Treatment as part of drug court: the impact on graduation rates

Drug treatment is one of the critical components of drug court programming, yet it has not been thoroughly studied in the drug court literature. Very little is understood about the nature of drug treatment services provided in the drug court setting. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of selected treatment variables on drug court outcomes. In this study of four drug courts, the researchers explored how drug treatment services were provided using a mixture of qualitative and quantitative measures. Observations of drug treatment counselors found that treatment sessions varied in terms of the content of the sessions with a tendency to cover a broad range of topics. An analysis of graduation rates in drug courts found that participation in drug treatment affects graduation-offenders who participate more tend to graduate from drug court. However, even graduates could not follow the multilayered drug court program requirements. In the multivariate models explaining graduation rates, the length of participation in drug treatment court and services provided by government-run agencies (e.g., health departments) impacted outcomes. Services provided by government-run programs tended to reduce the likelihood of graduation. More research is needed to understand the issue of treatment participation on recidivism and length of time to rearrest. KEYWORDS Drug court, drug treatment, treatment philosophy, treatment outcomes, health services