The empirical contributions of researchers on the personality characteristics associated with the identification and treatment of compulsive gambling have been largely piecemeal. As an active four year veteran of the Gamblers Anonymous program, the author has come to recognize that the vast majority of members comprising Gamblers Anonymous are persons typically not well versed in experimental design or research methodology techniques. Compounding this statement is the fact that it was not until the early 1980's that compulsive gambling (or synonomously stated as pathological gambling) became recognized by the American Psychiatric Association as a mental disorder with explicit diagnostic signs and symptoms. As a result of these factors and additional issues presented below, the scientific research and conclusions drawn in the area of compulsive gambling have been limited and shallow.