L’EFFICACIA DELL’INTERVENTO COGNITIVO ALL’INTERNO DEI GRUPPI PSICOEDUCATIVO-MOTIVAZIONALI PER IL DISTURBO DA GIOCO D’AZZARDO

The use of the group setting favors, as also in other addictions, an evolutionary experience, where powerful transformative mechanisms are activated through the birth of identifying bonds, the development of transference relationships between peers and the creation of a common culture. In monosymptomatic groups, the constitution of this area is rather facilitated: being carriers of the same problematic reduces the persecutory and fragmentation anxiety typical of the presence of the stranger. The evaluation of the results highlights the positive impact of the cognitive intervention on the gamblers during the group cycle, both with respect to gambling behavior and cognitive distortions. The latter are often responsible for initiating and maintaining the disorder, and are related to a high degree of impulsiveness, in addition to the severity of the gambling behavior. This concept is supported by the Dual Process Theory, according to which the human mind performs two types of thinking: rational and intuitive. The results obtained during the cycles of educational-motivational groups show statistically significant changes for gambling-related cognitive distortions and gambling behavior. The reductions were associated whit good effect sizes.