@article{ref1,
title="Women in German forensic addiction treatment: epidemiology and gender-related decision making in jurisdiction",
journal="International journal of law and psychiatry",
year="2020",
author="Querengässer, Jan and Traub, Hans-Joachim",
volume="70",
number="",
pages="e101567-e101567",
abstract="PURPOSE: Within the German legal framework, if an unlawful act is committed by a substance-addicted offender, courts shall make a forensic addiction treatment order (referred to as FAT). In 2010-2015, German courts applied this rule to 14,576 individuals. The article aims to explore the development of FAT sex ratios, its relation to other criminological measures and its regional distribution - and to describe gender-related differences within the FAT population.   METHODS: Yearly and state-specific sex ratios in FAT orders were calculated and related to general delinquency figures. Women were compared to men on various variables. We computed chi-square, t- and Kruskal-Wallis tests.   RESULTS: Compared to registered and sanctioned delinquency, women are steadily underrepresented, but the sex ratio differs largely among German states. Compared to men, women are 1 year older, have a less severe criminal history and a different distribution of addiction-related delinquency. Their average concurrent prison sentence is shorter, indicating less severe offences.   CONCLUSIONS: Findings largely conform to epidemiological knowledge. However, it is unlikely that these effects explain the extent of women's underrepresentation concerning FAT. Instead, FAT-application seems to be influenced by gender-related decision biases in jurisdiction. Regional differences cannot be explained epidemiologically, they seem to indicate different juridical &quot;cultures&quot;.<p /> <p>Language: en</p>",
language="en",
issn="0160-2527",
doi="10.1016/j.ijlp.2020.101567",
url="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijlp.2020.101567"
}