Víctor Cabrera-Perona

In recent years, both land-based and online gambling have become increasingly normalised and socially accepted activities. Despite legal restrictions aimed at preventing underage access, evidence confirms concerning prevalence rates among adolescents. Over the past three decades, preventive programmes have been developed to reduce the incidence of problem gambling, alongside several systematic reviews. This umbrella review synthesises and critically contrasts the findings of previous reviews. A systematic search was conducted across seven databases (ProQuest, PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus, Web of Science, PsycINFO, ScienceDirect, CENTRAL) and the ClinicalTrials.gov registry in line with PRISMA 2020 guidelines. Reviews evaluating adolescent gambling prevention using behavioural, severity, knowledge, risk-perception or attitude outcomes were eligible. Methodological quality and overlap were assessed using AMSTAR-2 and CCA. Seven systematic reviews and meta-analyses were identified, comprising 38 primary-study entries in the overlap matrix. These entries generated 107 review–study inclusions (CCA = 30.26%), indicating substantial overlap across reviews. Interventions consistently improved knowledge and beliefs, but behavioural effects were modest, inconsistent, and rarely sustained. The seven reviews draw heavily on a limited and overlapping body of primary studies. Cognitive improvements were reported, but all seven reviews were rated critically low by AMSTAR-2 and comparative evidence for multicomponent and skills-based programmes remains limited. More rigorous designs, longer follow-ups, and consistent outcome measures are required.

The proliferation of gambling advertising has intensified concerns regarding its influence on vulnerable populations, yet the neural mechanisms underlying cue-reactivity to these stimuli remain underexplored in ecologically valid settings. This study protocol proposes a novel methodological framework to investigate prefrontal cortical responses to gambling advertisements in individuals with varying degrees of gambling experience. Materials and methods: This cross-sectional study will recruit 44 participants, divided into a clinical group (individuals with high-frequency gambling or gambling disorder) and a matched control group. Neural activity will be recorded using fNIRS while participants view gambling-related, neutral, violent, and sexual stimuli. Secondary measures include validated scales for gambling severity (SOGS), impulsivity, sensation seeking, and alexithymia. Data analysis will primarily utilize inter-subject correlation (ISC) to quantify neural synchronization and multiband frequency decomposition to capture dynamic affective processing. Advanced preprocessing, including short-channel regression, will be applied to ensure signal robustness. Discussion: By combining portable neuroimaging with a data-driven ISC approach, this study aims to identify objective neural markers of gambling vulnerability. The findings will provide novel insights into the idiosyncratic processing of commercial stimuli, potentially informing public health policies and the development of more effective evidence-based regulations for gambling marketing.

Adolescent gambling has become a growing public health concern. Despite international evidence supporting preventive interventions, few programs have been rigorously evaluated in Spanish-speaking populations. This study examined the effectiveness of the school-based gambling prevention program What’s at stake? ( WAS? ). A randomized controlled trial was conducted with secondary school students ( N = 6,308; 50.6% female; mean age = 15.3 years). Participants were assigned to an experimental group ( n = 5,022) or control group ( n = 1,286). Assessments were carried out at baseline (T ₁ ) and one week post-intervention (T ₂ ). Primary outcomes included gambling intention and gambling severity. Secondary outcomes included gambling motives, cognitive bias, normative perception, and risk perception. Validated self-report measures were employed. Population-averaged pre-post effects were estimated using generalized estimating equations. The pre-post analyses showed significant population-average differential changes with small standardized magnitudes (RESI) in motivational dimensions, normative perception, risk perception, and gambling intention. Regarding intention, subgroup analyses by gender showed similar patterns. Descriptively, the proportion of at-risk and problem gamblers decreased in the experimental group at post-intervention, whereas minimal change was observed in the control group. The WAS? program produced significant short-term population-level preventive effects on key cognitive, motivational and intentional risk factors for gambling. Our findings contribute to strengthening the evidence base for culturally and linguistically adapted gambling prevention and extend program benefits in Hispanic adolescent populations. Future studies should include follow-up assessments and booster sessions to evaluate the maintenance of these effects.

Literature has consistently linked family elements as risk and/or protective factors in adolescence. Consequently, numerous family‐focused prevention programs have been developed. In the context of selective and indicated prevention, the most structured actions take place within the municipal services. However, studies demonstrating the effectiveness of these interventions are scarce. Our aim was to explore the effectiveness of the Brief Intervention Program for addiction prevention in the family context (IBAF) to improve family protective dynamics. We used a quasi‐experimental pretest‐posttest design. The final sample consisted of 136 cases and 191 family members (64.9% women and 35.1% men). The dimensions of family functioning were measured with the self‐reported Madrid Family Functioning scale. Results indicated a statistically significant increase post‐intervention in family climate, family consensus, setting of rules and boundaries, coping patterns, and improvement in stress/anxiety. There were no significant differences based on the sex of the family members. The IBAF program shows promise in addressing the demand for structured interventions in family indicated prevention. Future research could build on these preliminary findings by testing the efficacy of the intervention using rigorous methodologies.

Most models that analyse risk and protective factors during adolescence include the family system and family functionality as key elements. For this reason, Family Counselling Services play an important role in addressing adolescent problems. These services require quick and easy-to-apply assessment tools that integrate different dimensions of family functioning. To develop and validate a brief scale for use in Family Counselling Services, exploring and confirming its factorial structure and testing its psychometric properties. Confirmatory Factor Analysis using structural equation modeling. 441 family members in seven units. Results: A 5-factor structure was confirmed, with a good fit. All the Average Variance Extracted values were higher than the Maximum Shared Squared Variance values. The results confirm the structure of the Family Functioning Scale-Madrid. In addition, the scale demonstrates adequate psychometric properties and stable structure during two evaluation periods with different samples. The instrument is considered reliable and consistent for of assessing family intervention carried out in Family Counselling Services.

Cyberbullying has increased worryingly in the last decade, becoming a mental health problem in adolescence. Research usually focuses on cyber-bullies or cyber-victims, overlooking that these roles may overlap (e.g., cyber-victim-bystander). Aim: To identify possible common predictors to cyber-victimisation and bystanding. Sample: The study sample consisted in 560 students, 12–15 years old, 47.5% female. Method: Canonical correlation, examining linear relationship between a group of X variables, and a group of Y variables. Main results and conclusions: Two canonical varieties were built (Cor (U₁,V₁) = 0.442; Cor (U₂,V₂) = 0.270). Minors with high scores in cyber-victimisation (r = −0.888) and bystanding (r = −0.902) would have more favourable attitude towards violence, greater number of contacts on social networks/messaging and greater attention to emotions. The second variety discriminates minors with high cyber-victimisation score, but low observation and would relate to low attitudes towards violence and contacts on social networks/messaging, together with high scores in parental monitoring. Results suggest the possible overlapping of roles and how cyber-victimisation and bystanding share predictive factors.

Despite the fact that minors have prohibited access to commercial gambling, and legislation trying to constrain gambling, an important proportion declares that they have bet either online, or by illegally entering gambling venues. This situation highlights the need to implement selective prevention programs that requires assessment tools to identify vulnerable groups. This paper aims to design and validate a scale of evaluation for the psycho-social characteristics that predict onset and maintenance of gambling behavior among adolescents. 2,716 students of Secondary Education, 15.12 years (± 1.03) answered a frequency, intensity and problematic gambling questionnaire and a scale to evaluate risk profiles. The resulting scale is compounded by 26 items classified in 4 sub-scales: Accessibility, Risk Perception, Normative Perception and Parental Attitudes. Internal consistency coefficients were: 0.668, 0.728, 0.746 and 0.818 respectively, and 0.811 for the total scale. Results offer a robust support on the structural validity and internal consistency of the Early Detection of Gambling among At-Risk Adolescents (EDGAR-A) Scale, a useful tool for the design and assessment of effective preventive interventions.

Although gambling is forbidden for minors, the prevalence of gambling among adolescents is increasing. In order to improve preventive interventions, more evidence on predictors of gambling onset is needed. A longitudinal study was proposed to (1) establish the prevalence of gambling; (2) identify factors associated with gambling behavior the following year; and (3) adjust a model to predict gambling behavior. A cohort of 1074 students (13–18 years old) was followed for 12 months. The prevalence of gambling reached 42.0% in the second measure. Boys gambled 2.7 times more than girls, and the highest percentages of gambling onset showed up between 13 and 14 years old. Gambling onset and maintenance was associated with gender, age, sensation-seeking, risk perception, self-efficacy for not gambling, parents’ attitude towards gambling, group pressure (friends), subjective norm, exposure to advertising, accessibility, normative perception, gambling in T₁ and parents gambling behavior. Gender, gambling in T₁ and risk perception were significant in all three logistic adjusted regression models, with the fourth variable being sensation seeking, peer pressure (friends) and accessibility, respectively. It is suggested that universal prevention should be aimed preferably at children under 15 years old and to alert regulators and public administrations to the directly proportional relationship between accessibility and gambling onset.

Introduction: In addition to coping strategies, social comparison may play a role in illness adjustment. However, little is known about the role of contrast and identification in social comparison in adaptation to fibromyalgia. Aim: To evaluate through a path analysis in a sample of fibromyalgia patients, the association between identification and contrast in social comparison, catastrophising and specific health outcomes (fibromyalgia illness impact and psychological distress). Material and Method: 131 Spanish fibromyalgia outpatients (mean age: 50.15, SD = 11.1) filled out a questionnaire. Results: We present a model that explained 33% of the variance in catastrophising by direct effects of more use of upward contrast and downward identification. In addition, 35% of fibromyalgia illness impact variance was explained by less upward identification, more upward contrast and more catastrophising and 42% of the variance in psychological distress by a direct effect of more use of upward contrast together with higher fibromyalgia illness impact. Discussion: We suggest that intervention programmes with chronic pain and fibromyalgia patients should focus on enhancing the use of upward identification in social comparison, and on minimising the use of upward contrast and downward identification in social comparison.