National Criminal Justice Drug Abuse Treatment Studies (CJ-DATS) Overview

• Published in: The Prison journal (Philadelphia, Pa.) Vol. 87; no. 1; pp. 9 - 24
• Main Authors: Wexler, Harry K., Fletcher, Bennett W.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Los Angeles, CA Sage Publications 01-03-2007; SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC
• Subjects: Correctional treatment programs; Drug abuse; Substance abuse treatment; offenders; reentry; drug treatment
• ISSN: 0032-8855; 1552-7522
• DOI: 10.1177/0032885506299036

In 2002, the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) launched the National Criminal Justice Drug Abuse Treatment Studies (CJ-DATS), a major research initiative. Researchers from 9 research centers and a coordinating center and NIDA work together with federal, state, and local criminal justice partners to develop and test integrated approaches to the treatment of offenders with drug use disorders. There are 13 major studies within CJ-DATS that cover 8 study areas, including screening and referral, modifying treatment programs and interventions for reentering offenders, improving engagement and retention, linking services in the community, improving coordination with criminal justice reentry processes, addressing the needs of special populations, understanding the general organizational and contextual factors in treating offenders, and understanding current treatment practices for the drug-involved offender.