Contingency ManagementContingency Management as an Adjunct Treatment for Rural and Remote Disordered Gamblers

This is a treatment where participants earn points for treatment attendance and for providing evidence of gambling abstinence. These points are added to study accounts that can be redeemed for goods and services available at a variety of on-line businesses (e.g., Amazon, Walmart, etc.). Submission of evidence of gambling behaviour or non-attendance at an on-line counselling session re-sets subsequent points to the starting level. The CM procedure is implemented as part of the CBT counselling session.

CBT is currently considered "best practice" for the treatment of problem gambling, as noted in the National Health and Medical Research Council (Australia) endorsed Clinical Guidelines for problem and pathological gambling treatment (Problem Gambling Research and Treatment Centre, 2011). CBT is typically a semi-structured approach for delivering cognitive behavioural therapy addressing the participant's experiences, thoughts, and emotions relating to their gambling and substance use. Techniques include psychoeducation, behavioural interventions, and cognitive strategies. Participants are expected to attend on-line counselling sessions three times a week for approximately 12 weeks. All participants will receive individual counselling from an experienced counsellor/therapist.

In addition to Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, this intervention uses small incentives to reinforce study attendance and gambling abstinence.

This intervention uses psychoeducation, behavioural strategies, and cognitive restructuring to assist the participant in their efforts to become abstinent from gambling.