Substance Misuse Subtypes Among Women Convicted of Homicide

ABSTRACT

Background: The proportion of women incarcerated is growing at a faster pace than that for men. The reasons for this important increase have been mainly attributed to drug-using lifestyle and drug-related offenses. About half of female inmates have history of substance misuse and one third demonstrate high impulsiveness levels. The objectives of this study were to (a) identify subtypes of alcohol and drug problems and impulsiveness among women convicted of homicide, and (b) examine the association between psychosocial and criminological features and the resulting clusters. Methods: Data come from 158 female inmates serving a sentence for homicide in the Penitentiary of Sant’Ana in São Paulo State, Brazil. Latent class analysis was used to group participants into substance misuse and impulsiveness classes. Results: Two classes were identified: nonproblematic (cluster 1: 54.53%, n = 86) and problematic (cluster 2: 45.57%, n = 72) ones. After controlling for several psychosocial and criminological variables, cluster 2 inmates showed an earlier beginning of criminal activities and a lower educational level than their counterparts. Conclusions: To recognize the necessities of specific groups of female offenders is crucial for the development of an adequate system of health politics and for the decrease of criminal recidivism among those offenders who have shown higher risk.

Keywords:

• Female inmates
• homicide
• latent class analysis
• recidivism risk

Acknowledgments

Danilo Antonio Baltieri thanks FAPESP (Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo—The State of São Paulo Research Foundation), the Penitentiary Counseling of São Paulo State, Brazil, and the Penitentiary Administration Secretariat of São Paulo State, Brazil. Danilo Antonio Baltieri wants to thank Dr. Fernando Henrique Nadalini Mauá and Renata Faustina dos Santos for their assistance during data collection.