A hierarchical model approach for identifying the trait antecedents of general gambling propensity and of four gambling-related genres

In two studies, we employed a hierarchical model of personality to examine the trait antecedents of gambling. The results revealed that a set of more abstract traits were predictive of a general gambling propensity, including materialism, body resource needs (negative), competitiveness, impulsiveness, sports fanmanship, superstition, and financial conservatism (negative). In Study 2, we controlled for the general gambling propensity and investigated the trait predictors of four gambling-related genres: online, lottery, sports gambling, and marketing sweepstakes/contests. We found that general gambling propensity predicted each genre. In addition, divergent patterns of more basic traits were predictive of the different gambling forms.