Gambling addictions expert warns of dangers of Internet gambling, especially on youth
Participating in an online March Madness bracket or fantasy sport league is harmless fun for most people, but for someone with a gambling addiction, it can be a dangerous temptation. “Now, with states entertaining the possibility of increasing revenue through legalizing internet gambling, it is even more important to pay attention to groups that may be vulnerable to problem gambling, particularly youth,” says Renee Cunningham-Williams, PhD, gambling addictions expert and associate professor at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis.
DSM-IV diagnosis applies equally well for Caucasian and African-American gamblers when combined with new assessment tool
“With African-Americans and other minority groups having both problem and pathological gambling rates that are 2-3 times higher than Caucasian gamblers, accurate diagnosis is essential to treat gambling addiction,” says Renee Cunningham-Williams, Ph.D., a leading gambling addictions expert and visiting associate professor of social work at Washington University in St. Louis. In a first step to close this gap in care, Cunningham-Williams successfully led the development and testing of a new assessment tool, the Gambling Assessment Module, to determine the reliability of current pathological gambling disorder criteria.