Understanding and Treating the Pathological Gambler

ISBN-13: 9780470843789 / Angielski / Miękka / 2002 / 192 str.

Robert Ladouceur; Caroline Sylivain; Claude Boutin

Opis

Understanding and Treating the Pathological Gambler provides a combination of theory and practical solutions for the clinician working with pathological gamblers. The first half of this title discusses the history, theories and evaluation of gamblers and gambling while the second provides clinicians with interventions, based on scientific research, for the cessation of abusive gambling, including strategies for long-term abstinence and relapse prevention.
* Written by a world renowned expert on the subject
* Provides a balanced combination of theory and practical solutions
* A must for anyone involved in the treatment of pathological gamblers

Spis treści

Introduction: The History and Psychology of Gambling

Etiology and treatment of Problem Gambling: The Different Approaches

Assessing the Gambler

The Fundamental Principles of Gambling: Independence of Turns

Treatment of the Excessive Gambler: The Cognitive Approach

Treatment of the Excessive Gambler: The Behavioural Approach

Relapse Prevention

Difficulties Related to the treatment: How to Overcome Them

Appendix 1: The South Oaks Gambling Screen

Appendix 2: Diagnostic Interview for Pathological Gambling

O autorze

Robert Ladouceur, Ph.D., is Professor of Psychology at Laval University in Quebec City. After his doctoral studies, he completed post–doctoral fellow at Temple University in Philadelphia. His work on gambling is internationally known. His model focuses on the cognitive variables in the acquisition and maintenance of gambling behavior. In 1996, he received a research award from the national Council on Problem Gambling, recognizing the high quality of his work.

Caroline Sylvain, hold a Ph.D. in psychology. Over the years she has presented many conferences and held workshops on the treatment on excessive gambling. Her doctoral thesis largely contributed towards the elaboration of the treatment development in this book. With her colleagues, she has developed a step–by–step treatment guide for excessive gamblers which is endorsed by Quebec Government.

Claude Boutin has published and reviewed many articles and book chapters about excessive gambling for which his expertise has received worldwide acknowledgement. As an active researcher and psychologist, he was directly implicated in the development and application of the treatment presented in this book. He also contributed to the step–by–step treatment guide mentioned above.

Celine Doucet is a clinician and psychologist who works in collaboration with the Center for Prevention and Treatment of Gambling in Montreal. As a researcher she conceived and participated in the treatment presented here. She also offers therapy for gamblers and their significant others. With her colleagues, she currently gives many training sessions about excessive gambling. She also contributed to the step–by–step treatment guide mentioned above.

Blurb

Haven′t we all, at one time or another, bet a little money with the hope of making an appreciable gain, or even an amount that would change our lives?

Over two–thirds of adults engage in gambling on a regular basis. For most people, gambling is a relaxing activity with no negative consequences. However, others develop an addiction to gambling that manifests itself as an irrepressible impulse to wager money.

Robert Ladouceur and his co–authors begin by looking at gambling through the ages and then present an overview of treatments that have been used for pathological gambling over the last two decades. Next they examine the cognitive traps that the gambler may fall into and the therapeutic interventions for putting an end to the irresistible need to gamble, with the penultimate chapter looking at how long–term abstinence can achieved. Finally, the authors discuss the difficulties that they have encountered in the process of therapy, as well as the strategies that have enabled them to surmount these problems.

Understanding and Treating the Pathological Gambler is a vital resource for all clinicians working with pathological gamblers and those with addictions. It is also a fascinating read for anyone who wants to learn more about the psychology of gambling.