NCJ Number
218460
Date Published
March 2007
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This study assessed levels of social and psychological disadvantage among New South Wales (NSW) court defendants.
Abstract
Highlights of the results indicate: (1) that participants have a very high degree of need for each of the social services discussed; (2) almost one-third had not finished any education or training at all beyond year 10 of school; (3) one in five reported having had learning difficulties; (4) one in five suggested they had literacy problems; (5) the majority of participants were not in full-time employment; (6) two in every five reported having an annual household income of less than $20,000; (7) a very high proportion reported having had a gambling and substance abuse problem; (8) heroin and cocaine dependence were not particularly prevalent among the participants; (9) high rates of traumatic head injuries were reported; (10) high rates of mental illness and unmet demand for mental health treatment were reported; and (11) homelessness was the only area of disadvantage explored that did not appear to be very prevalent. Program development, specifically court-based prevention programs for court defendants, would be greatly assisted if more was known about the degree to which relevant samples of court-based offenders present with psychosocial problems. The aim of this study was to establish what proportion of the sample could potentially benefit from accessing existing social services in the community, whether those in need of services were currently accessing them, whether they would access those services, and what potential barriers inhibited access to these services. One hundred and eighty-nine adults appearing for criminal offenses in either Blacktown Local Court or Newcastle Local Court in New South Wales participated in the study. Tables, notes, references