Childhood maltreatment has been thought to be a significant risk factor in the development of gambling problems. Incorporating a developmental psychopathology perspective, 1,324 adolescents and young adults, age 17-22 years completed self-report measures on gambling behaviors, gambling severity, and childhood maltreatment. Problem gamblers reported high levels of childhood maltreatment as compared with non gamblers and social gamblers. The results highlight the inter-relationship between multiple types of childhood abuse and gambling severity and are consistent with Jacobs' "General Theory of Addictions" and Blaszczynski and Nower's "Pathways Model". The importance of routine assessments for childhood trauma, in addition to other psychological disorders and co-morbid addictive behaviors in individuals presenting with a gambling disorder may well facilitate more effective treatment strategies.