Abstract
BackgroundSubstance use in general has been shown to predict criminal recidivism. The present study aimed to examine potential predictors of criminal recidivism, including substance-specific substance use patterns, in prisoners with substance use.MethodsA cohort of prisoners with substance use problems (N = 4,152) were assessed with the Addiction Severity Index (ASI) in the Swedish criminal justice system. Clients were followed for an average of 2.7 years. Criminal recidivism was defined as any return to the criminal justice system.ResultsDuring follow-up, 69 percent (n = 2,862) returned to the criminal justice system. Recidivism was associated with amphetamine and heroin use, with an additive risk for injectors, and with polysubstance use. Also, recidivism was negatively associated with alcohol, other opioids than heroin/methadone and with hallucinogenic drugs, and positively associated with previous psychiatric in-patient treatment, violent behaviour, and with a shorter index sentence. Associations remained when controlling for type of crime.ConclusionsEven when controlling for type and severity of crime, and for psychiatric problems, risk of criminal relapse was increased by substance use variables, including amphetamine, heroin and polysubstance use, and an additional risk was shown for injection drug users. These findings have implications for the need for substance abuse treatment after release from prison.
Highlights
Substance use in general has been shown to predict criminal recidivism
Bonta and colleagues [8] showed that the increased risk of recidivism was more pronounced for drugs than for alcohol, and in treatment participants in Australia, it was reported that criminal recidivism was more common in users of other drugs than cannabis, with a higher risk reported for heroin users than for methamphetamine users [11]
The present study aimed to identify variables, including substance-related and psychiatric problem variables, which predict return to the criminal justice system in prisoners with substance use problems
Summary
Substance use in general has been shown to predict criminal recidivism. The present study aimed to examine potential predictors of criminal recidivism, including substance-specific substance use patterns, in prisoners with substance use. Substance abuse and criminal behaviour are closely related, and a large proportion of substance users commit crimes [1,2]. While some part of criminal behaviour is likely to occur in order to finance drug use [3], substance use is clearly associated with violent crime [4]. Criminal behaviour is generally more common among mentally ill [5], and a very large proportion of criminal justice clients suffer from alcohol or drug dependence or other mental disorders, including high rates of personality disorders [6,7]. While the role of substance use in the prediction of criminal recidivism has been quite clearly demonstrated [8,10], there are more limited data describing how this is related to different types of substance use patterns. Bonta and colleagues [8] showed that the increased risk of recidivism was more pronounced for drugs than for alcohol, and in treatment participants in Australia, it was reported that criminal recidivism was more common in users of other drugs than cannabis, with a higher risk reported for heroin users than for methamphetamine users [11]
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