None listed
Conditions
Brief summary
Problem gambling, whatever the medium, is associated with widespread negative socioeconomic, social and health effects in New Zealand, and the negative impacts on individuals, families and communities have been well documented. Abnormal cue reactivity is a central feature of all addictions, including problem gambling, and is associated with increased activity in motivation to engage in the behaviour. While the advent of the personal smartphone has created new opportunities for gambling harm via online gambling, it has also created opportunities to intervene at various stages in the problem gambling continuum, from prevention to relapse prevention. Our research uses as a starting point existing models of intervention for relapse prevention, then adds a level of sophistication with real-time targeting and personalisation using mobile phones. that has not yet been investigated in the gambling addictions field.
Interventions
Provide a behavioral intervention program delivered by mobile phone app to problem gamblers to support their relapse prevention. This intervention is in addition to usual/standard care.
The intervention is multi-pronged with a set of standard structured messages that are aimed at strategies for avoiding risk triggers., maintaining wellness, etc. The number and timing of these messages are participant selected to match when they believe that they are most at risk for relapsing and how much supp
Provide a behavioral intervention program delivered by mobile phone app to problem gamblers to support their relapse prevention. This intervention is in addition to usual/standard care. The intervention is multi-pronged with a set of standard structured messages that are aimed at strategies for avoiding risk triggers., maintaining wellness, etc. The number and timing of these messages are participant selected to match when they believe that they are most at risk for relapsing and how much support (frequency of messages) they identify they need. the intensity can be between 1 - 5 messages a day.. Once this is selected the participant receives these and does not need to activate the app further unless they wish to adjust the frequency or timing. Two additional strategies within the app program are 1. a GPS locator activated on the participants phone which has coordinates mapped to gambling premises will be used to trigger an intervention that is more intensive and specific to that occasion - i.e. when they appear to be in a gambling venue. These messages are currently being refined. However, they will be specifically shaped to facilitate the recognition of immediate risk of being exposed to cues and triggers that could influence a gambling relapse along with some immediate and actionable strategies to resist and avoid these cues; 2. a rescue icon will also be able to be activated by the participant when they feel that they need additional help. This will be linked to more tailored messages, the problem gambling line contact numbers, and their counselor (if appropriate). The intervention will be implemented for 1 month in total. Some monitoring will be undertaken through the app. The app will have location technology activated, This will be used to assess potential exposure (triggers) to gambling venues. Times spent in these locations will be captured to help with contextualizing abstinence and relapses. Self reported abstinence or relapse will be collected at the 1 month end point.
Sponsors
Professor Chris Bullen
Study design
Allocation
Non-randomised trial
Intervention model
Single group
Primary purpose
Prevention
Masking
Open (masking not used) (Subject, Caregiver, Investigator, Outcomes Assessor)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
Participants are classified into gambling subtypes based on their G-SAS score captured at baseline. Recruitment is based on self selection and exclusion criteria is aged 17 years or less and /or do not own an android smart phone capable of downloading an app. This change has been initiated after the original study design was implemented.
Exclusion criteria
Not owning a smart phone capable of downloading an app. Significant mental health illness or other long term condition that precludes ability to give informed consent.
Outcome results
None listed