Stress, adrenaline, and fatigue contributing to at-fault collision risk: Quantitative and qualitative measures of driving after gambling

This paper is one of the first to address the important topic of problem gambling and risk of collisions. Two hundred and twenty-six (226) problem gamblers completed a self-administered questionnaire that included questions on their lifetime “at fault” collisions, several psychosocial characteristics and open-ended questions on how their gambling may have been related to these collisions. A scale specifically designed for this study, the Gambling Effects on Driving Scale, was significantly related to increased likelihood of lifetime “at fault” collisions in both bivariate and multivariate analyses. Qualitative analyses indicated that drivers frequently reported being tired, upset, angry or under the influence of alcohol or drugs prior to collisions. They most often attributed gambling related collisions to: (1) being stressed or emotionally upset, (2) being in a hurry or rushed in relation to getting to a gambling venue, or (3) being too tired/fatigued. The results from this study suggest a relationship between gambling and risky driving behavior that should be examined in more detail in the future.