Genetic and environmental origins of gambling behaviors from ages 18 to 25: A longitudinal twin family study.

Abstract

Gambling behaviors tend to increase in prevalence from late adolescence to young adulthood, and the underlying genetic and environmental influences during this period remain largely understudied. We examined the genetic and environmental influences on gambling behaviors contributing to stability and change from ages 18 to 25 in a longitudinal, behavioral genetic mixed-sex twin study design. Participants were enrolled in the Minnesota Twin Family Study. A range of gambling behaviors (maximum frequency, average frequency, money lost and gambling problems) were assessed at ages 18 and 25. The results of our study support the following conclusions: 1) the genetic and environmental factors impacting a range of gambling behaviors are largely similar in men and women, 2) genetic factors increase in influence from 18 to 25 (21% at age 18 to 57% at age 25), 3) shared environmental factors are influential at age 18, but tend to decrease from ages 18 to 25 (55% at age 18 to 10% at age 25), and 4) non-shared environmental influences are similarly significant and are small to moderate in magnitude at both ages. The findings add to a small, yet important research area regarding determinants of youth gambling behaviors and have the potential to inform prevention and intervention efforts.

Has the Genetic Contribution to the Propensity to Gamble Increased? Evidence From National Twin Studies Conducted in 1962 and 2002

“…2 In the Minnesota study, there were significant genetic influences on variation in typical frequency at ages 18 and 25 years. There was a substantial and significant contribution of the shared environment only at age 18 years (King et al, 2017).…”

“…In a study of 279 13-year-old Quebec twin pairs, gambling involvement was completely explained by genetic and unique environmental factors, with no contribution from the shared family environment (Vitaro et al, 2014). A study of 756 Minnesota twin pairs assessed at ages 18 and 25 years reported results for several measures of gambling, including one 'typical frequency' similar to the measure used in the Quebec study (King et al, 2017). 2 In the Minnesota study, there were significant genetic influences on variation in typical frequency at ages 18 and 25 years.…”

“…1 Based on a more comprehensive assessment of gambling than used in the present study. 2 This entailed averaging the frequency of participation in 10 ( King et al, 2017) or 12 (Vitaro et al, 2014) different gambling activities over the past 12 months, with past-year non-gamblers coded as zero. This measure taps into several components-gambling versatility, frequency, and initiation.…”

Genetic and environmental influences on gambling disorder liability: a replication and combined analysis of two twin studies

“…The other study was based on data collected within the context of an ongoing longitudinal twin study in Minnesota (King et al, 2017). At ages 18 and 25, participants completed questionnaires of past-year symptoms of GD as measured by the South Oaks Gambling Screen (Lesieur and Blume, 1987).…”

“…Estimates of the contribution of genetic factors to variation in GD were 5–37%, varying by age and sex, with genetic contributions increasing over time for men and decreasing over time for women. Additionally, there was evidence of significant shared environmental influences (19–29%) at age 18 (King et al ., 2017). These discrepant findings might be due to the relative youth of this sample, the low yield of gambling problems, or the focus on past-year rather than lifetime pathology.…”