Evidence map›Paper›PMID 32162075›Full record

Trial reportJournal of gambling studies2020

Unguided Chatbot-Delivered Cognitive Behavioural Intervention for Problem Gamblers Through Messaging App: A Randomised Controlled Trial.

Ryuhei So, Toshi A Furukawa, Sachio Matsushita, Toshiaki Baba, Takanobu Matsuzaki, Satoshi Furuno, Hitomi Okada, Susumu Higuchi

Abstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Journal of gambling studies, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 28 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
28citing papers in PubMed, 6 pooled it
3.3field-weighted citation impact, top 5% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

28 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 56 citations in OpenAlex.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.

Ryuhei SoOkayama Psychiatric Medical Center, 3-16 Shikatahon-machi, Kita-ku, Okayama, 700-0915, Japan. nexttext@gmail.com.
Toshi A FurukawaDepartment of Health Promotion and Human Behavior, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine/School of Public Health, Kyoto, Japan.
Sachio MatsushitaDepartment of Psychiatry, National Hospital Organization Kurihama Medical and Addiction Center, Yokosuka, Japan.
Toshiaki BabaBureau of International Health Cooperation, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.
Takanobu MatsuzakiDepartment of Psychiatry, National Hospital Organization Kurihama Medical and Addiction Center, Yokosuka, Japan.
Satoshi FurunoDepartment of Psychiatry, National Hospital Organization Kurihama Medical and Addiction Center, Yokosuka, Japan.
Hitomi OkadaDepartment of Psychiatry, National Hospital Organization Kurihama Medical and Addiction Center, Yokosuka, Japan.
Susumu HiguchiDepartment of Psychiatry, National Hospital Organization Kurihama Medical and Addiction Center, Yokosuka, Japan.
Kurihama Medical and Addiction Center · JPKyoto University · JPNational Center for Global Health and Medicine · JPOkayama Psychiatric Medical Center · JP

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Internet-delivered intervention may be an acceptable alternative for the more than 90% of problem gamblers who are reluctant to seek face-to-face support. Thus, we aimed to (1) develop a low-dropout unguided intervention named GAMBOT integrated with a messaging app; and (2) investigate its effect. The present study was a randomised, quadruple-blind, controlled trial. We set pre-to-post change in the Problem Gambling Severity Index (PGSI) as the primary outcome and pre-to-post change in the Gambling Symptom Assessment Scale (G-SAS) as a secondary outcome. Daily monitoring, personalised feedback, and private messages based on cognitive behavioural theory were offered to participants in the intervention group through a messaging app for 28 days (GAMBOT). Participants in the control group received biweekly messages only for assessments for 28 days (assessments only). A total of 197 problem gamblers were included in the primary analysis. We failed to demonstrate a significant between-group difference in the primary outcome (PGSI - 1.14, 95% CI - 2.75 to 0.47, p = 0.162) but in the secondary outcome (G-SAS - 3.14, 95% CI - 0.24 to - 6.04, p = 0.03). Only 6.7% of the participants dropped out during follow-up and 77% of the GAMBOT group participants (74/96) continued to participate in the intervention throughout the 28-day period. Integrating intervention into a chatbot feature on a frequently used messaging app shows promise in helping to overcome the high dropout rate of unguided internet-delivered interventions. More effective and sophisticated contents delivered by a chatbot should be sought to engage over 90% of problem gamblers who are reluctant to seek face-to-face support.

Indexed as

Internet-Based InterventionMobile ApplicationsAdultCognitive Behavioral TherapyDouble-Blind MethodFemaleGamblingHumansMaleSocioeconomic FactorsTelemedicineChatbotE-healthGambling disorderM-healthPathological gamblingProblem gambling

Identifiers

PMID32162075
OpenAlexW3011781160

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.