title: Racial/ethnic variation in the reliability of DSM-IV pathological gambling disorder.
abstract: Racial/ethnic disparities in mental disorders, including pathological gambling disorder (PGD), may be either real or artifacts of how they are conceptualized and measured. We aimed to assess racial/ethnic variation in the reliability of self-reported lifetime PGD determined by meeting > or = 5 criteria of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. Using community advertising, we recruited 15-85-year-old Caucasians (n = 225) and African (American/other minorities (n = 87), who had gambled more than 5 times lifetime), for 2 interviews, held 1 week apart, about gambling and associated behaviors. Results indicate substantial to almost-perfect DSM-IV PGD reliability for Caucasians (kappa = 0.82) and African Americans/other minorities (kappa = 0.68). Reliability for symptoms and for game-specific disorders was fair to almost perfect (kappa = 0.37-0.90). After adjusting results for confounding variables and multiple comparisons, racial/ethnic variation in PGD and game-specific reliability failed to persist. Implications exist for increased attention to screening and prevention efforts critical to reducing racial/ethnic disparities in PGD prevalence.
authors.affiliation: George Warren Brown School of Social Work, Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri 63130, USA. williamsr@wustl.edu
authors.forename: Renee M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Cunningham-Williams
authors.forename: Emily L
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: Ostmann
authors.forename: Edward L
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: Spitznagel
authors.forename: Samantha J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Books
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D003936:Diagnosis, Computer-Assisted; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D005260:Female; D005715:Gambling / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011594:Psychometrics; D044469:Racial Groups / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D044465:White People / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data