Validating the GMQ-F in a canadian sample of university students

Abstract

This study assesses the psychometric properties of the Gambling Motivation Questionnaire for Financial Motivations (GMQ-F) in a Canadian sample of emerging adult university students. Confirmatory factor analysis was first used to test a 16-item GMQ-F for model fit, and then multiple regression analysis was used to test the predictive utility of the four subscales/factors. Results confirmed that the GMQ-F is a valid and reliable measure of university student gambling motivations, in accordance with the four-factor structure proposed by Dechant (2014) despite poor initial results. Regression results were mixed: Three of the four subscales (enhancement, social, and coping) were significant predictors of problem gambling and gambling variety, only the enhancement and coping subscales were significant predictors of gambling frequency, and none of the subscales significantly predicted average monthly expenditure on gambling. The implications of this study support further refinement of the GMQ-F, as differing results from the current study and from prior work on normative samples point to a different reliance on motivational categories or different motivational categories entirely.