Strategies for Retaining Offenders in Mandatory Drug Treatment Programs in Kings County, New York, 1994-1995

This study examined the relationship between legal
pressure and drug treatment retention by assessing perceptions of
legal pressure held by two groups of legally-mandated treatment
clients: (1) participants of the Drug Treatment Alternative to Prison
(DTAP) program operated by the Kings County (Brooklyn) District
Attorney in New York City, and (2) a matched group of probationers,
parolees, Treatment Alternatives to Street Crime (TASC) participants,
and other court-mandated offenders attending the same community-based
treatment programs used by DTAP. The Brooklyn DTAP was selected for
study because of the program's uniquely coercive program components,
including the threat of a mandatory prison term for noncompliance.
The goals of this project were (1) to test whether DTAP participants
would show significantly higher retention rates when compared to a
matched sample of other legally-mandated treatment clients, and (2)
to assess the role of perceived legal pressure in predicting
retention for both of these groups. Data were collected from program
participants through interviews conducted at admission to treatment
and follow-up interviews conducted about eight weeks later. Intake
interviews were conducted, on average, one week after the client's
admission to treatment. The one-to-one interviews, which lasted up to
two hours, were administered by trained researchers in a private
location at the treatment site. The intake interview battery included
a mixture of standardized measures and those developed by the Vera
Institute of Justice. Data in Part 1 were collected with the
Addiction Severity Index and include age, sex, race, religion, and
education. Additional variables cover medical problems, employment
history, detailed substance abuse and treatment history, number of
times arrested for various crimes, history of incarceration, family's
substance abuse and criminal histories, relationships with family and
friends, psychological problems such as depression, anxiety, and
suicide, current living arrangements, and sources of income. Part 2,
Supplemental Background and Retention Data, contains treatment entry
date, number of days in treatment, age at treatment entry,
termination date, treatment condition, arrest date, detention at
arrest, date released on probation/parole, violation of
probation/parole arrest date and location, problem drug, prior drug
treatment, as well as age, gender, race, education, and marital
status. Part 3, Division of Criminal Justice Services Data, includes
data on the number of arrests before and after program entry, and
number of total misdemeanor and felony arrests, convictions, and
sentences. Part 4, Chemical Use, Abuse, and Dependence Data, contains
information on type of substance abuse, intoxication or withdrawal at
work, school, or home, effects of abuse on social, occupational, or
recreational activities, and effects of abuse on relationships,
health, emotions, and employment. Parts 5 and 6 contain psychiatric
data gathered from the Symptom Checklist-90-Revised and Beck's
Depression Inventory, respectively. Part 7 variables from the
Circumstances, Motivation, Readiness, and Suitability scale include
family's attitude toward treatment, subject's need for treatment,
subject's desire to change life, and legal consequences if subject
did not participate in treatment. Part 8, Stages of Change Readiness
and Treatment Eagerness scale, contains data on how the subject
viewed the drug problem, desire to change, and history of dealing
with substance abuse. Part 9, Motivational/Program Supplement Data,
includes variables on the subject's need for treatment, attitudes
toward treatment sessions, the family's reaction to treatment, and a
likelihood of completion rating. Part 10, Perceived Legal Coercion
Data, gathered information on who referred the subject to the
treatment program, who was keeping track of attendance, whether
someone explained the rules of participation in the program and the
consequences if the subject failed the program, whether the rules and
consequences were put in writing, who monitored program participants,
the likelihood of using drugs while in treatment, the likelihood of
leaving the program before completion, whether the subject understood
the legal consequences of failing the program, the type and frequency
of reports and contacts with the criminal justice system, and the
subject's reaction to various penalties for not completing the
program. Part 11 contains data from the Community Oriented Programs
Environment Scale (COPES). Part 12, Treatment Services Review Data,
includes data on the number of times the subject received medical
attention, days in school, days employed, days intoxicated, days in
substance abuse treatment, days tested for drugs, number of contacts
with the criminal justice system, days treated for psychological
problems, and time spent at recreational activities. Additional
variables include the number of individual and group treatment
sessions spent discussing medical problems, education and employment,
substance abuse, legal problems, and psychological and emotional
problems.