"If you truly believe you can win and have a compulsive belief that you can control the outcome, that is a sign of an unhealthy relationship with gambling, " he said.

WSJ: Lone Winner Hits Powerball Jackpot

Language pedants should here control their trichotillomania (compulsive desire to pull out one's hair).

ECONOMIST: English language

One pilot study, at the University of Minnesota, showed that MRI brain scans of people who had been diagnosed as sexually compulsive were different than those with other types of impulse control disorders.

FORBES: Is Sex Addiction Real?

Some are compulsive gift-givers, either desperate to be liked or to exert control.

WSJ: Shop 'Til You Stop: How to Treat Compulsive Spending

H. grant to investigate various mental illnesses, like obsessive-compulsive disorder and attention-deficit disorder, in terms of the ability to control and direct attention.

NEWYORKER: Don��t!

Four of the women experienced significant improvements in control over their moods and emotional responses, eating disorder urges, and obsessive-compulsive thoughts and behaviors.

FORBES: Startling Treatment Breakthrough For Anorexia Leads To New Understanding Of Brain Disorders

In an as yet unpublished study, Dr. Black and colleagues found that 26 compulsive shoppers had similar executive function (the ability to plan, organize, reason and anticipate consequences) as 32 control subjects.

WSJ: Shop 'Til You Stop: How to Treat Compulsive Spending