A study co-authored by Yale University finds a link between problem gambling and obsessive-compulsive behaviors.
Over the years, it's been difficult for psychiatrists to classify problem gambling. It was once considered a impulse control disorder.
In the latest edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, problem gambling is classified as an addiction.
A new study by Yale University, St. Louis University, and the VA finds an overlap between problem gambling and obsessive compulsive behaviors.
"For example, people with gambling problems often have strong drives and preoccupations that focus on gambling, and these may be considered in a family of obsessions," said Dr. Marc Potenza, a professor of psychiatry and neurobiology at Yale University school of medicine, and senior author of the study.
"The repetitive behavior, the continued gambling despite adverse consequences -- which is a central feature of a gambling disorder -- that may be seen within a the compulsive behavior's domain," Potenza said.
The study interviewed 1,675 adult male twins, and found that those with severe obsessive-compulsive behaviors -- things like a fear of germs, or performing ritualistic behaviors -- were more likely to meet the diagnostic criteria for a gambling disorder.
Potenza said the study's findings will be a useful tool for people treating problem gamblers. "The goal of this study was to understand the individual differences of people with gambling problems, so that we can better develop interventions both at prevention levels and treatment levels," he said.
The study is published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry.
