Inmates and Prison Involvement with Drugs

To identify the types of inmates who are more prone to engage in drug-related activity while incarcerated, the actions of 543 adult inmates in the Midwestern state were examined. The study’s conclusions showed that convicts who were now married or had been married in the past were more likely to take drugs, traffic drugs, and engage in acts of institutional violence (Connor and David and Richard 426).

It is illegal to possess, sell, or use drugs while incarcerated, and the report claims that some inmates may turn to violence as a result of drug use. The presence of drugs in prisons promotes institutional violence, its distribution might lead to disagreements, debts, and conflict often resolved through assaults and even killings (Connor and David and Richard 426). Inmates involved in the use of drugs are more susceptible to emotional complications and increase violence and vandalism correctional facility property (Connor and David and Richard 426).

Method of the Research

Importation factors that determine inmate’s behavior are age, race, educational level, marital status, criminal history, gang affiliations and biological sex. It would be important to note that different studies done revealed different outcomes. Data were collected by interviewing prisoners and other secondary sources where records of correctional facilities were analyzed and reports formulated.

Information was also obtained from records from correctional institutions’ programs that attempted to educate inmates on ways of dealing with violence, health problems, Drug testing, and treatment.

Limitations of the Study

Findings from the research have acute limitations, it is important that other studies be done to address areas that this study is limited. Throughout the research, the researcher records a higher relationship between marital status and drug-related behavior. However, there are other factors that are likely to affects inmates’ involvement in violence and drug-related misconduct.

Findings from the study depicted that formerly married and married inmates exhibit increased chances of being involved in drug-related behavior while in prison. However, inmates used in the study are from one prison. Generalization of findings in the study could lead to wrong interpretation data.

Findings of the Research

The research focused on impacts of deprivation and importation on involvement in drug-related behavior among inmates. It aimed at uncovering the types of inmates that were likely to be involved in drug-related misconduct during incarceration. Results predict the likelihood of importation and deprivation to affect inmate behavior while incarcerated.

The study postulates that formerly married and married inmates are more likely to be involved in drug-related behavior while incarcerated because of the network formed in marriage and includes a wide variety of individuals such as spouses, friends, and relatives (Binswanger and Ingrid 120). Inmates use marriage network to recruit people into drug activities. The study shows that formerly married or married inmates have299% greater odds of receiving disciplinary infractions than those never married and single inmates (Binswanger and Ingrid 120).

The main form of punishment for inmates caught in drug related misconduct is mainly deprivation which increases chances of them to receive disciplinary infractions subsequently. Marriage is associated with a decrease of drug use outside prison. This research shows that married or formerly married inmates are more likely to get involved in drug related misconduct while incarcerated (Binswanger and Ingrid 120).

Effectiveness of the rehabilitation for addicted prisoners trust (RAPt) program Albert M. Kopak, Lucy V. Dean, Steven L. Proctor, Lauren Miller and Norman G. Hoffmann

Goal of the study was finding out efficiency of (RAPt) programme in dealing with drug use and re-offense among inmates. After release, data collected aimed at analyzing effects of the program on drug treatment on the inmates were collected. Factors that affected the effectiveness of the program were drug choice, the length of sentence and offense. Those who competed RAPt were less likely to be involved in the drug-related activity as compared to those that started but did not complete the program. The probability of the prisoners who underwent the drug treatment program to re-offend depended on their primary drug choice. Another factor affecting the probability of the inmate to re-offend is the term they were serving (Thomson and Nicholas 2015). Inmates convicted of property offense were more likely to re-offend within one year after undergoing the program.

Subject population of the study and results

The study compared three prisoner groups namely RAPt completers, comprising of those that completed the program, the second group, comparison completers completed the program but of a lower intensity and run for a shorter duration. The third group, RAPt non-completers, started the program as the first group but did not complete it due to a number of reasons such as misconduct or voluntary disengagement due to consistent positive results exhibited. The sample size was about 939 males who underwent the treatment with a mean age of about 30.8 years, completer group consisted of a total of 352 inmates serving a prison sentence of about 43.4 months. About half of the prisoners were convicted of property related offenses. Comparison completers comprised of about 232 inmates with a mean age of 29.5 years and serving an average of 24 months imprisonment. Non-completers had a mean age of 31.5 years and served a prison term of an average of 45.1 months.

Limitation of the Study

The study focused on effectiveness of the program in treatment of drug related offences, however, the assumption that offences the prisoners were convicted for predicted whether or not they are likely to offend after treatment is not realistic because according to statistical analysis, there are other factors such as importation and deprivation chances of misconduct in prison (Kopak, Albert M., et al). Results from the findings postulate that there is a need for further research in order to find out an after-treatment use of drugs among prisoners that used multiple drugs.

Findings

There is an increase in chances of inmates having secondary drug choices to go back to drug use after release. Poly-substance use is directly related to reoffending, such individuals need special treatment needs (Kopak, Albert M., et al).

The study found out that there is a notable difficulty in dealing with challenges associated with the use of heroin and crack posing challenges to specialists treating addiction to the drugs.

The findings uncovered the fact that use of heroin and cocaine is high among inmates thus highlighting the fact that some individuals might be dependent on one or both prior to incarceration (Thomson and Nicholas 2015).

Property offenses are more related to use of heroin and cocaine and form part and parcel of the primary drugs of such individuals and those serving longer terms are less likely to re-offend within one year after their release (Kopak, Albert M., et al).

RAPt completers were less likely to be re-incarcerated after release or even receive infractions behind bars. The results show that inmates incarcerated due to drug use are less likely to offend (Ralphs, Rob, et al). The largest proportion of no-completers were in prison for property related offenses. Most prisoners in completers and non-completers reported that their favorite drug was heroin and cocaine.

Differences and Similarities of the two Studies

While the first article focused on drug-related misconduct doing incarceration, the second research focuses on the effectiveness of drug treatment and rehabilitation on reducing dependence and re-offence among inmates.

The first study studied the type of inmates that were likely to get involved in the drug related offense during incarceration while the second one aimed at finding out the relationship between inmates’ primary drugs, conviction, and term. The first article postulates that married or previously married inmates were more likely to get involved in drug-related behavior while the second article claims that inmates in for property related offenses were likely to re-offend (Thomson and Nicholas 2015).

The first research uncovered effects of importation and deprivation inmate behavior and the chances of one getting involved in drug-related offenses while the second article studied impacts of conviction, addiction before incarceration and the possibility of prisoners to abuse drugs and substance after release (Ralphs, Rob, et al).

The two articles focused on finding out factors that are likely to increase chances of one being re-incarcerated, subsequent use of drugs, and involvement in drug related offenses. The first article is concerned with the relationship between some factors such as importation and deprivation on the chances of the inmate receiving an infraction while incarcerated and the second article focuses on factors such as conviction and term of imprisonment influencing chances of inmate re-offence (Ralphs, Rob, et al).

Both articles tried to find out the ways in which correctional facilities and the society can minimize pre and post imprisonment abuse and dependence of drugs so as to avoid the repercussions such as institutional violence and death of victims (Thomson and Nicholas 2015).

Works Cited

Binswanger, Ingrid A., et al. “A patient navigation intervention for drug-involved former prison inmates.” Substance Abuse 36.1 (2015): 34-41.

Connor, David Patrick, and Richard Tewksbury. ”Inmates and Prison Involvement with Drugs: Examining Drug-Related Misconduct during Incarceration.” Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice 32.4 (2016): 426-445.

Disbury, Katie L., et al. ”Pre-to post treatment differences in measures of risk of relapse and reoffending for participants of RAPt’s 6-week programs.” Journal of Offender Rehabilitation 54.8 (2015): 556-584.

Kopak, Albert M., et al. ”Effectiveness of the rehabilitation for addicted prisoners trust (RAPt) programme.” Journal of Substance Use 20.4 (2015): 254-261.

Ralphs, Rob, et al. ”Adding Spice to the Porridge: The development of a synthetic cannabinoid market in an English prison.” International Journal of Drug Policy 40 (2017): 57-69.

Thomson, Nicholas D. ”An Exploratory Study of Female Psychopathy and Drug-Related Violent Crime.” Journal of Interpersonal Violence (2017): 0886260517690876.