OR-20 Exploring gambling craving through the Elaborated Intrusion Theory of desire: A mixed method study

Background and aims. Gambling disorder is a well-established behavioral addiction, and has been aligned to substance-related addictions in the DSM-5. While craving is recognized as a criterion for substance related addictions, it was not retained for gambling disorder, evidence currently being sparser. Research is thus needed to investigate this phenomenon and to test whether established models of craving can be applied to gambling craving. The current study aims thus to explore gambling craving and to analyze the collected data through of the Elaborated Intrusion Theory of Desire (EIT), a recent yet recognized cognitive model of craving. Methods. A mixed-method study was conducted among 31 regular gamblers. The qualitative part consisted in 10 open questions focused on the triggers and the components involved in the elaboration of the craving, in the EIT. The quantitative part was a questionnaire about the triggers and the description of substances cravings adapted to gambling. Results. Thematic analysis reveals 5 categories of answers: affect (positive and negative), cues, images, thoughts and physiological sensations. The descriptive analyses highlights most relevant triggers (spontaneous thoughts, boredom, visual imagery…) and descriptions (extinction without thoughts about gambling, availability, visual imagery) of gambling craving. Discussion and Conclusions. The combination of both sets of data allows us to better understand the phenomenology of gambling craving and confirms the relevance of the EIT in this context. This study supports the use of processes-based interventions (e.g., interference, emotion regulation, mindfulness) derived from the EIT, that has proven useful with regard to substance craving management.