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To gain insight into how attitudes toward casino gambling vary by an area's experience with gambling, a survey was given to 415 university students at the University of Nevada, Reno, and 420 students at the University of Memphis. Casino gambling has been legal in Reno since 1931, but was introduced in the Memphis area in 1992. Given the differences in duration and degree of integration of casinos in each area, significant differences were expected by area in respondents' perceptions of casinos and casino gambling. While some significant differences were found, the most prominent finding is the degree of similarity of attitudes of students in each university and the high percentage in each sample that associated casino gambling with types of crime. Where significant differences did exist, the findings are interpreted as supporting either an exposure hypothesis or a cultural conservatism hypothesis.

Noting the limited understanding of group dynamics among health researchers using corrective groups, this paper proposes that a number of principles already established in the field of small groups might be used to facilitate the processes of conformity and social control in corrective groups. An exploratory experiment designed to test the eflects of several group characteristics was conducted with smoking cessation groups. The experiment, with smokers wishing to quit, included four conditions: one with experimenter attention; a second with attention and simple group environment; a third with attention, environment, and public commitment; and a fourth with attention, environment, commitment, and goal interdependence. It was hypothesized that pressures toward conformity and control would increase with the addition of each successive characteristic, and that smoking reduction among the conditions would be ordered along this pressure dimension. The results of the experiment support the hypothesis; smoking reduction increased directly with increasing social pressure. Needs for further research adopting small groups principles for use in corrective groups are discussed.