 |
|
Research Office
Title: Effects of Participant and Program Characteristics on Outcomes of Court-based Drug Diversion Programs
Principal Investigator: Merith Cosden
Total Project Amount: $40,000
Agency: UC Office of the President
Project Dates: 07/01/2007 – 09/30/2008
Abstract:
Both Drug Courts and Proposition 36 courts are promising practices that receive state support. Given variations in implementation and success rates among programs, there is a need to better understand factors that contribute to their successes and failures. This study will contribute to the literature by obtaining consumer perceptions of factors related to program completion as well as obstacles to their success. The following research questions will be addressed: 1) To what factors do participants who successfully complete court-based drug diversion programs attribute their success? 2) To what factors do participants who fail to complete court-based drug diversion programs attribute their failure? 3) What do they believe might have helped them to succeed? 4) What are the differences in participant needs for Drug Courts and Proposition 36 Courts? And, 5) What treatment recommendations can be made on the basis of these data to improve positive outcomes for adult offenders entering these programs? Interviews will be conducted with 180 adults who have successfully, or unsuccessfully, exited either a Drug Court or a Proposition 36 Court. Recommendations will be based on these coded and analyzed interviews, with a focus on how to help these court-based treatment programs motivate and sustain more participants.