NCJ Number
125443
Date Published
1990
Length
9 pages
Annotation
Since 1981, New York State has used the Michigan Alcohol Screening Test (MAST), rather than self-reports, to develop statistics on alcohol abuse among its inmate population. This report reviews all male and female new commitments to New York State correctional facilities in 1989 in terms of their suggested alcohol abuse problems based on MAST Scores.
Abstract
The findings suggest that over 24 percent of the 18,265 new commitments in 1989 for whom MAST scores were available had scores of 9 or more, strongly indicating alcohol abuse. Significant differences appeared in commitments from various regions of New York State. While only 19 percent of inmates from New York City had high scores, over 45 percent of commitments from upstate counties had high scores. The report attributes the dramatic increase in drug commitments from New York City as a contributing factor to this regional difference. 4 tables, 1 figure, 7 notes.