Abstract
This study sought to identify the clinical and demographic correlates of offenders with a violent instant offense as well as those with a history of greater criminal recidivism among a sample of county jail inmates with a substance use disorder. Clinical, demographic, and arrest data from 176 male inmates (76.0% Caucasian) incarcerated in a county jail facility were utilized to address the present study’s objectives. All inmates were repeat offenders and met Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV; American Psychiatric Association [APA], 1994) diagnostic criteria for dependence on one or more substances based on a structured clinical interview. Clinical variables included patterns and prevalence of various DSM-IV substance-specific dependence diagnoses (i.e., alcohol, cannabis, cocaine, and heroin), as well as several non-substance use disorder psychiatric diagnoses (e.g., posttraumatic stress disorder [PTSD], antisocial personality disorder). Demographic variables included age, race, marital status, employment status, educational attainment, and estimated annual income level. Inmates with a violent instant offense had a higher prevalence of PTSD, antisocial personality disorder, and both major depressive and manic episodes relative to non-violent offenders. The only significant associations between number of prior bookings and all the studied clinical and demographic variables involved the presence of a PTSD diagnosis and income level. Co-occurring psychiatric disorders are prevalent among substance-dependent violent offenders, while very few of the studied variables appear significantly related to the frequency of prior criminal behavior. Research implications and clinical implications for county jail classification procedures are discussed.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
American Psychiatric Association (1994). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Association.
Baillargeon, J., Binswanger, I. A., Penn, J. V., Williams, B. A., & Murray, O. J. (2009). Psychiatric disorders and repeat incarcerations: The revolving prison door. American Journal of Psychiatry, 166, 103–109. doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.2008.08030416.
Baillargeon, J., Penn, J. V., Knight, K., Harzke, A. J., Baillargeon, G., & Becker, E. A. (2010). Risk of reincarceration among prisoners with co-occurring severe mental illness and substance use disorders. Administration and Policy in Mental Health and Mental Health Services Research, 37, 367–374. doi:10.1007/s10488-0090252-9.
Barrett, E. L., Teesson, M., & Mills, K. L. (2014). Associations between substance use, post-traumatic stress disorder and the perpetration of violence: A longitudinal investigation. Addictive Behaviors, 39, 1075–1080. doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2014.03.003.
Boles, S. M., & Miotto, K. (2003). Substance abuse and violence: A review of the literature. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 8, 155–174. doi:10.1016/S1359-1789(01)00057-X.
Bonta, J., Law, M., & Hanson, K. (1998). The prediction of criminal and violent recidivism among mentally disordered offenders: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 123, 123–142. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.123.2.123.
Campbell, T. C., Hoffmann, N. G., Hoffmann, T. D., & Gillaspy, J. A. (2005). UNCOPE: A screen for substance dependence among state prison inmates. Prison Journal, 85, 7–17.
Cartier, J., Farabee, D., & Prendergast, M. L. (2006). Methamphetamine use, self-reported violent crime, and recidivism among offenders in California who abuse substances. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 21, 435–445. doi:10.1177/0886260505285724.
Chermack, S. T., Murray, R. L., Walton, M. A., Booth, B. A., Wryobeck, J., & Blow, F. C. (2008). Partner aggression among men and women in substance use disorder treatment: Correlates of psychological and physical aggression and injury. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 98, 35–44. doi:10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2008.04.010.
Collins, R. E. (2010). The effect of gender on violent and nonviolent recidivism: A meta-analysis. Journal of Criminal Justice, 38, 675–684. doi:10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2010.04.041.
Constantine, R. J., Petrila, J., Andel, R., Givens, E. M., Becker, M., Robst, J., et al. (2010). Arrest trajectories of adult offenders with a serious mental illness. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 16, 319–339. doi:10.1037/a0020852.
Corrigan, P. W., & Watson, A. C. (2005). Findings from the National Comorbidity Survey on the frequency of violent behavior in individuals with psychiatric disorders. Psychiatry Research, 136, 153–162. doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2005.06.005.
Drake, C. R., & Pathe, M. (2004). Understanding sexual offending in schizophrenia. Criminal Behaviour and Mental Health, 14, 108–120. doi:10.1002/cbm.576.
Durose, M. R., Cooper, A. D., & Snyder, H. N. (2014). Recidivism of prisoners released in 30 states in 2005: Patterns from 2005 to 2010. Bureau of Justice Statistics, Office of Justice Programs, US Department of Justice (NCJ 244205). Washington, DC.
Elbogen, E. B., & Johnson, S. C. (2009). The intricate link between violence and mental disorder: Results from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions. Archives of General Psychiatry, 66, 152–161. doi:10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2008.537.
First, M. B., Spitzer, R. L., Gibbon, M., & Williams, J. B. W. (1996). Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis I Disorders, Clinician Version (SCID-CV). Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Press.
Gallagher, S. M., Penn, P. E., Brooks, A. J., & Feldman, J. (2006). Comparing the CAAPE, a new assessment tool for co-occurring disorders, with the SCID. Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal, 30, 63–65. doi:10.2975/30.2006.63.65.
Grant, B. F., Stinson, F. S., Dawson, D. A., Chou, S. P., Dufour, M. C., Compton, et al. (2004a). Prevalence and co-occurrence of substance use disorders and independent mood and anxiety disorders: Results from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions. Archives of General Psychiatry, 61, 807–816. doi:10.1001/archpsyc.61.8.807.
Grant, B. F., Stinson, F. S., Dawson, D. A., Chou, S. P., Ruan, W. J., & Pickering, R. P. (2004b). Co-occurrence of 12-month alcohol and drug use disorders and personality disorders in the United States: Results from the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions. Archives of General Psychiatry, 61, 361–368. doi:10.1001/archpsyc.61.4.361.
Greenfeld, L. A., & Snell, T. L. (1999). Women offenders. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Statistics (NCJ Publication No. 175688).
Haning III, W., Nunes, E., & Penn, P. E. (2005). Response: The path to double recovery. Science & Practice Perspectives, 3, 22–24.
Hartwell, S. W. (2004). Comparison of offenders with mental illness only and offenders with dual diagnoses. Psychiatric Services, 55, 145–150. doi:10.1176/appi.ps.55.2.145.
Hoaken, P. N. S., & Stewart, S. H. (2003). Drugs of abuse and the elicitation of human aggressive behavior. Addictive Behaviors, 28, 1533–1554. doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2003.08.033.
Hoffmann, N.G. (2000). CAAPE (Comprehensive Addictions and Psychological Evaluation) manual. Smithfield, RI: Evince Clinical Assessments.
Hoffmann, N. G., Hunt, D. E., Rhodes, W. M., & Riley, K. J. (2003). UNCOPE: A brief substance dependence screen for use with arrestees. Journal of Drug Issues, 33, 29–44. doi:10.1177/002204260303300102.
James, D. J., & Glaze, L. E. (2006). Mental health problems of prison and jail inmates. Bureau of Justice Statistics: Special Report. Bureau of Justice Statistics, Office of Justice Programs, US Department of Justice (NCJ 213600). Washington, DC.
Jones, G. Y., & Hoffmann, N. G. (2006). Alcohol dependence: International policy implications for prison populations. Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention, and Policy, 1, 33. doi:10.1186/1747-597X-1-33.
Kopak, A. M., Proctor, S. L., & Hoffmann, N. G. (2012). An assessment of the compatibility of current DSM-IV and proposed DSM-5 criteria in the diagnosis of cannabis use disorders. Substance Use & Misuse, 47, 1328–1338. doi:10.3109/10826084.2012.714039.
Kopak, A. M., Metze, A. V., & Hoffmann, N. G. (2014). Alcohol use disorder diagnoses in the criminal justice system: An analysis of the compatibility of current DSM-IV, proposed DSM-5.0, and DSM-5.1 diagnostic criteria in a correctional sample. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 58, 638–654. doi:10.1177/0306624X13485929.
Kopak, A. M., Hoffmann, N. G., & Proctor, S. L. (2016a). Key risk factors for relapse and rearrest among substance use treatment patients involved in the criminal justice system. American Journal of Criminal Justice, 41, 14–30. doi:10.1007/s12103-015-9330-6.
Kopak, A. M., Proctor, S. L., & Hoffmann, N. G. (2016b). Indicators of rearrest among male court mandated substance use treatment patients. Journal of Criminological Research, Policy and Practice, 2, 4–14. doi:10.1108/JCRPP-06-2015-0019.
Krueger, R. F., Markon, K. E., Patrick, C. J., Benning, S. D., & Kramer, M. D. (2007). Linking antisocial behavior, substance use, and personality: An integrative quantitative model of the adult externalizing spectrum. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 116, 645–666. doi:10.1037/ 0021-843X.116.4.645.
Langstrom, N., Sjostedt, G., & Grann, M. (2004). Psychiatric disorders and recidivism in sexual offenders. Sexual Abuse, 16, 139–150.
McCabe, P. J., Christopher, P. P., Druhn, N., Roy-Bujnowski, K. M., Grudzinskas Jr., A. J., & Fisher, W. H. (2012). Arrest types and co-occurring disorders in persons with schizophrenia or related psychoses. Journal of Behavioral Health Services & Research, 39, 271–284. doi:10.1007/s11414-011-9269-4.
Messina, N., Burdon, W., Hagopian, G., & Prendergast, M. (2004). One year return to custody rates among co-disordered offenders. Behavioral Sciences & the Law, 22, 503–518.
Moore, T. M., Stuart, G. L., Meehan, J. C., Rhatigan, D. L., Hellmuth, J. C., & Keen, S. M. (2008). Drug abuse and aggression between intimate partners: A meta-analytic review. Clinical Psychology Review, 28, 247–274. doi:10.1016/j.cpr.2007.05.003.
Mumola, C. J., & Karberg, J. C. (2006). Drug use and dependence, state and federal prisoners, 2004. U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Statistics (NCJ Publication No. 213530).
Peterson, J. K., Skeem, J., Kennealy, P., Bray, B., & Zvonkovic, A. (2014). How often and how consistently do symptoms directly precede criminal behavior among offenders with mental illness? Law and Human Behavior, 38, 439.
Proctor, S. L., & Hoffmann, N. G. (2012). Identifying patterns of co-occurring substance use disorders and mental illness in a jail population. Addiction Research and Theory, 20, 492–503. doi:10.3109/16066359.2012.667853.
Proctor, S. L., & Hoffmann, N. G. (2016). The UNCOPE: An effective brief screen for DSM-5 substance use disorders in correctional settings. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 30, 613–618. doi:10.1037/adb0000170.
Proctor, S. L., Hoffmann, N. G., & Corwin, C. J. (2011). Response bias in screening county jail inmates for addictions. Journal of Drug Issues, 41, 117–134. doi:10.1177/002204261104100106.
Proctor, S. L., Kopak, A. M., & Hoffmann, N. G. (2012). Compatibility of current DSM-IV and proposed DSM-5 diagnostic criteria for cocaine use disorders. Addictive Behaviors, 37, 722–728. doi:10.1016/j.addbeh.2012.02.010.
Proctor, S. L., Estroff, T. W., Empting, L. D., Shearer-Williams, S., & Hoffmann, N. G. (2013). Prevalence of substance use and psychiatric disorders in a highly select chronic pain population. Journal of Addiction Medicine, 7, 17–24. doi:10.1097/ADM.0b013e318273863a.
Proctor, S. L., Kopak, A. M., & Hoffmann, N. G. (2014). Cocaine use disorder prevalence: From current DSM-IV to proposed DSM-5 diagnostic criteria with both a two and three severity level classification system. Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, 28, 563–567. doi:10.1037/a0033369.
Sadeh, N., & McNiel, D. E. (2014). Posttraumatic stress disorder increases risk of criminal recidivism among justice-involved persons with mental disorders. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 42, 573–586. doi:10.1177/0093854814556880.
Schwaner, S. L. (1998). Patterns of violent specialization: Predictors of recidivism for a cohort of parolees. American Journal of Criminal Justice, 23, 1–17. doi:10.1007/BF02887281.
Skeem, J. L., Schubert, C., Odgers, C., Mulvey, E. P., Gardner, W., & Lidz, C. (2006). Psychiatric symptoms and community violence among high-risk patients: A test of the relationship at the weekly level. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 74, 967–979. doi:10.1037/0022- 006X.74.5.967.
Taylor, B. G., Newton, P. J., & Brownstein, H. H. (2003). Drug use among female arrestees. In Arrestee Drug Abuse Monitoring (ADAM) 2000 annual report. Washington, DC: National Institute of Justice.
Urofsky, R. I., Seiber, E., & Hoffmann, N. G. (2007). UNCOPE: Evaluation of a brief screen for detecting substance dependence among juvenile justice populations. Journal of School Counseling, 5. Retrieved from http://www.jsc.montana.edu.
White, J. L., Moffitt, T. E., Caspi, A., Bartusch, D. J., Needles, D. J., & Stouthamer-Loeber, M. (1994). Measuring impulsivity and examining its relationship to delinquency. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 103, 192–205. doi:10.1037/0021-843X.103.2.192.
Wilson, A. B., Draine, J., Hadley, T., Metraux, S., & Evans, A. (2011). Examining the impact of mental illness and substance use on recidivism in a county jail. International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, 34, 264–268. doi:10.1016/j.ijlp.2011.07.004.
Wood, S. R. (2011). Co-occurring psychiatric and substance dependence disorders as predictors of parolee time to rearrest. Journal of Offender Rehabilitation, 50, 175–190.
Acknowledgement
The authors wish to acknowledge Caleb Joseph for his assistance in the data collection phase of the project.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Ethical Approval
All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Proctor, S.L., Alvarez de la Campa, G.J., Medina-Reyes, L. et al. Clinical and Demographic Correlates of the Type and Frequency of Criminal Behavior Among Jail Inmates with a Substance Use Disorder. Am J Crim Just 42, 746–758 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12103-016-9381-3
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12103-016-9381-3