Therapeutic Communities in Prisons and Work Release: Effective Modalities for Drug-Involved Offenders

• NCJ Number: 182360
• Author(s): James A. Inciardi; Steven S. Martin; Hilary L. Surratt
• Date Published: 1999
• Length: 20 pages
• Grant Number(s): DA06124; DA06948; 97-RT-VX-K004
• Agencies: NIJ-Sponsored
• Publication Type: Program/Project Evaluation

Annotation

After describing the phases of Delaware's drug treatment for offenders in therapeutic communities (TCs), this report presents evaluation findings regarding program outcomes.

Abstract

Delaware's TC drug treatment program consists of a continuum of primary (in prison), secondary (work release), and tertiary (aftercare) treatment that corresponds to sentence mandates. The outcome data presented in this report show that clients who completed secondary treatment (some of whom also completed primary treatment) were significantly more likely than those with no treatment or those who dropped out of treatment to remain drug-free and arrest-free 3 years after release from prison. In addition, preliminary analyses of data now available on clients who received tertiary treatment (a TC aftercare program implemented in 1996) suggest that treatment graduates who participate in aftercare programming surpass treatment graduates who do not receive continuing care in terms of remaining drug-free and arrest-free at 42 months. These results provide continuing support for the beneficial effects of participation in institutional, transitional, and community TC treatment for drug-involved offenders. 1 table, 2 figures, and 11 references