Lindsey M. Eldred

How does family drug treatment court participation affect child welfare outcomes

Parental substance use is a risk factor for child maltreatment. Family drug treatment courts (FDTCs) have emerged in the United States as a policy option to treat the underlying condition and promote family preservation. This study examines the effectiveness of FDTCs in North Carolina on child welfare outcomes. Data come from North Carolina records from child protection services, court system, and birth records. Three types of parental participation in a FDTC are considered: referral, enrolling, and completing an FDTC. The sample includes 566 children who were placed into foster care and whose parents participated in a FDTC program. Findings indicate that children of parents who were referred but did not enroll or who enrolled but did not complete had longer stays in foster care than children of completers. Reunification rates for children of completers were also higher. Outcomes for children in the referred and enrolled groups did not differ in the multivariate analyses. While effective substance use treatment services for parents may help preserve families, future research should examine factors for improving participation and completion rates as well as factors involved in scaling programs so that more families are served.

The behavioral economics of drunk driving

This study investigates whether drinker-drivers attributes are associated with imperfect rationality or irrationality. Using data from eight U.S. cities, we determine whether drinker-drivers differ from other drinkers in cognitive ability, ignorance of driving while intoxicated (DWI) laws, have higher rates of time preference, are time inconsistent, and lack self-control on other measures. We find that drinker-drivers are relatively knowledgeable about DWI laws and do not differ on two of three study measures of cognitive ability from other drinkers. Drinker-drivers are less prone to plan events involving drinking, e.g., selecting a designated driver in advance of drinking, and are more impulsive. Furthermore, we find evidence in support of hyperbolic discounting. In particular, relative to non-drinker-drivers, the difference between short- and long-term discount rates is much higher for drinker-drivers than for other drinkers. Implications of our findings for public policy, including incapacitation, treatment, and educational interventions, are discussed.

Addiction, Drinking Behavior, and Driving Under the Influence

Using a survey of drinkers (N = 1,634), we evaluated alternative explanations of heavy and binge drinking, driving under the influence (DUI), DUI arrests, speeding citations, and chargeable accidents. Explanations included socializing, short-term decision-making, unrealistic optimism, risk preferring behavior, and addiction. Most consistent relationships were between substance use and alcohol addiction and dependent variables for (1) binge drinking and (2) DUI episodes. Respondent characteristics (age, marital and employment status, race, etc.) had important roles for DUI arrests. Drinker-drivers and those arrested for DUI are partially overlapping groups with implications for treatment and policies detecting and incapacitating persons from drinking and driving.

The effects of participation level on recidivism: a study of drug treatment courts using propensity score matching.

BackgroundEmpirical evidence has suggested that drug treatment courts (DTCs) reduce re-arrest rates. However, DTC program completion rates are low and little is known about the effectiveness of lower levels of program participation.ObjectivesWe examined how DTC program referral, enrollment without completion, and completion, affected re-arrest rates during a two-year follow-up.Research designWe used statewide North Carolina data from criminal courts merged with DTC data. Propensity score matching was used to select comparison groups based on demographic characteristics, criminal histories, and drug of choice (when available). Average treatment effects on the treated were computed.MeasuresDTC participation levels included referral without enrollment, (n = 2,174), enrollment without completion (n = 954), and completion (n = 747). Recidivism measured as re-arrest on a substance-related charge, on a violent offense charge not involving an allegation of substance abuse, and on any charge (excluding infractions) was examined by felony and misdemeanor status during a two-year follow-up period.ResultsRe-arrest rates were high, 53–76 percent. In general, re-arrest rates were similar for individuals who were referred but who did not enroll and a matched comparison group consisting of individuals who were not referred. In contrast, enrollees who did not complete had lower re-arrest rates than a matched group of individuals who were referred but did not enroll, for arrests on any charge, on any felony charge, and on substance-related charges (felonies and misdemeanors). Finally, relative to persons who enrolled but did not complete, those who completed had lower re-arrest rates on any charge, any felony charge, any misdemeanor charge, any substance-related charge, any substance-related misdemeanor or felony charge, and any violent felony charge.ConclusionsEnrolling in a DTC, even without completing, reduced re-arrest rates. Given the generally low DTC completion rate, this finding implies that only examining effects of completion underestimates the benefits of DTC programs.

Intergenerational effects of parental substance-related convictions and adult drug treatment court participation on children's school performance.

This study examined the intergenerational effects of parental conviction of a substance-related charge on childrens academic performance and, conditional on a conviction, whether completion of an adult drug treatment court (DTC) program was associated with improved school performance. State administrative data from North Carolina courts, birth records, and school records were linked for 2005-2012. Math and reading end-of-grade test scores and absenteeism were examined for 5 groups of children, those with parents who: were not convicted on any criminal charge, were convicted on a substance-related charge and not referred by a court to a DTC, were referred to a DTC but did not enroll, enrolled in a DTC but did not complete, and completed a DTC program. Accounting for demographic and socioeconomic factors, the school performance of children whose parents were convicted of a substance-related offense was worse than that of children whose parents were not convicted on any charge. These differences were statistically significant but substantially reduced after controlling for socioeconomic characteristics; for example, mothers educational attainment. We found no evidence that parent participation in an adult DTC program led to improved school performance of their children. While the children of convicted parents fared worse on average, much--but not all--of this difference was attributed to socioeconomic factors, with the result that parental conviction remained a risk factor for poorer school performance. Even though adult DTCs have been shown to have other benefits, we could detect no intergenerational benefit in improved school performance of their children.

Do preferences of drinker-drivers differ?

Why people engage in illegal activities is not well understood. Using data collected for this research from eight cities in four states, this study investigates alternative explanations as to why people drive while intoxicated (DWI). We find that preferences and subjective beliefs about arrest/incarceration of persons who drink and drive do differ systematically from others in terms of benefits and costs of drink and driving, and in their risk tolerance. While most findings imply that DWI is a deliberate choice, we do find that drinker drivers tend to be more impulsive and lack self-control in their drinking.

Do Specialty Courts Achieve Better Outcomes for Children in Foster Care than General Courts

Objective: This study assessed the effects of unified family and drug treatment courts (DTCs) on the resolution of cases involving foster care children and the resulting effects on school performance. Method: The first analytic step was to assess the impacts of presence of unified and DTCs in North Carolina counties on time children spent in foster care and the type of placement at exit from foster care. In the second step, the same data on foster care placements were merged with school records for youth in Grades 3–8 in public schools. The effect of children’s time in foster care and placement outcomes on school performance as measured by math and reading tests, grade retention, and attendance was assessed using child fixed-effects regression. Results: Children in counties with unified family courts experienced shorter foster care spells and higher rates of reunification with parents or primary caregivers. Shorter foster care spells translated into improved school performance measured by end-of-grade reading and math test scores. Adult DTCs were associated with lower probability of reunification with parents/primary caregivers. Conclusion: The shortened time in foster care implies an efficiency gain attributable to unified family courts, which translate into savings for the court system through the use of fewer resources. Children also benefit through shortened stays in temporary placements, which are related to some improved educational outcomes.

Parental Criminal Justice Involvement and Children's Involvement With Child Protective Services: Do Adult Drug Treatment Courts Prevent Child Maltreatment?

ABSTRACT Background: In light of evidence showing reduced criminal recidivism and cost savings, adult drug treatment courts have grown in popularity. However, the potential spillover benefits to family members are understudied. Objectives: To examine: (1) the overlap between parents who were convicted of a substance-related offense and their childrens involvement with child protective services (CPS); and (2) whether parental participation in an adult drug treatment court program reduces childrens risk for CPS involvement. Methods: Administrative data from North Carolina courts, birth records, and social services were linked at the child level. First, children of parents convicted of a substance-related offense were matched to (a) children of parents convicted of a nonsubstance-related offense and (b) those not convicted of any offense. Second, we compared children of parents who completed a DTC program with children of parents who were referred but did not enroll, who enrolled for <90 days but did not complete, and who enrolled for 90+ days but did not complete. Multivariate logistic regression was used to model group differences in the odds of being reported to CPS in the 1 to 3 years following parental criminal conviction or, alternatively, being referred to a DTC program. Results: Children of parents convicted of a substance-related offense were at greater risk of CPS involvement than children whose parents were not convicted of any charge, but DTC participation did not mitigate this risk. Conclusion/Importance: The role of specialty courts as a strategy for reducing childrens risk of maltreatment should be further explored.

Deterring Rearrests for Drinking and Driving

This study assesses why some individuals are re-arrested for driving while intoxicated (DWI). Using longitudinal data from North Carolina containing information on arrests and arrest outcomes, we test hypotheses that individuals prosecuted and convicted of DWI are less likely to be re-arrested for DWI. We allow for possible endogeneity of prosecution and conviction outcomes by using instrumental variables for the prosecutors prosecution rate and the judges conviction rate. With a three-year follow-up, the probability of DWI re-arrest was reduced by 6.6 percent if the person was prosecuted for DWI and, for those prosecuted, by 24.5 percent if convicted on this charge. Prosecution and conviction for DWI deters re-arrest for DWI.

ADVANTAGEOUS SELECTION, MORAL HAZARD, AND INSURER SORTING ON RISK IN THE U.S. AUTOMOBILE INSURANCE MARKET

This study quantifies the role of private information in automobile insurance policy choice using data on subjective beliefs, risk preference, reckless driving, the respondents insurer and insurance policy characteristics merged with insurer-specific quality ratings distributed by independent organizations. We find a zero correlation between ex post accident risk and insurance coverage, reflecting advantageous selection in policy choice offset by moral hazard. Advantageous selection is partly attributable to insurer sorting on consumer attributes known and used by insurers. Our analysis of insurer sorting reveals that lower-risk drivers on attributes observed by insurers obtain coverage from insurers with higher-quality ratings.