Face-to-face interviews were conducted on a sample of 125 drink driving offenders at the time of their court appearance and again approximately 9 months later. The total sample consisted of 62 offenders who were undertaking the UTL drink driving program as part of their rehabilitation and 63 offenders who remained within the mainstream sentencing option and acted as a Control group. Participation in the study was voluntary and offenders were paid $25 for each interview for their assistance.
Of the 125 offenders who participated in this study, 24 (19.2%) had previously been convicted of a drink driving offence, with 4 (16.7%) of these offenders being convicted of more than one drink driving offence in the last 5 years. A significant difference was found between the UTL and Control groups for the number of prior drink driving offences (c2(1) = 5.36), with 27% of the UTL group (n = 17) and 11% of the Control group (n = 7) having prior drink driving convictions.
The interview schedule used in this study included a range of lifestyle factors that were seen as potentially contributing to recidivism:
* socio-demography
* mental health status
* social support and self-esteem support
* questions pertaining to knowledge, attitudes and drink driving behaviours
* measures of alcohol consumption and alcohol problems.
Socio-demographic characteristics of rural offenders
Offenders who participated in this study were mostly male, single and young. Few were educated beyond a Year 12 standard and many were unemployed and / or receiving a government pension. Offenders in the UTL group tended to have more prior drink driving convictions than offenders in the Control group and this difference was taken into account in all analyses.
Follow-up of offenders over the nine months showed that the UTL program did not impact on the most of the socio-demographic characteristics of the offenders. There was a significant difference between the UTL and control groups in terms of changes in relationship status, with more of the UTL group showing change.
Of the 125 offenders who participated in this study, 24 (19.2%) had previously been convicted of a drink driving offence, with 4 (16.7%) of these offenders being convicted of more than one drink driving offence in the last 5 years. A significant difference was found between the UTL and Control groups for the number of prior drink driving offences (c2(1) = 5.36), with 27% of the UTL group (n = 17) and 11% of the Control group (n = 7) having prior drink driving convictions.
The interview schedule used in this study included a range of lifestyle factors that were seen as potentially contributing to recidivism:
* socio-demography
* mental health status
* social support and self-esteem support
* questions pertaining to knowledge, attitudes and drink driving behaviours
* measures of alcohol consumption and alcohol problems.
Socio-demographic characteristics of rural offenders
Offenders who participated in this study were mostly male, single and young. Few were educated beyond a Year 12 standard and many were unemployed and / or receiving a government pension. Offenders in the UTL group tended to have more prior drink driving convictions than offenders in the Control group and this difference was taken into account in all analyses.
Follow-up of offenders over the nine months showed that the UTL program did not impact on the most of the socio-demographic characteristics of the offenders. There was a significant difference between the UTL and control groups in terms of changes in relationship status, with more of the UTL group showing change.
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