering some practical benefits, the online GA meetings were not able to completely replicate the value individuals gained from face to face meetings. This transition also resulted in disruptions both to group dynamics and to individual interactions within each group, ultimately resulting in participants behaving more individualistically and less collectively than in face-to-face meetings.

Editorial: An overview of gamblers anonymous

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12. What Game Are We Playing? Narrative Work that Supports Gamblers

Micaela Castiglioni and Carola Girotti place the official narrative and counter-narrative of gambling in the broader context of modern-day society and adult play before describing two Italian initiatives to support gamblers to shed their addiction. One of these, the self-help Gamblers Anonymous group, uses narrative approaches to help members publicly tell and re-frame their own life stories in order to see themselves differently and therefore to resist a return to addiction.

Gambling Problem by Gambler Sub-Types among College Students in Korea

This study aims to investigate a seriousness of gambling problems by gambler sub-type among college students in Korea. Data were collected from 581 college students of Seoul, Gyeonggi-do, Chungcheong-do, and Gyeongsang-do area through the questionnaire and a total of 577 questionnaires were statistically processed excluding the questionnaires of missing answers. To analyze the gambling problems by gambler sub-types among college students, a cross-sectional research design was used in the study. Data were analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences. Among the 577 respondents of this study, 62.2% had gambling experience and especially 6.1% had illegal gambling experience. The prevalence rate of gambling addiction by the Canadian problem gambling index was 14.0% in this study. A significant statistical difference between gambler sub-types in gender, college grade, spending money, beginning of the first gambling, illegal gambling experience, route to start gambling, self-esteem, impulsivity, and irrational gambling belief was found in this study. The number of respondents who knew free counselling centers when there was a gambling problem was only 20 (3.5%), so it is quite required to carry out preventive education and to publicize free counselling centers for a gambling problem. In case that the respondents have a gambling problem, what they wanted to be supported most was psychotherapy and counseling, family counseling, hospital treatment, group therapy or Gamblers Anonymous meeting, and financial and legal consultation. It is required to continue further surveys on gambling among college students and to take a proper measure preventing a gambling problem.

Technology and mutual aid for problem gambling: the past and the future.

This paper offers a cursory account of the use of technology and online services by 12-Step peer support groups with a particular focus on support services for problem gamblers. We examine the history of peer support groups and examine the extent to which they have embraced newer technologies. Gamblers Anonymous (GA) has little direct involvement in on-line support. However, GA members operating independently of GA have provided some pioneering peer support. In this paper, we gathered information about GA’s presence online through a cursory literature review, examination of websites, and three semistructured interviews with key informants: two longstanding GA members and one non-member who is nonetheless very active in employing up to date technology to coordinate recovery options for problem gamblers. The benefits of online peer support for problem gamblers is discussed. Accessibility is one example, as some could be available 24 hours a day each day of the week. Another advantage is that many young adults and adolescents favor online options. This also applies to online gamblers. The Internet options we have uncovered are run mostly by GA members, typically without official GA sanction.

Treatment and early intervention services

This chapter looks at the treatment, intervention, and support services for problem gamblers and their families. Research indicates that such gambling disorder is treatable.The role played by the mutual-help organization, Gamblers Anonymous, the importance of help for family members affected by their relatives’ excessive gambling, and the existence of medications that have been used in the treatment of gambling disorder, need to be investigated more systematically. Help for gambling problems may be sparse or non-existent, and even in better resourced countries, treatment availability is patchy and engagement in treatment is low, probably in part due to the secrecy and stigma associated with gambling problems. Gambling treatment services, if properly organized and funded, could make a contribution to reducing gambling-related mental disorder, crime, and the consequent damage to family life.

Religious and Spiritual Struggles among Military Veterans in a Residential Gambling Treatment Program

Veterans of the U. S. Armed Forces are at greater risk for engaging in problem gambling and meeting diagnostic criteria for Gambling Disorder (GD) than are non-veterans. For veterans and non-veterans alike, religious/spiritual beliefs and practices support recovery from addiction and bolster mental health and well-being. Moreover, religious/spiritual ideas pervade Gamblers Anonymous (GA), which remains the predominant community-based treatment modality for GD. However, research has increasingly highlighted the negative impact of religious/spiritual struggles—i.e., conflicts, tensions, or problems associated with aspects of religious/spiritual life—on mental health and well-being. To date, no research has examined the role of religious/spiritual struggles in GD. The current study aimed to fill that gap in the literature by assessing the prevalence and impact of religious/spiritual struggles among U.S. veterans (N = 157) admitted to a residential treatment program for GD. Findings showed that a majority of veterans in the gambling treatment program endorsed each of six types of religious/spiritual struggles assessed. Moral struggles were the most prevalent, severe, and unremitting of the religious/spiritual struggles assessed. Findings highlight the need for clinicians and chaplains working with problem gamblers to address religious/spiritual struggles generally, and moral struggles most specifically, in treatment of GD.