DUI Offenders Research Articles

Interactions Among DUI Offender Characteristics and Traditional Intervention Modalities: a long‐term recidivism follow‐up

Using long-term DUI (Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol) arrest recidivism data from a controlled study of DUI intervention effectiveness, interactions among DUI interventions, age, race, education, and alcohol severity were estimated using logit analysis. Data were collected in a 9-year follow-up study of the Mississippi DUI Probation Project. The effects of short-term interventions (alcohol education schools for low alcohol severity offenders and structured group interventions for high alcohol severity offenders) were specified by educational level. Short-term rehabilitation was modestly effective for those with less than 12 years of education, but less effective or detrimental for the more highly educated. The effects of probation were specified by age and education, being more effective for those under 30 years and 55 years or older than for the middle age group. Probation was most effective for well-educated older (55+) offenders. An analysis of the under 30 years group also suggested that probation was especially effective for young well-educated Minority offenders.

Recidivism among female DUI offenders in a Midwestern American city

Women who were arrested in Wichita, Kansas more than once during a five year period for Driving Under the Influence (DUI) were compared with those who did not recidivate. Recidivists constituted 7.45 percent of the entire sample, suggesting that arrest for DUI may have been an effective deterrent of subsequent offenses. Both groups were largely composed of unmarried women in their twenties and thirties who were highly intoxicated. Although nonrecidivists were more likely to have recieved three or more charges, recidivists were more likely to have been sent to jail on their first offense during the period. The data suggest that the recidivist group may have been composed of a substantial proportion of problem-drinking or alcoholic women, who might benefit from referral to alcoholism treatment programs.

A typology for drinking driving offenders: Methods for classification and policy implications

Comprehensive arrest histories were obtained for 353 DUI offenders who were referred to a probation and rehabilitation demonstration program. The average number of total offenses was 7.9, with 89% of all tracked offenders having more than one offense. Approximately 63% of all recorded offenses were other types of offenses besides DUI. The overall arrest history profile of the group suggested that many DUI offenders are habitual violators of other laws as well. To identify distinctive arrest profiles within the referral sample, a Q mode factor analysis followed by a discriminant function analysis was used to classify offenders into profile subgroups. Five distinctive subgroups emerged. A “low offense” group was characterized by the lowest average number of overall arrests and also contained all offenders with no arrest besides the index DUI arrest. A “mixed” group had a higher average number of total arrests than the “low offense” group and diverse types of offenses. A young “traffic” group was distinguished by many hazardous moving violations other than DUI. Two smaller and older groups—a “public drunkenness” group and a “license” group—had the highest average number of arrests including DUI, public drunkenness, license violations, equipment violations, disturbance arrests and assault arrests. These subgroups were found to differ on demographic variables and drinker status variables. The “public drunkenness” group was found to have the highest accident rate. Groups were compared to groups found in other cluster analyses. Also, treatment implications were discussed. It was suggested that treatment programs focusing exclusively on changing alcohol consumption behavior are not likely to reduce accident risk for some of the offender groups. For example, it was suggested that effective intervention for the “traffic” group should target driving behavior, whether drunk or sober, rather than focus exclusively on consumption behavior. Other alternatives are also discussed.

DUI Offenders and Mental Health Service Providers

Assessment, education, and rehabilitation programs for DUI offenders are being developed by both private and public community mental health agents to respond to perceived offender needs and perceived sources of revenue. Although such programs may serve an important and beneficial function by reducing recidivism, there are disadvantages to unchecked program development. Questions regarding potential ethical, legal, financial and quality-of-service concerns must be addressed if the proliferation of DUI programs is to be a genuine resource rather than an insufficient and temporary fix for a serious problem.

DUI Offenders and Mental Health Service Providers: A Shotgun Marriage?

Bonnie Spiller received her M .A . from Bradley University. We thank Harold Bush for his comments on an earlier draft o f this manuscript.problem, the potential role and power of mental health service providers in this area is increasing.

Cognitive-Behavioral Group Therapy for Multiple-DUI Offenders

Marlatt's (1978) Cognitive-Behavioral Model of relapse and Ellis' (1977) Rational-Emotive Therapy (RET) were used as bases to develop group therapy programs for multiple DUI offenders. The common elements and specific contents of the groups are described. A program evaluation battery administered pre and post treatment found no differences among the two specific treatment programs and an unstructured therapy group on both drinking and non-drinking measures except assertiveness. The implications and alternative explanations of these results are discussed.

DUI offenders presenting with positive blood alcohol levels at presentencing evaluation.

Breathalyzer tests were administered to 500 DUI offenders on the day that they arrived for their scheduled presentencing psychosocial evaluations. Positive blood alcohol levels were found in 132 (26.4%) of the offenders. The persons with positive blood alcohol levels were more likely to be diagnosed as having alcoholism disorders, had higher blood alcohol levels at the times of their arrests, complained of more severe symptoms attributable to excessive alcohol use and drank more than those who did not have positive blood alcohol levels.

Drinking locations and frequency of drunkenness among Mississippi DUI offenders.

Using data collected from convicted drunken drivers, relationships between self-reported frequency of drunkenness, frequency of drinking in seven types of drinking places, and sociodemographic characteristics are examined. Drunk drivers who are young, White, and who infrequently attend worship services are more likely than others to report a high frequency of drunkenness. Self-reported frequency of drunkenness is found to be more strongly related to drinking locations than to sociodemographic characteristics, however. The best predictors of the frequency of drunkenness are the frequency of drinking in automobiles and the frequency of drinking in bars or lounges. These relationships remain strong after the effects of sociodemographic characteristics have been controlled. The findings suggest that drunk drivers who drink in automobiles may represent an especially dangerous subgroup, and that policy makers need to give careful consideration to countermeasures designed to curtail drinking in automobiles.

Drinking reasons, alcohol consumption levels, and drinking locations among drunken drivers.

In a DUI offender sample, four drinking reason factors are regressed on alcohol consumption variables and frequency of drinking in seven types of locations. Drinking for "pleasure" and "opposite sex/drunkenness" reasons are associated with both quantity consumed per occasion and away-from-home locations such as automobiles, bars, and parties, suggesting high traffic accident risk. "Escapism" reasons are related to quantity consumed per occasion, but are only weakly associated with specific locations; and "sociability" reasons are associated with drinking in friends' homes, but are not related to high consumption levels. Implications for DUI countermeasures are discussed.

DUI offenders' perceptions and misperceptions of basic alcohol information

This paper describes the perceptions and misperceptions of basic alcohol and DUI-related information held by two groups of subjects: first-time DUI offenders and multiple-DUI offenders. The results revealed that both samples of subjects were well informed regarding some basic information (e.g., tolerance, elimination of alcohol from the body by the liver, effect of several drinks on increased likelihood of accident) and that the multiple-DUI offenders appeared more knowledgeable on several items (e.g., penalty for refusing breath test, beverage equivalency). These results tend to discredit the knowledge-deficit model of DUI prevention/education/rehabilitation, and an alternative coping skills model is proposed.

Age, machismo, and the drinking locations of drunken drivers: A research note

Driving under the influence (DUI) of alcoholic beverages continues to be one of our nation's most serious social problems despite massive efforts to identify effective countermeasures. The high alcohol‐related motor‐vehicle‐crash death rate among the young is particularly alarming. This paper examines the frequency with which convicted DUI offenders drink in seven different types of drinking places, compares the drinking locations of younger and older offenders, and speculates that machismo or the desire among young males to demonstrate their masculinity has a major impact on both drinking locations and motor‐vehicle‐crash death rates. The analysis finds that the younger offenders tend to drink in a variety of away‐from‐home locations; but after age 25 the frequency of drinking in all types of places except one's own home decreases, and the home emerges as the most important drinking location for the older offenders. The findings suggest that automobiles and parking lots may be drinking settings which are...

A driving record analysis of suspension and revocation effects on the drinking-driving offender

Past studies have demonstrated that license suspension or revocation reduces subsequent DUI convictions and traffic accidents of multiple DUI offenders to a greater degree than jail sentences and fines alone, or participation in an alternative alcohol abuse treatment program. This study describes the duration of the impact of recidivism-Ievel-specific licensing actions on DUI offenders at three recidivism levels. Results indicate that the first DUI offender (who receives no licensing action) represents a DUI recidivism and accident risk comparable to the suspended second DUI offender during the year following their respective DUI convictions. Furthermore, additional record entries indicate that at least 32% of suspended second offenders drive during the period of the licensing action; at least 61% of revoked third offenders acquire a record entry during the licensing action. In addition to the results, major program recommendations concerning the first offender and the use of restricted licenses are outlined.

A survey of suspension and revocation effects on the drinking-driving offender

While previous studies have shown that driving during the term of a license suspension or revocation occurs frequently, the driver's assessment of the impact of the action has not been documented to any great degree. Analysis of the survey results reported here indicated that those who drove while under licensing action did so 20 times or more; however, 65% of the admitted drivers reported reduced exposure and more careful driving. Most respondents acknowledged that the licensing action they received was fair (55% of the admitted drivers and 61.5% of the non-admitted drivers did so). All drivers had an accurate perception of the applicable fines, had they received further convictions. However, they tended to believe that potential jail sentences were more severe than they actually were, especially those who did not admit driving. Sixty-five percent of all respondents admitted that they drove during the period of licensing action. Admission rates were approximately 55% for drivers with no additions to the record. For drivers with additions to the record, the admission rate was 75% for those with suspensions and 84% for those with revocations. In addition to the results, recommendations concerning use of restricted licenses for all DUI offenders were presented.

Personality characteristics of habitual DUI and reckless driving offenders: Types of motivational distortion

The Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire (16PF) was administered to 92 men arrested for habitually driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol and 56 men arrested for reckless driving. The reckless driving offenders described themselves as more intelligent, bold, rebellious, extroverted, independent, and less guilt-prone than the habitual DUI offenders. Both groups' high Motivational Distortion scores indicated, however, that they were consciously faking socially desirable traits. A modal profile analysis was conducted to determine whether or not both samples had attempted to project similar types of motivational distortion. Five between-shape components were identified: shrewd, warmhearted, conscientious, imaginative, and resourceful. The effectiveness of using the 16PF to evaluate the personality characteristics of men arrested for DUI and reckless driving was questioned. The prevalence of psychopathology in persons arrested for driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol has been estimated as high. The literature concerning individuals requiring the attention of the criminal justice system is also overwhelmingly supportive of the idea that the majority of offenders are emotionally disturbed and in many instances dependent on drugs or alcohol (Poley, Lea, & Vibe, 197). Such findings do not imply simple cause and effect phenomena, so far as the antisocial behavior is concerned, but do suggest that the association between antisocial behavior and emotional-addictive illnesses is important. Alcoholism, drug dependency, personality disorders, neuroses, and occasionally psychotic illnesses are frequently found in persons apprehended for criminal behavior. Any prison population has a high incidence of alcoholism and drug abuse; and more often than not, these phenomena are associated with varying degrees of psychological dysfunctioning. The purposes of the present study were to assess the personality characteristics of habitual DUI and reckless driving offenders, to compare these offenders' mean personality traits, and to determine whether or not these offenders shared common personality profiles. The habitual DUI offenders were defined as persons who had been previously arrested for DUI violations, whereas the reckless driving offenders had been arrested for violating Pennsylvania's reckless driving statutes.

Symptom profiles of 'driving under the influence' offenders referred for alcoholism treatment.

Abstract The SCL-90-R inventory was administered to 290 men arrested for driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol. A modal profile analysis was conducted to determine whether or not the men displayed similar symptom profiles. Three distinct symptom profile shapes were identified: (1) paranoid, (2) somatic, and (3) obsessive-depressed. The importance of the three syndromes for treating DUI offenders is discussed.

MMPI response patterns and alcohol consumption in DUI offenders.

MMPI response patterns and alcohol consumption in DUI offenders.

MMPI response patterns and alcohol consumption in DUI offenders.

MMPI response patterns and alcohol consumption in DUI offenders.