The dimensional assessment of personality in pathologic and social gamblers: the role of novelty seeking and self-transcendence.
OBJECTIVE
A few personality traits are characteristic of pathologic gamblers (PGs), but it is not clear if and how their personality profile differs from that of non-pathologic gamblers (non-PGs).


METHODS
Sixty-five non-clinical subjects, differentiated into non-PGs and PGs with the means of the South Oak Gambling Screen (SOGS) and Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-Fourth Edition-Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR) criteria, were administered with the Temperament and Character Inventory; their values were compared with those of control subjects (CS).


RESULTS
Novelty seeking (NS) and self-transcendence (ST) values were higher whereas self-directedness and cooperativeness values were lower in PGs with respect to both non-PGs and CS. A positive correlation was noted between SOGS score and NS (r = 0.40) and ST (r = 0.50) values, as well as a significant positive dependence between SOGS score and a family history of gambling (t = 2.816; P = .007). The subsamples of PGs reporting a parental involvement in gambling showed higher NS than the remaining PGs.


CONCLUSIONS
Specific temperamental and character dimensions, especially NS and ST, differentiated PGs from both non-PGs and CS; the identification of a personality profile at risk for problem gambling may represent an important predictor of outcome and constitute a possible target for specific treatment approaches.
Martinotti
Giovanni
G
Department of Psychiatry, Catholic University Medical School, 00167 Rome, Italy. giovanni.martinotti@libero.it
Andreoli
Sara
S
Giametta
Emanuela
E
Poli
Valeria
V
Bria
Pietro
P
Janiri
Luigi
L
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005106:Exploratory Behavior; D005260:Female; D005715:Gambling / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010290:Parents; D010555:Personality Inventory; D012649:Self Concept; D012737:Sex Factors; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000523:psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013694:Temperament