Cognitive-Motivational Behavior Therapy for Pathological Gamblers
Pathological Gambling
About this trial
This is an interventional treatment trial for Pathological Gambling
Eligibility Criteria
Inclusion Criteria:
- pathological gambling
- be able to read, understand and sign an informed consent form prior to any procedure and must be willing to comply with all study procedures and timelines
Exclusion Criteria:
- to meet DSM-IV criteria for comorbid substance use disorders in the last six months
- current comorbid psychiatric conditions which require treatment and are not clearly secondary to pathological gambling
- psychotropic medication
Sites / Locations
- New York Psychiatric Institute
Arms of the Study
Arm 1
Arm 2
Active Comparator
Experimental
CBT
CMBT
The CBT treatment developed by Ladouceur (Consultant) will serve as control condition (outline of published treatment manual by Ladouceur & Lachance, 2006. This treatment served as a model for the cognitive-behavioral component in CMBT and has received empirical support in two studies from Ladouceur's lab (Sylvain et al., 1997; Ladouceur et al., 2004). It places strong emphasis on cognitive correction of erroneous beliefs about gambling and also focuses on coping skills training and relapse prevention. CBT also lasts 12 weekly sessions.
We used the NIMH-funded R21 mechanism to develop and test the CMBT intervention (Wulfert et al., 2003, 2005; 2006). Treatment will be implemented in 12 weekly sessions (3 motivational enhancement sessions, 8 sessions of cognitive-behavioral treatment, 1 session of relapse prevention)