Treatment “Dosage” Effects in Drug Court Programs

This study assessed whether greater duration of involvement in a drug court program affected criminal justice outcomes. The major research hypothesis was that the length of participation in drug courts would be directly related to outcomes obtained during follow-up. Participants consisted of 226 individuals who entered two Florida drug court programs in Escambia and Okaloosa counties between June 1993 and June 1996. This sampling strategy was developed to insure that at least a one-year follow-up period was provided for each participant after discharge from the drug court program. Results indicate that the duration of time spent in a drug court program is significantly related to criminal justice outcomes, with greater time in the program associated with lower rates of follow-up arrest, and clearly support the importance of lengthy involvement in drug court programs and of expanded efforts to retain participants in these programs.