NCJ Number
167941
Date Published
1996
Length
45 pages
Annotation
This report presents the methodology, findings, and policy implications of a California study designed to determine whether factors not found on the driver record are significant predictors of DUI (driving under the influence) recidivism in the presence of factors found on the driver record.
Abstract
Non-driver record factors of two types, each from a different source, were analyzed. The first type of factor is related to the assessment of alcohol dependency. The data were provided by the Substance Abuse Assessment Unit of the Municipal Court of El Cajon, Calif. The second type of factor is related to demographic and lifestyle factors. Data were provided by San Diego County Alcohol and Drug Services. In the El Cajon substudy, subjects were drivers arrested for DUI and sentenced between July 1992 and December 1993. For the San Diego substudy, subjects were drivers who were arrested for DUI in San Diego County between July 1992 and December 1993, subsequently convicted, and sentenced to licensed DUI programs. The study had a number of limitations that preclude generalizing the results beyond the local universes. The study concludes that for the samples studied, driver record, demographic, and lifestyle factors are more important than psychometric test variables as predictors of DUI recidivism. Reasons for the superiority of demographic and lifestyle factors include the diversity of the phenomena that they represent and the manifestation of similar behavioral characteristics in various aspects of an individual's life. The study concludes that the demographic and lifestyle factors assessed in this study may have value for DUI treatment programs in identifying individuals with a higher risk of recidivism. The study results are not sufficiently positive, however, to justify the use of these factors in taking licensing actions. For volume 1, see NCJ-167942. 8 tables and 16 references