Gambling and attention deficit hyperactivity disorders (ADHD) in adolescents

Attention Deficit Disorder with or without Hyperactivity (ADHD) is a neuro-developmental disorder associated with comorbidities such as depression, anxiety or addictive disorders. Many studies confirm that problematic gambling is associated with ADHD and particularly with the severity of positive symptoms. This study had two aims: (I) to test if the presence of ADHD had a significant association with problematic gambling and (II) to observe the impact of the presence of ADHD associated with problematic gambling on self-esteem and academic performance. A total of 719 students (445 males and 274 females) were recruited from six high schools and two higher educational institutions of Île-de-France. Data included their scores on the ICJE, UPPS, WURS, ASRS and Rosenberg scales, along with their demographic data. We found that 37.5% had high scores on the problematic gambling scale as well as on the WURS and the ASRS scales, as against 14.55% with no gambling addiction. The results also indicated that ADHD among young people was also associated with problematic gambling. Significant associations were observed between ADHD and impulsivity, academic difficulties and problematic gambling. Also, men are significantly more likely to develop problematic gambling when they have ADHD. However, results didn’t show that self-esteem was significantly impacted when an individual had high scores on both ADHD and problematic gambling.