General overview of the article
Wilson, Mitchell, and Mackenzie (461) note that the drug courts have become an important institution through which the problems of the increasing numbers of drug offenders are solved. The study used an empirical approach to examine the impact of the drug courts on recidivism. Both quasi-experimental and experimental approaches were used in examining the impact of the American drug courts on the process of reducing future criminal offending. The article reports that the drug courts have a tremendous impact on the offenders since they aim at providing an alternative solution to the problem and avoid punishing the offenders.
Statement of the problem and research question
This article notes that the drug courts have increasingly become a major source of solutions to the problems of the increasing number of offenders involving drugs in the US. Since their introduction in 1989, the courts have attempted to decrease the number of individuals incarcerated for drug crimes, which has also reduced the number of individuals entering the American prison system. Nevertheless, the available information on the effect of the drug courts on recidivism is limited because only a few, if any, studies have attempted to examine this phenomenon. Thus, the current study aims at addressing this research problem.
Although the article does not state the specific research question or hypothesis for the study, it is clear that the study wanted to address the question “what is the impact of drug courts on recidivism in the US?” As stated in the abstract, the current research aims at using an empirical approach to address this question.
Research strategy/methods
The study uses more than one approach to address the research problem. It is worth noting that the research is a sociological study that aims at examining a social phenomenon involving a section of American society. The study uses both descriptions and statistical analysis to examine the problem. Both experimental and quasi-experimental studies were analyzed. Thus, it is worth noting that the study is a general review of the existing literature. The main study method was to examine the existing knowledge from a mixed-method perspective.
Using a review of literature is one of the most effective methods of studying a phenomenon based on the existing information about it. It is an easy way of examining the most relevant information about a phenomenon. It is also important in cases where a large number of studies have been carried out to examine a given phenomenon but the findings are mixed and do not provide a concise idea about the phenomenon. Thus, the review of literature fits the current study because the number of studies carried out to examine the impact of drug courts on the problem of drugs in the US are extremely many, yet the results are mixed.
What other methods were important
Apart from the review of literature, a grounded theory was also a good alternative study design. Noteworthy, a grounded theory is a systematic method of analysis of the existing data. It begins with data collection through a variety of methods and ends with the development of a theory (Yancey and Turner 142). It is important in cases where the volume of information about a given phenomenon is large but there is no concise idea about the issue. Thus, this method is an alternative to the method used in this study to examine the drug court effects on recidivism.
Is the study a qualitative or quantitative design?
As noted in the article, the researchers used a mixed-method approach in which both qualitative and quantitative data were analyzed based on the existing information about the phenomenon. This method is more important than using either a qualitative or quantitative approach because it attempts to reduce the weaknesses of each of the two methods. In addition, it fits the current research because the source of information is the large volume of the existing knowledge about the impact of drug courts on recidivism.
Strengths and weaknesses of the study
A review of literature is important in developing a concise understanding of a social problem, especially in cases where the volume of research studies on the problem is large. In this case, the research problem is defined by the existence of mixed results, which makes it difficult to develop a good understanding of the social problem.
However, a review of literature is not an effective method of research because it relies on the existing studies and ignores recent aspects of the phenomenon. In addition, it is not easy to exempt the errors and biases in the existing studies, which are also included in the knowledge developed from the analysis of the existing literature.
Thus, it is important to carry out phenomenological or ethnographic studies to determine the impact of drug courts on recidivism.
Works Cited
Wilson, David, Ojmarrh Mitchell and Doris Mackenzie. “A systematic review of drug court effects on recidivism”. Journal of Experimental Criminology, 2.4 (2006): 459-487. Print.
Yancey, Patricia and Barry Turner. “Grounded Theory and Organizational Research.” The Journal of Applied Behavioral Science, 22. 2 (2006), 141-148. Print.