Testing the Gender Effect in Drug and Alcohol Treatment

Abstract

Though research on drug and driving under the influence (DUI) courts increased significantly in the past two decades, very little has focused on women's participation in these programs and how gender may have influenced clients' performance, despite the call of feminist criminologists that entry into crime and substance abuse is different for women. Based on data collected from Tulsa County DUI and Drug programs in Oklahoma, this study examines the impact of gender on clients' performance in both programs. In addition to identifying associations between clients' gender and demographics, criminal history, addiction problems, and other medical and mental health problems, this study explores gender's impact on both program progress (e.g., program length, use of sanctions, relapse) and final outcome (termination vs. graduation). Data show that different factors are associated with female entry into drug and DUI courts and successful completion of the program compared with men, which calls for gender tailored treatment for women.

An Exploratory Study Examining Differences in Drug Court Graduation Rates for Black and White Women

“…Support was found for the first hypothesis: Black status is significantly related to a lower likelihood of graduating controlling for other variables. This result replicates previous studies of men and women (Hepburn & Harvey, 2007;Marlowe, 2013;Rossman et al, 2011;Shannon et al, 2015) and women only (Liang & Long, 2013). This result contributes to the limited body of research suggesting Black women are not being well served by many DTCs (Gallagher, Nordberg, Deranek, & Minasian, 2019).…”

“…Over time, some DTCs have evolved to provide services for specific populations and for individual needs. While many DTC programs still offer an array of services in mixed gender settings, some programs are finding success in offering gender-specific services based on research highlighting differences in the needs of women and men in treatment (Liang & Long, 2013;Messina et al, 2012) and different graduation rates from DTC programs. These findings underscore the logic for a female-specific study.…”

“…Women's pathway often has a social component. Their substance use often is tied to their relationships with peers (Briggs & Pepperell, 2009), as women tend to be introduced to drugs by intimate partners (Liang & Long, 2013). The association of deviant peers to DTC outcomes has not been explicitly included in previous DTC studies.…”

“…Shannon et al (2018) found that women who were employed at entry were more likely to graduate. In one of the few studies examining race and gender in DTC (Liang & Long, 2013), minority status and lower levels of employment, when taken together, can be significant predictors of poor DTC outcomes for Black women. Criminal history is also a risk factor with a sharp distinction by race; Black individuals often have a more extensive and serious criminal history (Marlowe, 2013).…”