Recovery Blindness: The Concept of Recovery in Veterans with a Gambling Disorder – A Scoping Review*

Belle Gavriel-Fried*, Noa Vana, Tiange Xu, Shane W. Kraus

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Purpose of Review: Gambling disorder (GD) presents significant psychiatric challenges, particularly for vulnerable populations like military veterans, who often also face mental health comorbidities. Recovery is a crucial issue in the gambling field, representing a transition from illness to health. Currently, there is no consensus regarding its definition. This scoping review aimed to map the characteristics of studies on recovery in veterans with GD, explore how it is defined and measured, identify the dominate recovery approach, and the main research topics. Recent Findings: This review identified 13 scientific articles. Findings showed minimal explicit use of the term “recovery” by researchers. The main recovery approach is the deficit based. Most studies focused on treatment programs and their effectiveness, neglecting the unique characteristics of veterans and alternative recovery pathways. Summary: Future studies should explore and conceptualize recovery in veterans, and inquire into the specific recovery needs of veterans living with GD.

Original languageEnglish
Article number8
JournalCurrent Addiction Reports
Volume12
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 2025

Funding

FundersFunder number
Kindbridge Research Institute
International Center for Responsible Gaming
Nevada Problem Gambling Project
Tel Aviv University

    Keywords

    • Gambling disorder
    • Military veterans
    • Recovery
    • Scoping review
    • Treatment

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