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Library | Material Type | Call Number | Child Count | Shelf Location | Status | Item Holds |
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Searching... Science | Book | 616.85227 IS1Y, 2001 | 1 | Stacks | Searching... Unknown | Searching... Unavailable |
Searching... Science | Book | HV6710 .I82 2001 | 1 | Stacks | Searching... Unknown | Searching... Unavailable |
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Summary
Summary
We are a nation of gamblers: pari-mutuel wagering at horse tracks; blackjack in Las Vegas; the NCAA basketball office pool; even day trading on the internet. Gambling is both our national pastime and our predominant cultural metaphor--play the field; beat the odds; take a chance on love. Yet gambling poses serious risks to individuals and to society as a whole.
Neil Isaacs--sports historian, licensed clinical social worker, English professor, and a gambler himself for more than fifty years--seeks to shatter the myths interfering with our understanding of gambling addiction, its causes, and its treatment. He begins by systematically debunking several commonly held beliefs, demonstrating that there is no such thing as the law of averages, that gambling is not inherently sinful, immoral, or criminal, and that money is not always the prime motivator for gamblers.
Isaacs shows how habitual gambling can lead to compulsive gambling, but avoids oversimplifying this condition. Arguing against a undifferentiated interpretation of pathological gambling as a simple impulse control disorder, he draws examples from fiction, film, and his own practice to demonstrate additional ways gambling can be abused. A radical departure from established views, You Bet Your Life identifies the costs--in dollars, people, families, and credit ratings--of society's failure to address adequately the burdens of gambling.
Reviews (1)
Choice Review
In this study Isaacs (emer., Univ. of Maryland) combines his experience teaching a course on the literature of gambling with case study anecdotes from his practice as a family therapist. A strong advocate of Gamblers Anonymous, the author links gambling to depression, anxiety, existential angst, psychosis, personality disorders, and addiction. The writing is smooth, and the pace is fast. General and beginning readers will appreciate Isaacs's insight into the problem gambler from fictional and Freudian psychoanalytic perspectives. Most students, researchers, and professionals--and those seeking practical help for the individual gambler--will benefit more from Michael Walker's The Psychology of Gambling (CH, Jun'93). For extensive psychology collections. R. A. Drake Western State College of Colorado
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments | p. ix |
Introduction: A Roadmap Through a Minefield | p. 1 |
1. Seven Other Myths about Gambling | p. 11 |
2. Gambling and the Irrational | p. 37 |
3. The High-Profile Profile | p. 53 |
4. The Compulsion to Lose | p. 75 |
5. Gambling and Anxiety | p. 87 |
6. Gambling and Depression | p. 99 |
7. Gambling and Psychosis | p. 117 |
8. Filling the Void | p. 133 |
9. Gambling and the Brothers Barthelme | p. 151 |
10. Gambling and Personality Disorders | p. 165 |
11. Gambling and Addiction | p. 195 |
12. Dilemmas of Diagnosis and Treatment | p. 213 |
Notes | p. 232 |
Bibliography | p. 257 |
Index | p. 268 |