The WAGER, Vol. 18(1) – Disorder or distraction? Experiential Avoidance and problem gambling behaviors

Experiential
avoidance (EA) refers to an individual’s attempt to avoid internal experiences related
to an event, such as thoughts,
feelings, and physical sensations, by engaging in some other activity (Riley
2012). Researchers have suggested that people can engage in EA through a number
of activities, including sex, drug use, exercise, and gambling (Riley 2012). EA
might therefore be related to the development of gambling problems. This week’s
WAGER reviews a study that explored the relationship between EA and
problem gambling, as well as the relationships between these constructs and
related constructs: thought suppression and mindfulness (Riley 2012).  

Methods

A
convenience sample of 103 treatment-seeking problem gamblers from an outpatient
facility in South Australia
completed a battery of measures to assess their levels of problem gambling and
mindfulness, their tendency to suppress difficult thoughts, and their inability
to take action when faced with “negatively evaluated private events.” Participants
completed the following measures:

• Dispositional
  EA: Acceptance and Action Questionnaire (AAQ-II; Bond et al. 2011)[1]
  • In this scale, higher scores indicate lower levels of EA.
• Dispositional
  thought suppression: White Bear Suppression Inventory (WBSI; Wegner and Zanakos
  1994)[2]
• Dispositional
  mindfulness: Mindfulness and Attention Awareness Scale (MAAS; Brown and Ryan
  2003)[3]
• Problem
  gambling symptomology: Problem Gambling Severity Index (PGSI; Ferris and Wynne
  2001)[4]

The
researchers completed multiple regression analyses to explore the relationships
among problem gambling, thought suppression, and mindfulness; and, to examine
whether EA mediated a relationship between thought suppression and problem
gambling.

Results

Table 1 below shows the relationship (zero order
correlations) between the variables in question. Thought suppression and experiential
avoidance were positively associated with problem gambling
(r’s = .33 and -.43; both p’s < .01). Mindfulness, on the other
hand, was negatively associated with problem gambling (-.39; p < .001).  

Table 1:
Zero order correlations of study variables. (This table is adapted from the
original article).

	Experiential avoidance	Problem gambling	Mindfulness	Thought suppression
Experiential avoidance	–	-.43; p < .001	.51; p < .001	-.63; p < .001
Problem gambling	–	–	-.39; p < .001	.33; p < .01
Mindfulness	–	–	–	.48; p < .001
Thought suppression	–	–	–	–

The
researchers conducted linear regression analyses to examine potential mediating
relationships. As shown in Tables 2 and 3, EA appears to mediate the
relationships between both thought suppression and mindfulness with problem
gambling. When controlling for EA, the standardized regression coefficients
between the other variable (mindfulness or thought suppression) and problem
gambling decreased and became non-significant.

Table 2:
Linear Regression with Problem Gambling as the dependent variable w/ thought
suppression and experiential avoidance as independent variables

	B	Standardized B	p	Sobel z;
Thought supression	0.04	0.11	0.91	2.73; p < .001
Experiential avoidance	-0.15	-0.35	0.22

Table 3: Linear Regression with Problem Gambling as the dependent variable w/ mindfulness
and experiential avoidance as independent variables

	B	Standardized B	p	Sobel z
Mindfulness	-0.82	-0.19	.085	-2.82; p < .001
Experiential avoidance	-0.15	-0.35	.001

Limitations

• The study may not be generalizable to other populations.
  • 103 is a relatively small sample size and all individuals came from the
    same outpatient facility in South Australia
  • The researchers used a convenience
    sample so the results may not be applicable to all problem gamblers
    • The participants were treatment seeking problem
      gamblers, perhaps those individuals for whom EA functions differently
      would not be seeking treatment.
• Due
  to the cross-sectional nature of the analysis it is not possible to determine causal
  relationships between EA, thought suppression, and mindfulness and problem
  gambling.

Discussion

This
article suggests that pathological gambling is related to experiential
avoidance and thought suppression. The mediational findings suggest a model
whereby people experience intrusive thoughts and attempt to cope with the
distress these thoughts cause by gambling. A more mindful state, however, might
decrease the urge to escape distress and gamble. These models can be applied to
more targeted, and therefore more effective, gambling treatments. Specifically,
incorporating mindfulness-based therapies and acceptance practices into
gambling recovery might help counteract experiential avoidance and draw into
focus the underlying problem that is leading to the problematic behavior.

–
Emily Shoov

What do you
think? Please use the comment link below to provide feedback on this article.

References

Bond, F. W., Hayes, S. C., Baer,
R. A., Carpenter, K. C., Guenole, N., Orcutt, H. K., et al. (2011). Preliminary
psychometric properties of the acceptance and action questionnaire—II: A
revised measure of psychological flexibility and acceptance. Behavior Therapy,
42, 676–688.

Brown, K. W., & Ryan, R. M.
(2003). The benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in
psychological well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84(4),
822–848.

Ferris, J. A., & Wynne, H. J.
(2001). The Canadian problem gambling index: Final report. Canada: Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse.

Marotta, J. J. (2002).
Experiential avoidance as a functional process of problem gambling. In Marotta,
J. J., Cornelius, J. A., & Eadington, W. R. (Eds.), The downside of problem
and pathological gambling (pp. 69–91). Reno, Nevada, USA: University of Nevada
Press.

Riley, B. (2012). "Experiential Avoidance
Mediates the Association Between Thought Suppression and Mindfulness with
Problem Gambling." Journal of Gambling Studies.. Epub 30 October
2012.

Wegner, D. M., & Zanakos, S.
(1994). Chronic thought suppression. Journal of Personality, 62(4), 615–640.