title: Psychometric properties of the inventory of gambling situations with a focus on gender and age differences.
abstract: Environmental, interpersonal, and psychological factors contribute to gambling, but no standardized instrument for assessing high-risk gambling situations exists. This study evaluates the factor structure of the Inventory of Gambling Situations (IGS), a newly developed measure to examine situations that precipitate gambling. Pathological gamblers (n = 233) beginning a treatment study completed the IGS. Principal component analysis revealed that a 5-factor solution best fit the data, representing items related to Negative Affect, Luck and Control, Positive Affect, Social Situations, and Gambling Cues. Overall, Cronbach alpha was 0.960, ranging from 0.820 to 0.935 for the 5 factors. IGS scores correlated with other indices of gambling problems. Women scored higher on the Gambling Cues factor than men, and younger respondents, regardless of gender, scored higher on the Luck and Control factor than older respondents. The IGS may assist in better understanding situations in which pathological gamblers wager, and individual differences with respect to these situations.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, University of Connecticut Health Center, Farmington, Connecticut 06030-3944, USA.
authors.forename: Lindsay M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Weiss
authors.forename: Nancy M
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: Petry
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D003463:Cues; D003863:Depression / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D005715:Gambling / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010555:Personality Inventory / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D025341:Principal Component Analysis; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012307:Risk Factors; D012737:Sex Factors; D012931:Social Environment; D012932:Social Facilitation