Sex differences among treatment-seeking adult pathologic gamblers

The purpose of this study is to explore the effect of sex as a moderator variable for gambling and clinical profiles in a large sample of Spanish treatment-seeking patients for pathologic gambling (PG).

Clinical and personality profiles were compared between 143 male and 143 female pathologic gamblers who sought consultation at a specialized hospital unit. Multiple regressions explored the incremental predictive accuracy of sex on PG severity in consideration of sociodemographic and psychologic characteristics.

Men gambled most frequently using slot machines and lotteries, spent more money, and had most arguments with family and friends. Although the age of onset of PG was 7.1 years higher for females, the severity was equal for both sexes. Women evidenced more general psychopathology, with higher mean scores in all the Symptom ChekList-90 items scales (except for hostility and psychoticism), and had significantly higher scores for harm avoidance and lower scores for self-directedness than the male group. However, sex alone did not obtain a significant incremental validity for PG severity.

These results may provide guidance for obtaining accurate diagnostic information about PG, properly identifying patients with specific needs and planning sex-specific targets.