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University of Windsor Scholarship at UWindsor Electronic Theses and Dissertations Theses, Dissertations, and Major Papers 5-11-2018 Gauge Your Gambling: The Acceptability and Feasibility of a Brief Online Motivational Enhancement for Non-Treatment Seeking Problem Gamblers Amanda Elizabeth Roberta Robinson University of Windsor Follow this and additional works at: https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/etd Recommended Citation Robinson, Amanda Elizabeth Roberta, "Gauge Your Gambling: The Acceptability and Feasibility of a Brief Online Motivational Enhancement for Non-Treatment Seeking Problem Gamblers" (2018). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 7438. https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/etd/7438 This online database contains the full-text of PhD dissertations and Masters’ theses of University of Windsor students from 1954 forward. These documents are made available for personal study and research purposes only, in accordance with the Canadian Copyright Act and the Creative Commons license—CC BY-NC-ND (Attribution, Non-Commercial, No Derivative Works). Under this license, works must always be attributed to the copyright holder (original author), cannot be used for any commercial purposes, and may not be altered. Any other use would require the permission of the copyright holder. Students may inquire about withdrawing their dissertation and/or thesis from this database. For additional inquiries, please contact the repository administrator via email ([email protected]) or by telephone at 519-253-3000ext. 3208. GAUGE YOUR GAMBLING: THE ACCEPTABILITY AND FEASIBILITY OF A BRIEF ONLINE MOTIVATIONAL ENHANCEMENT FOR NON-TREATMENT SEEKING PROBLEM GAMBLERS by Amanda E. R. Robinson A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies through the Department of Psychology in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy at the University of Windsor Windsor, Ontario, Canada 2018 © 2018 Amanda E. R. Robinson Gauge Your Gambling: The Acceptability and Feasibility of a Brief Online Motivational Enhancement for Non-Treatment Seeking Problem Gamblers by Amanda E. R. Robinson APPROVED BY: __________________________________________________ J. P. Whelan, External Examiner The University of Memphis __________________________________________________ S. McMurphy Department of Sociology, Anthropology & Criminology __________________________________________________ C. J. Miller Department of Psychology __________________________________________________ D. M. Ledgerwood, Advisor Department of Psychology __________________________________________________ A. Scoboria, Advisor Department of Psychology March 26, 2018 GAUGE YOUR GAMBLING iii DECLARATION OF ORIGINALITY I hereby certify that I am the sole author of this thesis and that no part of this thesis has been published or submitted for publication. I certify that, to the best of my knowledge, my thesis does not infringe upon anyone’s copyright nor violate any proprietary rights and that any ideas, techniques, quotations, or any other material from the work of other people included in my thesis, published or otherwise, are fully acknowledged in accordance with the standard referencing practices. Furthermore, to the extent that I have included copyrighted material that surpasses the bounds of fair dealing within the meaning of the Canada Copyright Act, I certify that I have obtained a written permission from the copyright owner(s) to include such material(s) in my thesis and have included copies of such copyright clearances to my appendix. I declare that this is a true copy of my thesis, including any final revisions, as ap- proved by my thesis committee and the Graduate Studies office, and that this thesis has not been submitted for a higher degree to any other University or Institution. GAUGE YOUR GAMBLING iv ABSTRACT Those who struggle to control their gambling have been shown to experience a number of adverse consequences. Despite these difficulties, only a small percentage of problematic gamblers ever seek gambling treatment or services. As technology advances there is growing evidence that brief online interventions may be efficacious with this population. The present study tested the feasibility and acceptability of a new brief online intervention for those who struggle with their gambling. The intervention was theoretically based on the Health Belief Model, the Transtheoretical Model, and Motivational Interviewing. Participants completed a series of questionnaires about their gambling behaviours, perceived control over gambling, beliefs about their gambling problems, motivation for change and change efforts, and experienced and expected consequences of continued gambling. They also received personalized and normative comparison feedback. The development and administration of the online intervention was inexpensive relative to in person services but did encountered several technical difficulties. In total, 204 participants provided some data. Of those who accessed the website approximately two-thirds were experiencing one or more symptoms of Gambling Disorder. Participants generally found the website acceptable, however, there was a high within-intervention attrition rate. Most participants were in the contemplation stage of change and had low perceived gambling refusal self-efficacy. Perceived severity and perceived benefits from the Health Belief Model were found to account for 76% of the variance in the intent to seek help. There was a small partial mediation effect for readiness to change on the relationship between perceived severity and the intent to seek help. There was insufficient follow-up data to support statistical analysis of outcome GAUGE YOUR GAMBLING v variables. The website attracted the target population for the most part, however, future researchers will want to consider methods of increasing engagement and follow-up in this population such as increased incentives. Participants rated the website positively and case study data at follow-up suggest that further testing of brief online interventions such as Gauge Your Gambling is warranted. GAUGE YOUR GAMBLING vi DEDICATION To Fred Howard, my wonderful husband, whose strength, love, and sacrificial care made it possible for me to complete this work, and to my parents, Gwen and Russ Robinson, whose unflagging care and understanding have seen me through with grace. GAUGE YOUR GAMBLING vii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to take this opportunity to give a very special thank you to Dr. David Ledgerwood and Dr. Alan Scoboria. I am so grateful for you both and for your willingness to step in and take on a project that was already in progress, and all the difficulties and complexities that came along with it and I. Without your patience, guidance, help, and mentorship, I would never have arrived at this final stage. In the process you helped me create a better document and helped to shape me into a better researcher and writer. I will always be appreciative of the impact that your time and effort have had on, and for, me. I would also like to thank my other committee members, Dr. Suzanne McMurphy and Dr. Carlin Miller, for your wonderful feedback and encouragement. I would like to give a special thank you to my external reader, Dr. James Whelan, who also came on to this project at a later point than usual. Your thoughtful feedback and questions provided me with the opportunity to consider my own research, and this field more generally, in a new way. I would also like to thank the Department of Psychology for the training, guidance through difficulty, and opportunities they have given me. Lastly, I would like to thank my friends, family, and cohort for all they have contributed and helped with along the way. A special thank you goes to the PK gang for their editing help (here’s looking at you, Chloe, Shereena, Hali, and Chris), and most of all to the PK queen Bridget who not only gave so much time to editing, but who has also provided me with endless moral support. GAUGE YOUR GAMBLING viii TABLE OF CONTENTS DECLARATION OF ORIGINALITY .............................................................................. iii ABSTRACT ....................................................................................................................... iv DEDICATION ................................................................................................................... vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .............................................................................................. vii LIST OF TABLES ........................................................................................................... xiii LIST OF FIGURES ......................................................................................................... xiv CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................... 1 Gambling Disorder Characteristics, Prevalence, and Consequences .............................. 3 Classifying gambling problems. .................................................................................. 3 Prevalence of Gambling Disorder. .............................................................................. 6 Public health burden of Gambling Disorder. ............................................................... 7 Gambling service utilization. ....................................................................................... 9 The help-seeking subpopulation. ............................................................................... 11 Theoretical

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