Consistency in Self-Reports of Drug Use Frequency by High-Risk Offenders Over a 5-Year Interval

• NCJ Number: 245890
• Journal: Prison Journal Volume: 93 Issue: 4 Dated: December 2013 Pages: 375-389
• Author(s): Michael Prendergast; Libo Li; Elizabeth Evans; Elizabeth Hall
• Date Published: December 2013
• Length: 15 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

Self-reports of drug use by high-risk offenders interviewed on two occasions were compared to determine the extent to which the reports were consistent at the two interview points.

Abstract

Self-reports of drug use by high-risk offenders interviewed on two occasions were compared to determine the extent to which the reports were consistent at the two interview points. Self-reports of frequency of drug use over the same 12-month period were compared among parolees N = 380 who had participated in prison drug treatment and who were interviewed at 1 and 5 years following prison release. The kappa coefficient was .31 p < .001, generally considered a fair level of agreement. Total concordance in retrospective recall of primary drug use frequency was 54.5%.