Buddhist philosophy for the treatment of problem gambling.
Journal of Behavioral Addictions June 1, 2013 Edo Shonin, William Van Gordon, Mark D Griffiths
Research on Buddhist-derived interventions (BDIs) for problem gambling is growing but remains limited to cross-sectional studies and clinical case studies. Findings suggest that Buddhist-derived mindfulness practices may help reduce problem gambling symptoms. Other potentially useful practices include insight meditation to address avoidance and dissociation, antidotes such as patience and impermanence to reduce impulsivity, loving-kindness meditation to foster positive thinking, and middle-way principles to reduce relapse and withdrawal. However, no controlled treatment studies exist, and barriers include a lack of experienced BDI clinicians and poor provision of both BDIs and gambling interventions. The authors conclude that preliminary findings are promising but further research is needed.