Development and validation of the IDENT-Pro: a brief tool for the early identification of gambling risk factors indicative of harm

Currently, few gambling screening tools classify risk factors, as many focus on symptoms derived from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5) classification for gambling disorder, making them generally ill suited to early identification as part of a public health approach to harm prevention. The aim of this work was to develop a screening tool to identify gamblers who sit low on the continuum of harm but exhibit significant gambling risk factors.

The tool (called the IDENT-Pro) was developed and underwent a series of tests to examine its internal consistency, factor structure, cut-offs and predictive ability using the Problem Gambling Severity Index (PGSI) as a reference.

The IDENT-Pro showed good performance across all tests. Specifically, it was found that the tool could identify lower levels of risk than tools such as the PGSI.

The IDENT-Pro is a promising tool that could aid the delivery of meaningful harm prevention interventions due to its brevity, ease of use and ability to identify lower-risk individuals. Further research is needed to support the IDENT-Pro’s initial validation and investigate its utility as a brief screening and intervention tool.