The Impact of Community Treatment on Recidivism among Mental Health Court Participants
OBJECTIVE:
A
core component of mental health courts (MHCs) is the provision of community
treatment in order to reduce arrests. However, research on the components of
treatment received by MHC participants is rare. This study examined the impact
of community treatment on arrests in an MHC sample (N=357) and a sample from
the traditional criminal justice system (N=384).
METHODS:
Data were
from the MacArthur MHC Project, which includes objective and subjective
information from four MHCs with comparison samples at each site. Interview data
were collected for six months before and six months after entry into the MHC or
legal system. National data from arrest records over one year were also
obtained. Treatment-related variables were compliance (appointments and
medication), perceptions (motivation and perceived voluntariness), and use of
nine types of community treatment. A fixed-effects regression controlled for
selection bias between groups.
RESULTS:
The
regression model indicated significant increases in treatment motivation and
use of community mental health and substance abuse services among MHC
participants, compared with treatment-as-usual participants; however, the
perceived voluntariness of treatment decreased in the MHC group. For the
treatment-as-usual group, none of the treatment variables were associated with
future arrest. For the MHC group, increased medication compliance and use of
mental health services were associated with a significant decrease in arrests.
CONCLUSIONS:
Consistent
with the MHC goals, findings indicated increases in receipt of community
treatment among MHC participants. For the MHC sample, but not the
treatment-as-usual sample, increased treatment was associated with reduced
recidivism.
- 1Mr. Han is with the School of Social Welfare, State University of New York, Albany. Dr. Redlich is with the Department of Criminology, Law, and Society, George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia. Send correspondence to Dr. Redlich (e-mail: aredlich@gmu.edu ).
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