Comparing the utility of a modified Diagnostic Interview for Gambling Severity (DIGS) with the South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS) as a research screen in college students

J Gambl Stud. 2010 Dec;26(4):639-44. doi: 10.1007/s10899-010-9189-x.

Abstract

The South Oaks Gambling Screen (SOGS) is compared in reliability to a modified version of the Diagnostic Interview for Gambling Severity (DIGS-S) for use as a pathological gambling (PG) screen in college students. Seventy-two undergraduates (83.3% male, mean age of 18.8) from the University of Georgia completed the measures, completing a longitudinal design with 3 sessions over a 2-month time period. The DIGS-S and the SOGS demonstrated good internal consistency over the 3 sessions, with Cronbach's Alphas ranging from 0.73 to 0.89, as well as strong concurrent validity, with correlations of .50 to .80 (Ps < .001) between the 2 measures across the 3 sessions. Both Cronbach's alpha and test-retest reliability were higher with the DIGS-S than the SOGS. Given this, and given that the DIGS directly measures symptoms of pathological gambling, future research could benefit from the use of the DIGS-S as a PG screening tool in a college-aged sample.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study
  • Evaluation Study
  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders
  • Female
  • Gambling / classification*
  • Gambling / diagnosis*
  • Gambling / prevention & control
  • Humans
  • Longitudinal Studies
  • Male
  • Psychiatric Status Rating Scales*
  • Psychometrics
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Risk Assessment
  • Severity of Illness Index*
  • Students / psychology
  • Students / statistics & numerical data*
  • Surveys and Questionnaires / standards*
  • Young Adult