Predictors of dropout in disordered gamblers in UK residential treatment

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Date
2019-07-13
Authors
Roberts, Amanda
Murphy, Raegan
Turner, John
Sharman, Steve
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Publisher
Springer New York LLC
Published Version
10.1007/s10899-019-09876-7
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Abstract
Within the cohort of individuals who seek treatment for disordered gambling, over half fail to complete treatment. The current study sought to identify predictors of treatment dropout in a sample of gamblers attending a residential treatment facility for disordered gamblers in the UK and to report differences in voluntary and enforced dropout. Data on 658 gamblers seeking residential treatment with the Gordon Moody Association (GMA) was analysed, collected between 2000 and 2015. Measurements included demographic data, self-reported gambling behavior, (including the Problem Gambling Severity Index), mental and physical health status, and a risk assessment. Binary logistic regression models were used to examine predictors of treatment termination. Results confirm a high percentage of treatment dropout among disordered gamblers (51.3%). Significant predictors of treatment dropout included older age of the client, higher levels of education, higher levels of debt, online gambling, gambling on poker, shorter duration of treatment, higher depression, experience of previous treatment programmes and medication, and adverse childhood experiences. Within non-completers, significant predictors of enforced dropout included lifetime homelessness, less debt, sports gambling, depression and lifetime smoking. Those who were on a longer treatment programme and had previously received gambling treatment or support were less likely to be asked to leave. Clinicians working in inpatient support need to be aware of the increased psychopathogical and psychosocial problems in those who are at risk of termination and make attempts to retain them in treatment and increase patient compliance.
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Keywords
Gambling , Disordered gambling , Residential treatment , Inpatient , Treatment dropout
Citation
Roberts, A., Murphy, R., Turner, J. and Sharman, S. (2019) 'Predictors of Dropout in Disordered Gamblers in UK Residential Treatment', Journal of Gambling Studies. (14pp.) DOI: 10.1007/s10899-019-09876-7
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https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10899-019-09876-7
URI
https://hdl.handle.net/10468/8542
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Applied Psychology - Journal Articles
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©The Author(s) 2019. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made.