Assessing the reliability of the Gambling Functional Assessment

Dixon and Johnson (Analysis of Gambling Behavior 2007, 1:44-49) introduced the Gambling Functional Assessment (GFA), which attempts to identify the consequences that may be maintaining a person's gambling behavior. The present study had 949 introductory psychology students complete the GFA, with 124 of them completing the measure a second time 12 weeks later. Measures of internal consistency were quite good regardless of whether "non-gamblers" were included or excluded. Test-retest reliability was somewhat mixed, with Escape scores yielding substandard coefficients, especially among females. Both internal and test-retest reliability were typically poorer for female respondents. In general, the GFA performed within the limits of acceptable reliability, and coefficients compared favorably with similar measures. Future investigations will need to determine the reliability and validity of the instrument, especially as it pertains to its intended population, pathological gamblers.