1. Gambling Behavior and Alcohol Consumption in College Students William B. Disch, Ph.D. 1,2 & Seth Noar, Ph.D. 1,3 Department of Psychology 1, Division of Student Affairs 2, Cancer Prevention Research Center 3 The University of Rhode Island Presented at the 21st Annual Proceeding of the Society of Behavioral Medicine

2. 2 Introduction Up until Lesieur and Blume’s (1987) introduction of the South Oaks Gambling Screening, there has been very little research available on college student gambling behavior. 1,2,3 Gambling in college students has been found to be significantly related to alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use and misuse, overeating, arrests for non- traffic violations, and lower GPA and academic performance. 2,3,4,5 Gambling has also been found to be associated with gender (men more than women), ethnicity (higher frequency for Latinos and Asians), and religion (lowest frequency for protestants). 2,3,6,7,8

3. 3 Along with alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use and misuse, 2,3,4,5 gambling in college students is significantly associated with risk-taking, sensation- seeking behavior, and related consequences. 9,10 As proximity to gambling-related environments (including social factors; especially among fraternities and athletic groups) increases, frequency of gambling behavior and alcohol consumption significantly increase as well. 2,3,11,12 Introduction (cont.)

4. 4 Research Questions Is there a significant association between gambling behavior and alcohol consumption in college students? Are there gender differences in gambling behavior and alcohol consumption and are these differences related? Are there differences between the frequencies of gambling behavior and alcohol consumption based upon living location of college students?

5. 5 Method Participants were 696 undergraduate students, representing all college majors and disciplines, attending a mid-sized, Northeastern University. The current study was part of a larger student quality of life and satisfaction study (SQOLAS). 14, 15 Participants filled out a comprehensive SQOLAS instrument that included gambling and alcohol consumption items. The alcohol items assessed frequency and quantity. The gambling items assessed behavioral occurrence and approximate amount of money spent on gambling.

6. 6 Gambling Behavior & Alcohol Consumption Items In the past 6 MONTHS, how much money have you spent on betting and gambling? In the past 6 MONTHS, how much money do you think you have won on betting and gambling? On how many occasions have you had a drink of alcohol in the past 30 DAYS? In the past 30 DAYS, on those occasions when you drank alcohol, how many drinks did you usually have?

7. 7 Demographics Respondents were: –Caucasian (83%). –Women (72%). –Freshman (45%), Sophomore (29%), & Junior (20%). –Aged 18-20 (80%). –On-Campus Residents (58%), Off- Campus Residents (19%), Living with Parents (12%), Fraternity/Sorority Members (10%). –Single (98%).

8. 8 Descriptive Results Men who did gamble during the prior 6 months averaged 9.0 drinking occasions and 4.8 drinks per occasion during the prior 30 day period. Men who did not gamble during the prior 6 months averaged 6.4 drinking occasions and 4.1 drinks per occasion during the prior 30 day period. Women who did gamble during the prior 6 months averaged 6.3 drinking occasions and 3.5 drinks per occasion during the prior 30 day period. Women who did not gamble during the prior 6 months averaged 5.6 drinking occasions and 3.5 drinks per occasion during the prior 30 day period.

9. 9 Results: Factorial ANOVA A composite alcohol use variable was formed by multiplying alcohol quantity by frequency (  =.76). A 2 x 2 gender by gambling behavior (gambler, non-gambler) factorial ANOVA was performed with alcohol use as the dependent variable. The main effects for gender, F (1,692) = 20.62, p <.01, gambler, F (1,692) = 10.72, p <.01, and the interaction, F (1,692) = 5.46, p <.05 were significant. Results indicated that men had higher alcohol scores than women, gamblers had higher alcohol scores than non-gamblers, and men who gambled had significantly higher alcohol scores than men who did not gamble.

10. 10 Significant Interaction of Gender and Gambling Behavior (N = 696)

11. 11 Gambling, Drinking, and Living Location

12. 12 Discussion Consistent with previous research, gambling and drinking behaviors appear to be related to one another. This study suggests that college males who gamble are more likely to be heavier drinkers than their non-gambling counterparts. Descriptive data also suggest that living in certain locations such as Fraternities/Sororities is related to greater alcohol use, especially among gamblers. This highlights the need to consider alcohol use when studying gambling behavior, especially in men.

13. 13 Discussion Future research should focus on a better understanding of the relationship between gambling behavior and alcohol use. In addition, assessment of gambling behavior needs to be improved, as well-validated psychometric instruments are difficult to come by in this area. Future investigations should perhaps consider differences between heavy casino gambling versus other types of gambling such as lottery tickets. Limitations of this cross-sectional investigation should be considered.

14. 14 References 1 Lesieur, H. R., & Blume, S. B. (1987). The South Oaks Gambling Screen (The SOGS): A new instrument for the identification of pathological gamblers. American Journal of Psychiatry, 144, 1184-1188. 2 Lesieur, H. R., Cross, J., Frank, M., Welch, M., White, C. M., Rubenstein, G., Moseley, K., & Mark, M. (1991). Gambling and pathological gambling among university students. Addictive Behaviors, 4, 517-527. 3 Frank, M. L. (1990). Underage gambling in Atlantic City casinos. Psychological Reports, 67, 907-912. 4 Reid, S., Woodford, S. J., Roberts, R., Golding, J. F., & Towell, A. D. (1999). Health- related correlates of gambling on the British National Lottery. Psychological Reports, 84, 247-254. 5 Kassinove, J. I. (1998). Development of the gambling attitude scales: Preliminary findings. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 54(6), 763-771. 6 Kweitel, R., & Allen, F. C. L. (1998). Cognitive processes associated with gambling behaviour. Psychological Reports, 82, 147-153. 7 Zenker, S. I., & Wolfgang, A. K. (1982). Relationship of Machiavellianism and locus of control to preference for leisure activity by college men and women. Psychological Reports, 50, 583-586. 8 Adebayo, B. (1998). Luck of the dice: Gambling attitudes of a sample of community college students. College Student Journal, 32(2), 255-257.

15. 15 References (cont.) 9 Powell, J., Hardoon, K., Derevensky, J. L., & Gupta, R. (1999). Gambling and risk- taking behavior among college students. Substance Use and Misuse, 34(8), 1167- 1184. 10 Kaminer, V., & Petry, N. M. (1999). Gambling behavior in youths: Why we should be concerned. Psychiatric Services, 50(2), 167-168. 11 Borsari, B. E., & Carey, K. B. (1999). Understanding fraternity drinking: Five recurring themes in the literature, 1980-1998. Journal of American College Health, 48, 30-37. 12 Berkowitz, A. D., & Perkins, H. W. (1986). Problem drinking among college students: A review of recent research. Journal of American College Health, 35, 21-28. 13 O’Hare, T. M. (1990). Drinking in college: Consumption patterns, problems, sex differences, and legal drinking age. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, 51, 536-541. 14 Disch, W. B., Dougan, T. R., Nolan, M. F., & Shapiro, S. B. (1999). Student gambling mini-survey. (Tech. Rep. Vol.3(8), No. 2). Kingston: University of Rhode Island, Division of Student Affairs, Student Quality of Life and Satisfaction (SQOLAS). 15 Disch, W. B. (2000). Student quality of life and satisfaction. Manuscript in preparation.