Douglas B. Marlowe, David S. Festinger, Karen L. Dugosh, Patricia L. Arabia, & Kimberly C. Kirby. (2008)
An effectiveness trial of contingency management in a felony preadjudication drug court.
Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis,
41, 565-577.
This study evaluated a contingency management (CM) program in a drug court.
Gift certificates for compliance were delivered at 4- to 6-week intervals (total
value = $390.00). Participants in one condition earned gift certificates that
escalated by $5.00 increments. Participants in a second condition began earning
higher magnitude gift certificates, and the density of reinforcement was
gradually decreased. No main effects of CM were detected, which appears
to be attributable to a ceiling effect from the intensive contingencies already
delivered in the drug court and the low density of reinforcement. Preplanned
interaction analyses suggested that participants with more serious criminal
backgrounds might have performed better in the CM conditions. This suggests
that CM programs may be best suited for more incorrigible drug offenders.
DESCRIPTORS: drug abuse, drug court, contingency management, criminal justice, operant conditioning