Offender Characteristics Which Predict Drug Court Success

"Overall, extremely few interaction terms were significant, broadly indicating that drug courts were comparably effective for all types of drug-involved offenders. Three exceptions were as follows. The drug courts were especially likely to produce a reduction in criminal behavior among offenders with a history of violence—indicated by a self-reported prior violent conviction (p < .001). On the other hand, drug courts were especially unlikely to produce a reduction in criminal behavior among offenders with narcissistic personality (p < .05) and among black offenders (p < .05). None of 14 other tested interactions was significant in either direction. As a follow-up analysis, we had contemplated developing a 'risk' classification, enabling us to draw general conclusions as to whether drug courts work particularly well with high- or low-risk offenders. However, because so few of the interaction terms were significant in our initially parsimonious three-variable models—and of those that were significant, only prior violence was readily classifiable as connoting “risk,” we considered it pointless to take that next step."