Open AccessIdentifying Predictors of Substance Use and Recidivism Outcome Trajectories Among Drug Treatment Court Clients
Author(s) -
John L. Wilson,
Sanjukta Bandyopadhyay,
Hongmei Yang,
Catherine Cerulli,
Diane S. Morse
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
criminal justice and behavior
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.298
H-Index - 94
eISSN - 1552-3594
pISSN - 0093-8548
DOI - 10.1177/0093854817737806
Subject(s) - recidivism , poisson regression , substance use , drug court , human factors and ergonomics , poison control , psychiatry , psychology , injury prevention , suicide prevention , clinical psychology , medicine , drug , occupational safety and health , medical emergency , environmental health , population , pathology
Drug treatment court (DTC) is a diversion program for individuals with drug-related crimes. However, the DTC literature is conflicting with regard to substance use and recidivism outcomes. This study examines factors associated with improved client outcome trajectories among a multisite, national DTC sample. We conducted a secondary analysis of 2,295 participants using the Global Appraisal of Individual Needs assessment tool. Participants in community-based treatment comprised a nonequivalent comparison group. Zero-inflated Poisson (ZIP) regression examined client sociodemographics in relation to substance use and rearrest at 6-month follow-up. Employed DTC clients were more likely to abstain from substances, but among all study participants, higher baseline use, male gender, and employment predicted substance use. Similarly, among DTC clients, older age and employment predicted no rearrests, but among all study participants, older and employed individuals had worse arrest outcome trajectories. Future work is needed to better understand how client characteristics may inform individualized treatment approaches.