SECTION ON LAW & ETHICS
Director: David Festinger, Ph.D.
Selected Past Projects (Continued)
Services Research on Sanctions and Rewards in Drug Court: Douglas B. Marlowe, J.D., Ph.D. This study experimentally examined the effects of adapting a tangible incentive program for use within a felony pre-adjudication drug court. Participants earned gift certificates at each court hearing where staff determined they were compliant in the program. Participants in one condition earned gift certificates gradually escalating by $5.00 increments. In a second condition they began by earning higher magnitude gift certificates on a continuous schedule, tapering to intermittent schedules over time. In a randomized comparison against drug court as usual, no main effects were detected. This appears to have been attributable to a ceiling effect from the programmatic contingencies and intensive monitoring and treatment already delivered in the drug court, and possibly also to the low density of reinforcement in the experimental interventions. However, pre-planned interaction analyses suggested high-risk participants who had more serious criminal backgrounds or were younger may have performed better in the incentive conditions. Although the magnitude of the effects were small, if these preliminary findings are replicated this could suggest that tangible incentive programs may be best suited for incorrigible drug offenders not predisposed to respond adequately in traditional court-monitored programs.
Narcotics on the Internet: David Festinger, Ph.D. This NIDA-funded study expanded upon TRI’s original Internet pharmacies project. In this study, the team tested a wider variety of search terms to assess the prevalence of websites where controlled substances may be purchased without a prescription. A database with descriptive information for all “Opioid No Prescription Drugs” was developed.
STI/HIV Risk, Services, and Drug Use for Young Arrestees; Steven Belenko, Ph.D. This project implemented an assessment and urine screening protocol for the Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI) chlamydia and gonorrhea in the Hillsborough County (FL) Juvenile Assessment Center (JAC); analyzing relationships among drug use, sex risk behaviors and STI infection rates; and identifying STI-related service needs and impediments to expanding STI testing and treatment services. Data from an Intake Assessment and STI urine tests were collected from a sample of 900 eligible delinquent youth consecutively admitted to the JAC (stratified to yield 450 females). Organizational data was drawn from juvenile justice and service provider records, geocoded data on infections and health service locations, and 40 staff interviews. Follow-up data on STI treatment and retesting was collected from the Hillsborough County Health Department for STI-positive participants.
