Crime & Delinquency 60(6)

Crime & Delinquency, September 2014: Volume 60, Issue 6

Recidivism Among Released State Prison Inmates Who Received Mental Health Treatment While Incarcerated
William H. Fisher, Stephanie W. Hartwell, Xiaogang Deng, Debra A. Pinals, Carl Fulwiler, and Kristen Roy-Bujnowski

This study assesses the likelihood of rearrest among a cohort of all adults (N = 1,438) released from the Massachusetts state prison system who received mental health services while they were incarcerated. All individuals were followed for 24 months. The analysis focused on four classes of variables: demographic characteristics, clinical history, criminal justice history, and postrelease supervision. These analyses showed that criminal history factors—a juvenile record and a history of multiple previous incarcerations—were significant risk factors, but that clinical factors, including a history of substance abuse, were not. Overall, the models developed here look much like the ones that would be observed in the general offender population. The implications of these findings for criminal justice and mental health policy are discussed.

Using a Criminally Involved Population to Examine the Relationship Between Race/Ethnicity, Structural Disadvantage, and Methamphetamine Use
Andrew M. Fox and Nancy Rodriguez

Limited empirical focus has been given to identifying individual and structural correlates of methamphetamine use. Although race (i.e., being White) is one of the most distinguishing characteristics of methamphetamine users, few studies have examined whether race/ethnicity is a significant predictor of such illicit drug use. Research has also shown that cocaine and opiate use is associated with disadvantage; however, studies have yet to examine the relationship between structural disadvantage and methamphetamine use. Using national data from the Arrestee Drug Abuse Monitoring program, this study examines the prevalence of methamphetamine and explores the relationship between race/ethnicity, structural disadvantage, and methamphetamine use. Findings reveal that race/ethnicity and structural disadvantage are significant predictors of methamphetamine use. Additionally, findings show an interactive effect between race/ethnicity, structural disadvantage, and methamphetamine use. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.

Period Effects in the Impact of Vietnam-Era Military Service on Crime Over the Life Course
Leana Allen Bouffard

Many life course studies are based on a few cohorts of individuals born in the early part of the 20th century. Despite the significance of military service in the life course, few studies have addressed the consequences of military service on offending trajectories. This study explores the relationship between military service and patterns of offending in three cohorts of men. Analyses examine both the impact of military service as well as the potential period effects of service during different periods of the Vietnam War. Results suggest that between-individual differences in military service significantly affect criminal behavior. However, the specific direction of the effect depends on when during the Vietnam era these men entered the military. Implications of these results are discussed.

The Subjective Impact of Contact With the Criminal Justice System: The Role of Gender and Stigmatization
Andrew James McGrath

Labeling theory suggests that contact with the criminal justice system leads to feelings of stigmatization, which will consequently have the counterproductive effect of increasing offending. The current study investigated this phenomenon by (a) interviewing 394 young people sentenced in the New South Wales Children’s Court about their emotional reactions to the experience and (b) testing whether differences in these emotional reactions were related to increases or decreases in reoffending. It was found that feeling stigmatized after the hearing was a significant predictor of reoffending for the young women, but not the young men, in the sample. In addition, young men with previous convictions who reported feeling stigmatized were less likely to reoffend. The implications of these findings for the way in which young offenders are treated are discussed.

Comparative Effectiveness of California’s Proposition 36 and Drug Court Programs Before and After Propensity Score Matching
Elizabeth Evans, Libo Li, Darren Urada, and M. Douglas Anglin

California’s voter-initiated Proposition 36 (Prop 36) program is often unfavorably compared with drug courts but little is empirically known about the comparative effectiveness of the two approaches. Using statewide administrative data, analyses were conducted on all Prop 36 and drug court offenders with official records of arrest and drug treatment. Propensity score matching was used to create equivalent groups, enabling comparisons of success at treatment discharge, recidivism over 12 months posttreatment entry, and the magnitude of behavioral changes. Significant behavioral improvements occurred for both Prop 36 and drug court offenders, but although more Prop 36 offenders were successful at discharge, more recidivated over a period of 12 months. Core programmatic differences likely contributed to the differences in outcomes. Policy implications are discussed.

Sedentary Activities, Peer Behavior, and Delinquency Among American Youth
Robert G. Morris and Matthew C. Johnson

Delinquent behavior of one’s peers is one of the most robust predictors of adolescent delinquency. However, no study to date has explored the role of this relationship among those who engage in high rates of nonproductive sedentary activities (e.g., video gaming, TV viewing, and watching movies); a growing public health concern. Here, this issue is explored using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health). Findings support a direct relationship between certain sedentary behaviors and most types of delinquency. Furthermore, results indicate that the impact of peer delinquency on adolescent delinquency is partially confounded by above-average participation in computer gaming. Implications for research on sedentary behavior and delinquency (regarding both policy and theory development) are discussed in the context of cultural evolution into the digital age.