ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Psychiatry
Sec. Addictive Disorders
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1602316
Temporal Perspectives, Sensation-Seeking, and Cognitive Distortions as Predictors of Adolescent Gambling Behavior: A Study in Italian High Schools
Provisionally accepted
- 1University of Cassino, Cassino, Lazio, Italy
- 2Pegaso University, Naples, Campania, Italy
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Background. Adolescent gambling is an emerging concern, with increasing accessibility through digital platforms. Psychological factors such as sensation-seeking, cognitive distortions, and time perspectives may contribute to gambling behavior during this developmental period. Aims. This study investigated the association between temporal perspectives and adolescent gambling, controlling for sensationseeking and cognitive distortions. Methods. A total of 1,424 adolescents (Mage = 16.2 years, SD = 1.3) completed self-report measures assessing gambling behavior (PGSI), time perspectives (ZTPI), sensation-seeking (SSSA), and gambling-related cognitions (GBQ). Multiple regression and moderation analyses were conducted. Results. Present-hedonistic (β = .42, p < .001) and presentfatalistic (β = .17, p < .01) perspectives were significantly associated with both gambling frequency and severity, independent of sensation-seeking and cognitive distortions. Future orientation was inversely associated with gambling severity (β = -.19, p < .001). Moderation analyses indicated that the combination of high sensation-seeking and high present-hedonism amplified gambling risk. The model explained 32% of the variance in gambling severity. Conclusions. Temporal orientation plays a distinct role in adolescent gambling behavior beyond traditional dispositional and cognitive factors.Interventions should incorporate time-awareness strategies, helping adolescents shift toward futureoriented thinking while addressing sensation-seeking tendencies through targeted risk management and engagement in alternative rewarding activities.
Keywords: Adolescent gambling, temporal perspectives, Sensation-seeking, Cognitive distortions, Gambling severity, Risk factors, Present hedonism, future orientation
Received: 29 Mar 2025; Accepted: 07 Jul 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Mancone, Zanon, Marotta, Celia and Diotaiuti. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Stefania Mancone, University of Cassino, Cassino, 03043, Lazio, Italy
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