Substance Use Disorder Training Among Probation Officers, and the Impact

Probationers with substance use disorders (SUD) face outcomes that are generallyworse than those of their non-addicted counterparts. Technical violations are one of theprimary drivers of failure on probation, and/or incarceration and they are often related toongoing substance use. When probationers with SUD commit technical probationviolations, probation officers frequently have discretion in case managementrecommendations, including whether to pursue formal sanctions. Little is known aboutthe attitudes and beliefs held by probation officers toward substance using probationers.Further there is a lack of understanding about how those attitudes impact the decisionmakingprocess, and how they might be shaped by education and training in substanceuse disorders. Research of other stigmatized disorders such as mental illness suggests thateducation and training among service providers can reduce stigma.To fill this gap in the literature, this study uses an exploratory survey of probationand parole officers in the United States which includes previously validated measuresfrom law enforcement, mental health, and probation to probe attitudes among probationofficers about substance use, and the impact of SUD education and training onapproaches to substance related technical violations. Findings suggest that while theamount of education and training in SUD among probation officers is limited,respondents' recommendations for SUD related technical probation violations were stillprimarily treatment oriented with some variation by age.