Substance Abuse Programs -- Psychological Impact of Tier Programs: An Outcome Evaluation

• NCJ Number: 138272
• Author(s): G A Darabi
• Date Published: 1991
• Length: 24 pages
• Corporate Author: Florida Dept of Corrections
• Sale Source: National Institute of Justice/; NCJRS Photocopy Services
• Publication Format: Document
• Publication Type: Program Description (Model)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

A sample of 433 Florida inmates, 381 of whom were participants in Tier II drug treatment programs, was used to test the appropriateness of the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI) for measuring treatment outcomes in the institutional setting and to evaluate the program's impact on offenders by measuring their psychological changes resulting from their participation in the programs.

Abstract

There were two principal findings emanating from this study. First, BSI can be used in an institutional setting with inmates as subjects. Second, there were significant changes in test scores for inmates participating in both Tier II and Tier III programs, indicating that these offenders experienced some reduction in their psychological symptoms. While both Tier II and Tier III participants changed their attitudes positively, Tier II inmates had a slightly more measured change than Tier III inmates. Tier II participants also had a lower rate of inmates who showed no improvement. Future research should tightly control all the variables involved and should be integrated with recidivism studies to provide a clearer picture of the Tier programs' outcome. 12 tables and 1 reference