Self-Reported Drug Use among Recently Admitted Jail Inmates: Estimating Prevalence and Treatment Needs

Abstract

This primarily methodological paper compares self-reported recent cocaine use among recently admitted jail inmates (N = 375) with hair assay results screened for 90 days. Contrasts between self-reported use and hair assay results are examined with special attention to individual differences, interviewers' ratings of truthfulness for each respondent, and whether or not the respondent actually qualified as being substance dependent. Results showed that the likelihood of admitting cocaine use was positively related to having received drug misuse treatment before, and negatively related to being Hispanic. Evidence is also presented which indicates that the lower levels of disclosure among Hispanics may have been due to poorer communication. Interviewers proved to be relatively adept at discerning between truthful and nontrufhful respondents. Finally, results are presented which suggest that, despite considerable underreporting among the overall sample, subjects who actually qualified as being substance dependent were much more likely to honestly report recent cocaine use.

Key Words:

• Self-report
• Hair
• Arrestee
• Drug use