THE RESEARCH WAS AN ATTEMPT TO PROVIDE FURTHER KNOWLEDGE OF THE LAW OFFENDER POPULATION, TO FURTHER IDENTIFY THE OFFENDER AND THE FACTORS AFFECTING HIS PERFORMANCE, AND TO OBTAIN SOME KNOWLEDGE OF THE RELATIONSHIP OF THESE FACTORS. FOR THE STUDY, THE AUTHOR CHOSE 1,088 MALE LAW OFFENDERS ON WHOM SPECIFIC MENTAL, PERSONALITY, EDUCATIONAL, DEMOGRAPHIC, AND CRIMINALITY DATA WAS AVAILABLE. SUBJECTS WERE CLASSIFIED INTO FIVE RECIDIVISTIC PATTERNS, EACH PATTERN REPRESENTING A DIFFERENT PERIOD OF TIME FROM RELEASE TO REINCARCERATION OR FROM RELEASE TO NON-REINCARCERATION WITHIN A SPECIFIED TIME PERIOD. RECIDIVISTIC PATTERNS WERE THE DEPENDENT VARIABLES. THIS INVESTIGATION PROVIDED THE FOLLOWING: DISCRIMINATING DATA WHICH ADDS A DEFINITIVE ROLE TO THE MULTIPLICITY OF CHARACTERISTICS THAT AFFECT INDIVIDUALITY AND RECIDIVISM, SOME DEGREE OF PREDICTIVE ABILITY RELATIVE TO DEFINING THE RECIDIVISTIC BEHAVIORS OF THE FUTURE INCARCERANT, AND DATA WHICH WILL BE USEFUL IN DEVELOPING AND IMPLEMENTING HABILITATIVE PROGRAMS TO ASSIST THE OFFENDER TOWARD DEVELOPING AND MAINTAINING AN ACCEPTABLE SOCIETAL ROLE. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT)...KAP