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Counselor Knows Best? Clinician Assessments of In-Prison Substance Abuse Treatment Participants

NCJ Number
253412
Journal
Criminal Justice and Behavior Volume: 44 Issue: 11 Dated: 2017 Pages: 1462-1476
Author(s)
Jennifer N. Stanley; Christopher E. Kelly; Wayne N. Welsh
Date Published
2017
Length
15 pages
Annotation
The current study partially replicated Blasko and Hhiller's analyses of substance abuse treatment counselors' ratings of the treatment status of their criminal justice clients and their association with reincarceration and then explored its own factor structure to compare the findings from a different sample using the same instrument, the Criminal Justice Counselor Rating of Client (CJ CRC).
Abstract
Research has examined responses to substance abuse treatment among criminal justice populations primarily through client self-assessments, and comparatively fewer studies have focused on clinician ratings of client progress. Blasko and Hiller found no link between counselor ratings of their clients and a client's reincarceration. The analyses of the current study found that although none of the replicated counselor measures predicted reincarceration, higher levels of one measure produced from the factor analysis, Psychological Barriers to Recovery, indicated a significantly higher probability for reincarceration. Given these conflicting findings, the researchers conclude that clinical assessments of clients may be useful for criminal justice decisionmaking. (publisher abstract modified)