Associations of the Big Five and locus of control with problem gambling in a large Australian sample

Abstract

Gambling may range from being a recreational leisure activity to a behavioral addiction. A rising number of gamblers experience adverse consequences from gambling, termed problem gambling, which may become a challenge for the individual and society. With the present research, we aimed to investigate the correlates of problem gambling. We used a large sample of more than 12,500 individuals (46% male, Mage = 48, SDage = 18) from the Household, Income, and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey and analyzed sociodemographic and personality variables (Big Five, locus of control) as well as the extent of problem gambling. Findings showed that male sex and a lower level of education were related to problem gambling, but personality traits were predictive of problem gambling over and above sociodemographic variables. Specifically, a low level of emotional stability, an external locus of control, and, to a lesser extent, a low level of conscientiousness and a high level of extraversion were predictive of problem gambling, whereas openness and agreeableness were not. These results remained constant across various robustness analyses. Our findings reveal the importance of including personality traits when explaining gambling behavior.