Addiction - cognitive explanation of gambling Flashcards
What does the cognitive approach to gambling addiction suggest about abnormal behaviour?
The cognitive approach sees abnormal behaviour, like gambling addiction, as resulting from irrational thought processes. The development of addiction depends on the individual’s reasons for gambling, how it makes them feel, and their expectations of winning.
What are cognitive biases in the context of gambling addiction?
Cognitive biases are distortions of attention, memory, and thinking. They occur due to how we process information quickly, leading to faulty or irrational beliefs that maintain gambling addiction (e.g., illusions of control, gamblers fallacy).
What is Expectancy Theory in the context of gambling addiction?
Expectancy theory suggests that gamblers have expectations about future benefits and costs. If they expect the benefits (e.g., excitement, financial gain) to outweigh the costs, they are more likely to continue gambling, even if this belief is irrational.
How does the vicious cycle in gambling addiction work according to Expectancy Theory?
Gamblers who are in financial difficulties may gamble to alleviate negative moods (like boredom) and increase positive moods (like excitement). This creates a cycle where they continue gambling, expecting benefits, despite the costs.
What is cognitive myopia in gambling addiction?
Cognitive myopia refers to gamblers focusing on immediate excitement (short-term gain) rather than considering the long-term consequences of their behaviour, leading to continued gambling despite negative outcomes.
What are illusions of control in gambling?
Illusions of control occur when gamblers overestimate their personal ability to influence random events, such as believing they can pick winning lottery numbers or affect slot machine outcomes.
What is the gambler’s fallacy?
The gambler’s fallacy is the belief that after a losing streak, a win is “due” or imminent. This irrational thinking leads to continued gambling despite losses.
How does recall bias contribute to gambling addiction?
Recall bias occurs when gamblers selectively remember their wins and forget or downplay their losses, reinforcing the belief that they are more successful than they really are.
What is near miss bias in gambling?
Near miss bias happens when gamblers interpret near-miss outcomes (e.g., nearly winning) as a sign that they are close to winning, which encourages them to continue gambling.
What are ritual behaviours in gambling addiction?
Ritual behaviours are superstitious actions or routines gamblers believe will increase their chances of winning (e.g., wearing lucky clothing, using a specific machine), even though these have no real effect on the outcome.
How does the Just World Hypothesis apply to gambling addiction?
The Just World Hypothesis suggests that gamblers may believe they “deserve” to win due to past losses, motivating them to return to gambling in the hope of future rewards, which can lead to relapse.
What is self-efficacy and how does it relate to gambling addiction?
Self-efficacy refers to an individual’s belief in their ability to succeed. In gambling addiction, low self-efficacy (believing they can’t stop gambling) may lead to relapse, creating a self-fulfilling prophecy where the person continues gambling because they don’t believe they can quit.
What is some research support for the cognitive explanation of gambling?
Griffiths found that regular fruit machine gamblers were more likely to use irrational statements like “I lost because I wasn’t concentrating” and showed flexible attributions (blaming failure on external factors and crediting success to skill). Griffiths’ study provides evidence that regular gamblers use irrational thinking patterns, supporting the cognitive explanation that distorted thinking plays a powerful role in addiction.
What are the methodological issues with researching cognitive distortions in gambling?
Research often uses self-report methods, such as thinking aloud, which may not accurately reflect deep beliefs. According to Dickerson & O’Connor (2006), remarks made in gambling situations may be impulsive or superficial, not representing the gambler’s true cognitive processes. Therefore the research supporting the explanation lack internal validity.
What is a practical application of the cognitive explanation of gambling?
The cognitive approach informs interventions like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), which can correct cognitive biases (e.g., gambler’s fallacy). This has been shown to reduce gambling behaviour and prevent relapse.
What did Echeburua (1996) find about the effectiveness of CBT in gambling addiction?
Echeburua found that CBT was particularly effective in preventing relapse in slot machine gamblers, showing that cognitive interventions can help reduce gambling behaviour.
What is a limitation of Echeburua’s (1996) research on CBT and gambling?
Echeburua acknowledged that their study focused on slot machine gamblers, which may not represent the broader population of problem gamblers, limiting the generalizability of the findings.
How might cognitive biases in gambling have a biological basis?
Research suggests that gambling addicts may exhibit different brain activity patterns compared to non-gamblers. This could underlie their cognitive biases, such as the gambler’s fallacy, leading them to overestimate their control over random events. Clark et al. identified the insula, a brain region critical in supporting distorted thinking in gamblers. Damage to the insula made people immune to cognitive biases like the gambler’s fallacy, suggesting a neurological basis for these biases.
