Exploring psychological need satisfaction from gambling participation and the moderating influence of game preferences

Figures & data

Table 1. Sample characteristics.

		Sample (%)	Kindred Group Plc Customers (%)
Gender	Male	90.6	82.9
Age	Mean	39.3	30.9
	SD	13.2	11.1
Country	Sweden	51.3	9.7
	Netherlands	20.1	13.6
	UK	13.6	3.8
	Norway	1.3	6.0
	Denmark	0	5.4
	Poland	0	5.1
	Finland	0.4	4.4
	Malta	0.3	4.3
	Belgium	0.3	3.9
	Other	12.7	43.8
Marital Status	Single	33.5	NA
	Common-Law	28.4	NA
	Married	30.8	NA
	Separated/Divorced	6.6	NA
	Widowed	0.7	NA
Education	Not Completed High School	7.0	NA
	High School Graduation	35.5	NA
	Trades Certificate	16.4	NA
	College or University Degree	30.1	NA
	Graduate or Medical Degree	11.0	NA
Employment	Unemployed	9.3	NA
	Retired	6.7	NA
	Homemaker	1.4	NA
	Full-time Student	8.2	NA
	Sick leave, maternity, disability	2.2	NA
	Employed Part-time	11.6	NA
	Employed Full-time	60.6	NA
Household	< €10,000	12.2	NA
Income	€11,000–30,000	21.8	NA
	€31,000–50,000	22.4	NA
	€51,000–70,000	14.4	NA
	€71,000–90,000	7.6	NA
	€91,000–110,000	4.2	NA
	€111,000–150,000	2.1	NA
	More than €151,000	1.6	NA
	Prefer not to say	13.8	NA

NA = Not available

Table 2. Subjects’ ratings on the psychological need satisfaction scale items.

Gambling Items	x̅	s	SD (%)	D (%)	N (%)	A (%)	SA (%)
Engagement and Mastery
It helps me develop my gambling/betting skills and abilities	3.52	1.01	4.8	10.5	25.7	45.9	13.0
It allows me to test my abilities	3.46	1.06	5.3	14.6	21.4	45.9	12.8
It gives me intellectual stimulation	3.41	1.10	6.4	15.3	23.2	41.6	13.6
It causes me to learn new things	3.31	1.00	5.6	15.0	30.3	41.2	7.9
It improves my general decision-making and/or problem solving skills	3.19	1.07	7.4	18.6	30.5	34.5	8.9
It allows me to compete with the ‘system’	3.16	1.11	9.6	17.0	29.9	34.7	8.8
Self-Affirmation
It gives me a sense of accomplishment	3.48	0.99	4.7	11.8	25.0	47.6	10.9
It improves my self-esteem	2.99	1.05	8.7	22.7	35.7	26.4	6.5
It gives me a sense of control	2.92	1.12	14.1	18.7	34.1	27.3	5.9
It allows me to create an image of myself that is appealing to other people	2.68	1.08	19.5	32.3	34.7	10.4	3.1
It allows me to create an image of myself that I like	2.45	1.02	14.9	29.6	33.1	17.3	5.3
Excitement
It gives me excitement	3.94	0.91	3.4	4.4	10.5	57.9	23.8
It allows me to take risks that I enjoy	3.43	1.04	7.0	11.8	21.7	50.6	8.9
It allows me to test my luck	3.35	1.17	10.6	11.2	24.2	40.4	13.5
It alleviates my boredom	3.14	1.13	11.2	14.6	31.7	33.6	8.9
It allows me to demonstrate courage	2.84	1.12	14.8	21.7	32.9	25.5	5.0
Detachment
It allows me to relax	3.38	1.08	8.5	11.8	22.2	48.3	9.3
It allows me to release some stress	2.99	1.05	14.3	20.4	24.6	32.8	7.9
It allows me to escape from problems in my daily life	2.48	1.19	25.9	28.1	21.9	20.1	4.0
Affiliation
It allows me to compete with others	3.25	1.18	9.5	18.9	22.3	36.0	13.3
It allows me to socialise with people I know (friends/family)	2.54	1.12	22.4	26.2	29.7	18.8	2.9
It allows me to socialise and/or meet new people	2.49	1.13	23.5	28.3	27.4	17.3	3.5
Autonomy
It gives me the freedom to make my own choices	3.17	1.14	11.3	14.7	29.1	35.7	9.1
It allows me to be extravagant or frivolous	2.59	1.07	19.3	25.4	36.0	16.0	3.4
It allows me to get away from people	2.37	1.07	24.8	30.6	29.7	12.1	2.7
It gives me the freedom to be someone else	2.37	1.12	27.4	27.3	29.6	11.9	3.8
It allows me to compete with the ‘system’	3.16	1.11	9.6	17.0	29.9	34.7	8.8

x̅ = sample mean of ratings on 5-point scale: 1 = strongly disagree (SD); 2 = disagree (D); 3 = neither disagree nor agree (N); 4 = agree (A); 5 = strongly agree (SA);

s = sample standard deviation of scale ratings.

Table 3. Exploratory factors and item loadings.

	Factors
Items	1	2	3	4	5	Com
It helps to develop my gambling skills	0.806	−0.131	−0.018	0.030	−0.047	0.528
It causes me to learn new things	0.771	−0.062	0.005	0.036	0.022	0.573
It gives me intellectual stimulation	0.735	0.062	−0.055	−0.003	0.003	0.562
It allows me to test my abilities	0.635	0.107	0.077	−0.049	0.042	0.549
It improves my general decision making	0.620	0.219	−0.071	−0.039	0.027	0.540
It allows me to compete with others	0.452	−0.023	0.003	0.014	0.325	0.456
It allows me to create an image that I like	−0.008	0.929	−0.094	0.002	−0.042	0.745
It allows me to create an image that others like	−0.066	0.838	−0.102	0.003	0.081	0.647
It improves my self-esteem	0.212	0.671	−0.004	0.001	−0.101	0.581
It gives me a sense of control	0.069	0.382	0.189	0.128	0.041	0.412
It gives me a sense of accomplishment	0.254	0.345	0.224	−0.035	−0.142	0.463
It allows me to take risks that I enjoy	−0.024	−0.022	0.843	−0.053	−0.058	0.613
It gives me excitement	0.239	−0.204	0.659	0.012	−0.079	0.467
It allows me to test my luck	−0.140	−0.016	0.562	0.050	0.082	0.418
It allows me to demonstrate courage	−0.073	0.305	0.456	−0.003	0.171	0.507
It alleviates my boredom	−0.082	0.024	0.346	0.261	0.077	0.400
It allows me to release some stress	0.085	−0.044	−0.106	0.991	−0.025	0.880
It allows me to relax	0.007	−0.070	0.168	0.631	−0.043	0.476
It allows me to escape from problems in life	−0.108	0.202	0.017	0.560	0.024	0.427
It allows me to socialise and/or meet new people	0.090	−0.029	−0.073	0.021	0.884	0.791
It allows me to socialise with people I know	−0.019	−0.009	0.070	−0.049	0.801	0.634
Eigenvalue	6.97	2.28	1.66	1.23	1.19
Variance (%)	33.20	10.86	7.90	5.88	5.65
Cronbach’s alpha coefficient	0.85	0.83	0.74	0.77	0.83
Number of items	6	5	5	3	3

Extraction method: Principal Axis Factoring; Rotation method: Promax with Kaiser Normalization.

The Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin measure of sampling adequacy: 0.88; Bartlett’s test of sphericity: χ2 = 7195.06; df: 210; p<.001. Com = Communality; 1:‘Challenge and Mastery‘. 2:‘Self-Affirnation‘; 3: Risk and Excitement’; 4. ’Detachment’; 5. ’Affiliation’.

Table 4. CFA five factor model of psychological need satisfaction from gambling.

	Standardised	t Values	SMCs
Latent Variables and Items\	Loadings	(Critical Ratios)
Challenge and Mastery (ξ1: α = 0.83; AVE = 0.50; CCR = 0.81)
It gives me intellectual stimulation	0.77***	88.36	0.59
It improves my general decision-making and/or problem solving skills	0.76***	84.46	0.58
It causes me to learn new things	0.73***	93.88	0.53
It allows me to test my abilities	0.72***	92.76	0.53
It allows me to compete with others	0.40***	77.78	0.32*
Detachment (ξ2: α = 0.77; AVE = 0.60; CCR = 0.82)
It allows me to release some stress	0.83***	71.30	0.69
It allows me to relax	0.76***	88.62	0.58
It allows me to escape from problems in my daily life	0.72***	59.35	0.52
Self-Affirmation (ξ3: α = 0.84; AVE = 0.57; CCR = 0.80)
It allows me to create an image of myself (as a gambler) that I like	0.79***	70.60	0.63
It improves my self-esteem	0.77***	80.85	0.60
It allows me to create an image of myself (as a gambler) that others like	0.71***	68.57	0.51
Risk and Excitement (ξ4: α = 0.71; AVE = 0.59; CCR = 0.81)
It allows me to demonstrate courage	0.89**	72.16	0.80
It allows me to test my luck	0.71***	81.45	0.51
It allows me to take risks that I enjoy	0.70***	93.78	0.50
Affiliation (ξ5: α = 0.73; AVE = 0.51; CCR = 0.73)
It allows me to socialise and/or meet new people	0.90***	62.68	0.81
It allows me to socialise with people I know	0.79***	64.27	0.62
It allows me to compete with others	0.31***	77.78	0.32*
Model fit measures
χ^2 (df)	298.08 (89)
Normed χ^2	3.35
RMSEA	0.039 (90% C.I: 0.034–0.044)
NFI	0.95
IFI	0.96
TLI	0.94
CFI	0.96

*complex item loading on ‘Challenge and Mastery’ and ‘Affiliation’; _*** p<0.001. Items removed to increase the model fit: ‘It helps to develop my gambling skills

(Challenge and Mastery); ‘It gives me a sense of control’ and ‘It gives me a sense of accomplishment’ (Self-Affirmation); ‘It gives me excitement’ and ‘It alleviates my

boredom’ (Risk and Excitement). RMSEA = root mean square of approximation; NFI = normed fit index; IFI = incremental fit index; TLI = Tucker-Lewis index;

CFI = comparative fit index; SMC = squared multiple correlation; CI = confidence interval; AVE = average variance extracted: (Σ standardised λ) / n; CCR =

composite construct reliability: (Σ standardised λ)² _{/ (Σ standardised λ)}²_{+ (Σ ε).}

Table 5. Comparative CFA fit indices for four, five and six factor models.

CFA Model	χ^2 (df)	Normed χ^2	RMSEA	(LO	-HI)	NFI	IFI	TLI	CF1
4 Factor Model	366.61 (81)	4.53	0.048	0.043	0.053	0.92	0.94	0.90	0.94
5 Factor Model	298.08 (89)	3.35	0.039	0.034	0.044	0.95	0.96	0.94	0.96
6 Factor Model	512.43 (90)	5.69	0.047	0.043	0.051	0.91	0.92	0.91	0.92

RMSEA = Root Mean Square of Approximation; NFI = Normed Fit Index; IFI = Incremental Fit Index; TLI = Tucker-Lewis Index; CFI = Comparative Fit Index.

Table 6. Differences in psychological need satisfaction dimensions by gambling preferences.

Factors/ Gambling Form		x̅	s	Sum of Squares	df	Mean Square	F	p
Challenge & Mastery				1072.981	4	268.25	16.40	< 0.001
				12,395.752	758	16.35
Multiple Comparison Test Results:
Sports Betting		16.01	4.02
Horse Racing		16.87	3.78
Slots		14.8	4.75
Poker		18.54*	3.73
Casino Table Games		15.06	4.76
*Significantly higher for poker than for sports betting (I-J: 2.53; p < 0.05), horse racing (I-J: 1.68; p < 0.05),
slots (I-J: 3.74; p < 0.05) and casino table games (I-J: 3.48; p < 0.05).
Detachment				140.891	4	35.22	4.35	0.002
				6111.832	755	8.1
Multiple Comparison Test Results:
Sports Betting		8.49	2.82
Horse Racing		9.06	3.14
Slots		9.94*	2.63
Poker		9.03	2.75
Casino Table Games		9.09	3.27
*Significantly higher for slots than for sports betting (I-J: 1.45; p < 0.05).
Self-Affirmation				147.491	4	36.87	5.07	< 0.001
				5501.302	756	7.28
Multiple Comparison Test Results:
Sports Betting		7.92	2.75
Horse Racing		8.06	2.65
Slots		7.46	2.81
Poker		8.79*	2.41
Casino Table Games		7.17	3.14
*Significantly higher for poker than for sports betting (I-J: 0.86; p < 0.05), slots (I-J: 1.33; p < 0.05) and
casino table games (I-J: 1.62; p < 0.05).
Risk & Excitement				45.311	4	11.33	1.64	0.16
				5220.672	756	6.91
Multiple Comparison Test Results:
Sports Betting		9.63	2.58
Horse Racing		9.18	2.67
Slots		10.05	2.89
Poker		9.26	2.57
Casino Table Games		9.86	2.93
No significant differences between the gambling forms on risk and excitement.
Affiliation				298.131	4	74.53	10.03	< 0.001
				5627.052	757	7.43
Multiple Comparison Test Results:
Sports Betting		7.79	2.64
Horse Racing		8.61	2.74
Slots		7.71	2.93
Poker		9.25*	2.7
Casino Table Games		7.57	3.43
*Significantly higher for poker than for sports betting (I-J: 1.46; p < 0.05) and slots (1.54; p < 0.05).

One-way ANOVA results: x̅ = mean; s = standard deviation; 1:.Between group differences; 2: Within group differences.

Gambling preference group samples: sports gambling (n = 446); horse racing (n = 69); slots (n = 70); poker (n = 174); casino table games (n = 40).

Table 7. Differences in respondent health-related variables by dominant gambling preferences.

Health-Related Variables	x̅	s	Sum of Squares	df	Mean Square	F	p
Stress			9.38^1	4	2.34	0.8	0.54
			2204.49^2	748	2.95
Multiple Comparison Test Results:
Sports Betting	4.93	1.65
Horse Racing	5.57	1.46
Slots	5.08	1.42
Poker	5	1.77
Casino Table Games	5.26	1.44
No significant differences between the gambling forms on player stress.
Happiness			34.78^1	4	8.7	4.27	0.002
			605.192	747	2.04
Multiple Comparison Test Results:
Sports Betting	5.77*	1.38
Horse Racing	5.57	1.46
Slots	5.08	1.42
Poker	5.89**	1.51
Casino Table Games	5.53	1.5
*significantly higher for sports betting than for slots (I-J: 0.69; p < 0.05); **significantly higher for poker than for slots (I-J: 0.81; p < 0.05).

One-way ANOVA results; x̅ = mean; s = standard deviation; 1:.Between group differences; 2: Within group differences. Gambling preference group samples:

sports gambling (n = 446); horse racing (n = 69); slots (n = 70); poker (n = 174); casino table games (n = 40).