IDENTIFYING A DRUG-USE TYPOLOGY OF PHILADELPHIA ARRESTEES - A CLUSTER-ANALYSIS

The Drug Use Forecasting (DUF) program is a measurement system establi shed by the National Institute of Justice to test booked arrestees for illegal drug use. DUF has consistently shown high levels of illicit d rug use among arrestees, including those charged with crimes unrelated to drug use. Measuring the extent and nature of this illicit drug use is essential to, first, determining how severe the drug problem is, a nd second, developing ideal methods for combating it. Part I of this a nalysis presents an overview of the drug/crime connection. Part II des cribes the methodology of the DUF project. Part LII, first, describes the utility of clustering as a statistical tool, and second, identifie s homogeneous clusters of drug users from a Philadelphia population of 1,329 arrestees. Part IV assesses the policy implications of these cl assifications.