도시 쉼터 남성 노숙자에서 병적 도박의 실태와 심리사회적 특성

Prevalence Estimates, Demographics and Psychosocial Characteristics of Pathological Gamblers in Homeless Men

Objectives：This study was to assess the prevalence of pathological gambling in homeless men living in a city shelter in Seoul and to investigate the comparative characteristics of home-less people with and without probable pathological gambling. Methods：The subjects were 119 homeless men living in a city shelter in Seoul. Questionnaires on socio-demographic and psychiatric data were administrated to the subjects. Probable pathological gambling was assessed with Korean South Oaks Gambling Screen (K-SOGS) and probable alcohol dependence was evaluated by CAGE questionnaire. Results：The rate of lifetime probable pathological gambling was 34.5% (41 of 119) and the rate of probable alcohol dependence was 37.8% (45 of 119). The homeless in this study with probable pathological gambling were significantly more likely to have longer times of homelessness, more counseling experiences about gambling, more suicide at-tempts related to gambling problem, more gambling problems with parents, more frequent drinking per given week and higher CAGE scores than the homeless without probable pathological gambling. Conclusion：These results should encourage clinicians working with homeless people to screen for pathological gambling and alcohol use disorder as well. And the plans to approach and treat homeless people with addiction disorder should be made.