Shane W. Kraus

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Associate Professor, Department of Psychology

Director, UNLV Behavioral Addictions Lab

Adjunct Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, UNLV School of Medicine

Expertise: Addiction, Substance Use, Gambling, Veteran Mental Health, Compulsive Sexual Behavior, Psychopathology

Biography

Shane W. Kraus is a licensed clinical psychologist and expert in psychopathology (the study of mental or behavioral disorders), sexual trauma, substance use disorders, gambling disorders, addictions, and compulsive sexual behavior disorder (CSBD).

An associate professor of psychology, Kraus uses behavioral, epidemiological, and neurobiological methods to assess factors that contribute to the development of addictive behaviors and other co-occurring psychiatric disorders among at-risk groups.

He has published extensively on sexual behavior and was part of the World Health Organization working group who put forth the diagnostic criteria for CSBD for ICD-11. His gambling research is also exploring effective screening approaches for identifying individuals with problem gambling.

Education

B.S. Criminology, California State University, Fresno (2003)
M.A. Forensic Psychology, Castleton University (2007)
PHD Clinical Psychology, Bowling Green State University (2013)
Postdoctoral Fellowship, Yale School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry (2016)

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Shane W. Kraus In The News

Worried you or someone you love might have a gambling problem? Here’s what to do.

North Carolina Health News

Sports betting is now just a tap away — and experts say it’s easier than ever for it to spiral out of control. If you’re concerned about yourself or someone you love, here are some practical steps to regain control and get help.

Rising toll: Are NC sports betting protections enough?

North Carolina Health News

The nearly $13 billion in wagers placed from North Carolina in 2024 and 2025 not only has generated more than $262 million in new tax revenue for state coffers. It has also exacerbated a swelling public health threat characterized by more people in need of help for gambling problems in a counseling and treatment infrastructure that’s ill-equipped to handle the flood. Calls to the problem gambling hotline are up more than 300 percent since 2021, according to state data.

How the NFL is betting big on gambling

More than $3 billion will be wagered on March Madness this year. Around $30 billion was bet on the last NFL season. All evidence of an explosion in sports gambling across this country.

Can You Really Become Addicted to Love or Sex?

Greater Good Magazine

While popular culture may lead you to believe that love and sex addictions are not only accepted conditions but also quite prevalent — think Frank in season 3 of White Lotus; Elizabeth Gilbert’s latest memoir All the Way to the River: Love, Loss, and Liberation; and pretty much any cultural analysis of the actions of Sex and the City’s Carrie Bradshaw around Mr. Big — the scientific understanding of problematic behaviors related to love and sex is far more nuanced.