Using Open Science to Personalize Treatment for Gambling Disorder

A Meta-Analytic Research Domain on Psychological Treatments for Gambling Harm

The future of psychological treatment research focuses on questions related to what treatment works for this individual and under which specific circumstances. Dr. Rory A. Pfund, Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology, has led the Tennessee Institute for Gambling Education & Research (TIGER) in a series of published studies to understand this question for personalizing treatments for individuals with gambling disorder.

Over the past several years, Pfund has used meta-analysis, a research method that systematically aggregates the results across published studies, to focus on what treatments work. These meta-analyses have revealed that cognitive-behavioral treatments significantly reduce the number of gambling problems, the number of times gambled, and the amount of money spent on gambling. Pfund’s research has also shown that those treated for gambling problems also significantly reduce anxiety and depression, as well as improve general well-being. However, the results of these meta-analyses are not immediately accessible to multiple stakeholders, including health care practitioners, managed care companies, and policymakers.

Pfund has received a grant from the International Center for Responsible Gaming to solve this problem. He will create an open-access meta-analysis database that immediately provides an always up-to-date meta-analysis for treating gambling disorder. This database will be user-friendly for all stakeholders and will guide evidence-based decision making in real time about what treatments reduce gambling problems and gambling behavior.

TIGER is a research-based clinic with the mission of creating and managing an accessible, engaging evidence-based system of care to reduce the risk of gambling problems for all Tennesseans. TIGER is a partnership between the University of Memphis, East Tennessee State University and the Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services.

For more information about this research project, contact Pfund at rapfund@memphis.edu, or visit the Meta-Analytic Database of Psychotherapy website.