Description & Citation--Study No. 27101

• Bibliographic Description
• Scope of Study
• Methodology
• Access and Availability

Bibliographic Description

27101

Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative (SVORI) Multi-site Impact Evaluation, 2004-2007 [United States]

Lattimore, Pamela K., RTI International

Visher, Christy A., University of Delaware. Urban Institute

United States Department of Justice. Office of Justice Programs. National Institute of Justice (2004-RE-CX-0002)

Lattimore, Pamela K., and Christy A. Visher. Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative (SVORI) Multi-site Impact Evaluation, 2004-2007 [United States]. ICPSR27101-v1. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 2011-05-05. doi:10.3886/ICPSR27101.v1

Scope of Study

The Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative (SVORI) funded agencies to develop programs to improve criminal justice, employment, education, health, and housing outcomes for released prisoners. SVORI was an outcome or goal-oriented initiative that specified outcomes, or goals, that should be achieved by programs that were developed locally. The SVORI multi-site evaluation included an impact evaluation to determine the effectiveness of programming. Specifically, the purpose of the impact evaluation was to determine whether individuals who participated in enhanced reentry programming, as measured by their enrollment in SVORI programs, had improved post-release outcomes than comparable individuals who did not participate in SVORI programming. Impact evaluation data collection for both SVORI and non-SVORI participants consisted of four waves of in-person, computer-assisted interviews, oral swab drug tests conducted in conjunction with two of the follow-up interviews, arrest data obtained from the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) at the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and administrative records data obtained from state correctional and juvenile justice agencies. The research team collected data on a total of 2,391 individuals including 1,697 adult males (Part 1), 357 adult females (Part 2), and 337 juvenile males (Part 3). As part of the impact evaluation, experienced RTI field interviewers conducted pre-release interviews with offenders approximately 30 days before release from prison and a series of follow-up interviews at 3, 9, and 15 months post-release. The interview and drug test data were supplemented with arrest data obtained from the NCIC and with administrative records obtained from state correctional and juvenile justice agencies. These data provided information on criminal history and recidivism occurring by December 31, 2007. The research team collected data on a total of 35,469 arrests (Part 4) from the NCIC, including prior arrests and re-arrests for offenders in the adult male, adult female, and juvenile male samples. Re-arrest indicators data based on the NCIC Arrest Records Data (Part 4) are also included in Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3. The Adult Males Data (Part 1), Adult Females Data (Part 2), and the Juvenile Males Data (Part 3) each contain the same 5,698 variables including 5,635 variables from the 4 waves of offender interviews, 10 drug test lab results variables, 36 re-arrest indicator variables based on NCIC arrest records, 14 administrative re-incarceration variables, and 3 weight variables. (Note: Some interview questions were only asked of adults, and other questions were only asked of juveniles.) Offender interview variables include demographics, housing, employment, education, military experience, family background, peer relationships, program operations and services, physical and mental health, substance abuse, crime and delinquency, and attitudes. Part 4, the NCIC Arrest Records Data, contains a total of 8 variables including release date, arrest date, charge, higher code, conviction offense, and a time variable created by ICPSR that represents the number of days between arrest date and release date.

evaluation, inmate release plans, offenders, outcome evaluation, postrelease programs, prisoner reentry, program evaluation, programs, recidivism, recidivists, violence, violent crime

state

Colorado, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Maryland, Missouri, Nevada, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, United States, Washington

• 2004--2007

• 2004--2007

individual (Part 1-Part 3), arrest (Part 4)

Adult male offenders who received Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative (SVORI) programming or were selected as comparison subjects in 12 states between July 2004 and November 2005 (Part 1). Adult female offenders who received Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative (SVORI) programming or were selected as comparison subjects in 11 states between July 2004 and November 2005 (Part 2). Juvenile male offenders who received Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative (SVORI) programming or were selected as comparison subjects in 4 states between July 2004 and November 2005 (Part 3). All arrests through December 31, 2007, of adult and juvenile offenders who received Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative (SVORI) programming or were selected as comparison subjects in 14 states between July 2004 and November 2005 (Part 4).

administrative records data, clinical data, experimental data, survey data

Users should be aware that the datasets can be linked using the ID "CASE ID" variable. Additionally, for Part 4, ICPSR created the RECORDID "RECORD IDENTIFIER CREATED BY ICPSR" variable, which is a unique identifier for each line (i.e. record) in that data file. The datasets cannot be linked using the RECORDID variable.

Users should refer to the Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative (SVORI) final reports and other resources listed in the Related Literature section of this data collection for detailed information regarding the evaluation activities associated with the SVORI Multi-site Evaluation.

There were some variations between the questions that were asked to adult and juvenile respondents in the four waves of offender interviews. Some questions were only asked of adults, and other questions were only asked of juveniles. Accordingly, while the Adult Males Data (Part 1), Adult Females Data (Part 2), and Juvenile Males Data (Part 3) each contain the same 5,698 variables, the variables asked only of the juveniles will have all missing values in the adult datasets, and the variables asked only of adults will have all missing values in the juvenile datasets. The Item Catalog for SVORI Offender Interviews, which is included in the Data Documentation file for this data collection, indicates which variables were asked only of adults or juveniles.

Methodology

The Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative (SVORI) funded agencies to develop programs to improve criminal justice, employment, education, health, and housing outcomes for released prisoners. SVORI was an outcome or goal-oriented initiative that specified outcomes, or goals, that should be achieved by programs that were developed locally. The purpose of the SVORI multi-site evaluation was to determine whether the selected programs accomplished the overall goal of the Reentry Initiative -- increasing public safety by reducing recidivism among the populations served by the program -- and determine the relative costs and benefits of the program. The SVORI multi-site evaluation included an impact evaluation to determine the effectiveness of programming. Specifically, the purpose of the impact evaluation was to determine whether individuals who participated in enhanced reentry programming, as measured by their enrollment in SVORI programs, had improved post-release outcomes than comparable individuals who did not participate in SVORI programming.

Impact evaluation data collection for both SVORI and non-SVORI participants consisted of four waves of in-person, computer-assisted interviews, oral swab drug tests conducted in conjunction with two of the follow-up interviews, arrest data obtained from the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) at the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and administrative records data obtained from state correctional and juvenile justice agencies. The research team collected data on a total of 2,391 individuals including 1,697 adult males (Part 1), 357 adult females (Part 2), and 337 juvenile males (Part 3).

As part of the impact evaluation, experienced RTI field interviewers conducted pre-release interviews with offenders approximately 30 days before release from prison and a series of follow-up interviews at 3, 9, and 15 months post-release. All interviews were conducted in private settings using computer-assisted personal interviewing. Pre-release interviews were conducted from July 2004 through November 2005 in more than 150 prisons and juvenile detention facilities. The pre-release interviews obtained data on the respondents' characteristics and pre-prison experiences, as well as incarceration experiences and services received since admission to prison. These interviews also obtained data on the respondents' post-release plans and expectations about reentry to the community. Post-release interviews were conducted from December 2004 through May 2007. Interviews were conducted in the community, and in jails or prisons for those who were re-incarcerated. The post-release interviews were similar in content across waves and obtained data on reentry experiences, housing, employment, family and community integration, substance abuse, physical and mental health, supervision and criminal history, service needs, and service receipt. The interview instruments were developed through an extensive process involving substantive domain experts and the use of existing, validated measures and scales. Oral swab drug tests were conducted during the 3- and 15-month interviews for respondents who were interviewed in a community setting.

The interview and drug test data were supplemented with arrest data obtained from the NCIC and with administrative records obtained from state correctional and juvenile justice agencies. These data provided information on criminal history and recidivism occurring by December 31, 2007. In some instances, the administrative records were supplemented with data obtained from online criminal history databases. The research team collected data on a total of 35,469 arrests (Part 4) from the NCIC, including prior arrests and re-arrests for offenders in the adult male, adult female, and juvenile male samples. Specifically, to create the NCIC Arrest Records Data (Part 4), the evaluation team provided NCIC with a list of identifiers for use in extracting arrest records of offenders in the study sample. NCIC returned multiple potential matching criminal history records for each study subject in PDF files and hardcopy rap sheets. These documents were reviewed and processed by the evaluation team to create the Part 4 dataset. Re-arrest indicators data based on the NCIC Arrest Records Data (Part 4) are also included in Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3.

In developing criteria for site selection for the Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative (SVORI) impact evaluation, the principal investigators focused on identifying factors that would provide the best assurance that a program would be evaluable. Six criteria were identified to guide site selection:

1. Program had clearly defined elements and goals.
2. Program was implemented (or was likely to be implemented).
3. Program target population was accessible and of sufficient size.
4. Appropriate comparison population was available and accessible for inclusion in the study.
5. Administrative data were of good quality and available for the evaluation.
6. Program was amenable to and able to participate in the evaluation.

The strategy implemented to identify the impact programs was based on the following successive data collection activities:

1. Review of SVORI grantee proposals and work plans and follow-up telephone interviews with program directors to obtain information not gleaned from the review and clarification and updates on the programs' status.
2. Visits to the sites of a selected subset of programs.
3. Review of all information to develop a list of recommended programs for inclusion in the impact evaluation that was submitted to NIJ for approval.

Based upon these criteria and procedures, a total of 16 out of all 89 SVORI programs were included in the impact evaluation, comprising 12 adult programs and 4 juvenile programs located in 14 states (adult only unless otherwise specified): Colorado (juveniles only), Florida (juveniles only), Indiana, Iowa, Kansas (adults and juveniles), Maine, Maryland, Missouri, Nevada, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina (adults and juveniles), and Washington. A site-specific research design was developed for each impact site. In two sites (Iowa and Ohio), the programs randomly assigned individuals to their SVORI programs. In the remaining sites, quasi-experimental comparison groups were developed by identifying the criteria that local site staff used to identify individuals eligible for enrollment in their SVORI program (including such factors as age, criminal history, risk level, post-release supervision, transfer to pre-release facilities, and county of release) and replicating the selection procedures on a different population.

From these 16 programs, a total of 4,354 cases were fielded for inclusion in SVORI impact evaluation study. A total of 1,963 cases were dropped from the sample including 718 cases that were released before interviews could be scheduled, 635 cases that were ineligible for the evaluation, 370 refusals, 192 cases were dropped because the respondents were not released while the first post-release interview was being conducted, and 48 other non-interviews. Thus, the final sample of evaluation-eligible respondents for the impact evaluation was comprised of 2,391 individuals -- 1,697 adult males (Part 1), 357 adult females (Part 2), and 337 juvenile males (Part 3). Specifically, the final sample included 863 SVORI and 834 non-SVORI adult males, 153 SVORI and 204 non-SVORI adult females, and 152 SVORI and 185 non-SVORI juvenile males.

For Part 4, a total of 35,469 arrest records were obtained on individuals in the final sample from the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) at the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

Part 1-Part 3 contain the following three weight variables: individual probability, population average treatment effects (PATE) weight, and average treatment effect on the treated (ATET) weight. Part 4: not applicable.

record abstracts, computer-assisted personal interview (CAPI)

Four waves of in-person, computer-assisted interviews with SVORI program participants and comparison subjects, Laboratory results data from the oral swab drug tests that were conducted during the 3- and 15-month interviews for respondents who were interviewed in a community setting, Arrest data obtained from the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) at the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Administrative records data obtained from state correctional and juvenile justice agencies

The Adult Males Data (Part 1), Adult Females Data (Part 2), and the Juvenile Males Data (Part 3) each contain the same 5,698 variables including 5,635 variables from the 4 waves of offender interviews, 10 drug test lab results variables, 36 re-arrest indicator variables based on National Crime Information Center (NCIC) arrest records, 14 administrative re-incarceration variables, and 3 weight variables. (Note: Some interview questions were only asked of adults, and other questions were only asked of juveniles.) Offender interview variables include demographics, housing, employment, education, military experience, family background, peer relationships, program operations and services, physical and mental health, substance abuse, crime and delinquency, and attitudes. Specifically, Parts 1-3 each contain a total of 1,018 Wave 1 offender interview variables, 1,574 Wave 2 offender interview variables, 1,523 Wave 3 offender interview variables, and 1,523 Wave 4 offender interview variables.

From the offender interviews, data include:

• Demographic variables: age, facility type, gender, race, acculturation, and duration of incarceration.
• Housing variables: location, type of housing, duration of housing, housing expectation, composition of household, contribution to housing costs, owner/tenant status, housing stability, barriers to housing, living with criminally-/drug-involved people, and neighborhood quality.
• Employment variables: ever had job, sources of support/employment status, job stability/reasons for not working, unemployment insurance, most recent job information, lifetime employment duration/termination, expectation to return to previous job, barriers to employment, job satisfaction, and job stress.
• Education variables: educational attainment, school attendance/stability, and school suspension/expulsion.
• Military experience variables: ever served, type of discharge, and currently serving.
• Family background variables: marital/partner status, parental status, children/primary care responsibilities, child support, family affiliation, family criminal history, parent/guardian information, family emotional support, family instrumental support, in-prison contact, parental relationship, victimization, perpetration of violence, quality of intimate partnership, child custody and visitation, and relationship with children.
• Peer relationships variables: peer criminal behavior and peer instrumental support.
• Program operations and services variables: assessment and case management, service need, release planning, services received (child support/child care, juvenile services, identification/life skills/attitudes, parenting/domestic violence/mentoring/anger management, education/transportation/housing/accessing resources, employment services), medical/dental care, mental health care, substance abuse treatment, most/least helpful services, work release, and experiences in the first 24 hours after release.
• Physical and mental health variables: physical health status, physical health-related limitations, physical health diagnoses and medications, physical health hospitalizations, vision/hearing/dental health, mental health status, mental health-related limitations, mental health symptoms, PTSD symptoms, mental health treatment, mental health medications, and mental health hospitalizations.
• Substance abuse variables: use of alcohol, use of sedatives, use of tranquilizers, use of stimulants, use of pain relievers or opiates, use of methadone, use of anabolic steroids, use of marijuana, use of hallucinogens, use of cocaine, use of amphetamines, and use of inhalants.
• Crime and delinquency variables: criminal history, incarceration statuses, gang membership, court appearances, supervision status and officer contacts, supervision conditions and violations, sanctions and rewards, attitudes toward parole officer, recidivism, perceptions of factors related to recidivism, and perceptions of factors related to desistance.
• Attitude variables: self-efficacy, locus of control, readiness for change, spirituality, legal cynicism, substance abuse treatment motivation, and civic action.

The 10 drug test lab results variables include results for amphetamines, cannabinoids, cocaine, opiates, and phencyclidine for the oral swab drug tests that were conducted during the 3-month (Wave 2) and 15-month (Wave 4) interviews.

The 36 re-arrest indicator variables include whether the offender experienced his or her first re-arrest within 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 21, 24, or 36 months of release and, conversely, whether the offender was not re-arrested by 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 21, 24, or 36 months post-release. Additionally, other NCIC re-arrest indicator variables include whether the offender was re-arrested or not re-arrested within 21 or 24 months for person/violent crime, property crime, drug crime, public order crime, and other crime. The 14 administrative re-incarceration variables include whether the respondent experienced his or his first re-incarceration within 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 21, and 24 months of release and, conversely, whether the respondent was not re-admitted by 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 21, and 24 months. Weight variables include individual probability, population average treatment effects (PATE) weight, and average treatment effect on the treated (ATET) weight.

Part 4, the NCIC Arrest Records Data, contains a total of 8 variables including release date, arrest date, charge, higher code, conviction offense, and a time variable created by ICPSR that represents the number of days between arrest date and release date.

Of the 4,354 cases fielded for inclusion in the Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative (SVORI) impact evaluation study, a total of 2,391 respondents completed the Wave 1 (30 days pre-release) interviews, yielding a response rate of 54.9 percent, which is based on the total number of cases fielded, including both eligible and ineligible cases.

A total of 1,464 respondents completed the Wave 2 (3-month post-release) interviews, yielding a response rate of 61.2 percent.

A total of 1,527 respondents completed the Wave 3 (9-month post-release) interviews, yielding a response rate of 63.9 percent.

A total of 1,637 respondents completed the Wave 4 (15-month post-release) interviews, yielding a response rate of 68.5 percent.

Response rates are not applicable for Part 4.

All archived data undergo a confidentiality review and are altered when necessary to limit the risk of disclosure. The archive also routinely creates ready-to-go data files along with setups in the major statistical software formats as well as standard codebooks to accompany the data. In addition to these procedures, the archive performed the following processing steps for this data collection:

• Created variable labels and/or value labels.
• Standardized missing values.
• Checked for undocumented or out-of-range codes.

Access and Availability

Detailed file-level information (such as record length, case count, and variable count) is listed in the file manifest.

2011-05-04

The data are restricted from general dissemination. Users interested in obtaining these data must complete a Restricted Data Use Agreement form and specify the reasons for the request. Additionally, due to the sensitive nature of the data and to protect respondent confidentiality, users interested in accessing certain data must complete an Application for Use of ICPSR Data Enclave. Information about the ICPSR Data Enclave and the application for use can be found under Enclave Data on the ICPSR Web site. A copy of the Restricted Data Use Agreement form can be requested by calling 800-999-0960. Researchers can also download these forms as Portable Document Format (PDF) files from the download page associated with this dataset. Completed forms should be returned to: Director, National Archive of Criminal Justice Data, Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research, Institute for Social Research, P.O. Box 1248, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48106-1248, or by fax: 734-647-8200.

• 2011-05-05 Enclave data were released

• DS1: Adult Males Data
• DS2: Adult Females Data
• DS3: Juvenile Males Data
• DS4: National Crime Information Center (NCIC) Arrest Records Data