IT IS ARGUED THAT THE POPULAR METHOD OF DETERMINING THE PERCENTAGE OF ELIGIBLES PAROLED OUT OF THE NUMBER CONSIDERED IN A GIVEN YEAR DOES NOT PRESENT AN ACCURATE FIGURE. BECAUSE MANY OF THOSE CONSIDERED FOR PAROLE IN A GIVEN YEAR HAVE LONG TERM SENTENCES THAT PROVIDE FOR MULTIPLE PAROLE REVIEWS FROM YEAR TO YEAR, AN OFFENDER NOT PAROLED IN A GIVEN YEAR MAY BE PAROLED IN A SUBSEQUENT YEAR. IT IS PROPOSED, THEREFORE, THAT AN ACCURATE MEASURE OF THE PERCENTAGE OF ELIGIBLE OFFENDERS PAROLED WOULD EXAMINE A SAMPLE OF OFFENDERS WITHOUT REFERENCE TO A GIVEN TIME PERIOD TO DETERMINE WHAT PERCENTAGE HAD BEEN GRANTED PAROLE IN THE COURSE OF THEIR SENTENCE. IT IS SPECULATED THAT THE TRADITIONAL METHOD OF EXAMINING PAROLES FOR A GIVEN YEAR WOULD NEVER SHOW A PERCENTAGE HIGHER THAN 30; BUT THE SUGGESTED METHOD WOULD PROBABLY INDICATE A PAROLE PERCENTAGE NEAR 40. AN EXAMINATION OF PAROLES GRANTED ACCORDING TO TYPE OF OFFENSE SHOWED A HIGH PAROLING RATE FOR PERSONS GUILTY OF MANSLAUGHTER AND A RELATIVELY LOW RATE FOR BURGLARS AND 'OTHERS.' A STUDY OF THE RELATION BETWEEN PAROLES GRANTED REVEALED THAT PAROLEES SERVING THE LONGEST SENTENCES HAD ONLY A SHORT PERIOD OF PAROLE COMPARED TO THOSE SERVING SHORT TERMS. THIS TENDS TO DISCOUNT THE POPULAR VIEW THAT LONG TERM PRISONERS ARE RELEASED AFTER SERVING ONLY A SHORT TIME IN PRISON. THE SUBJECTS STUDIED WERE THOSE DISCHARGED FROM PRISON FROM JANUARY TO JUNE 1971 WHO WERE ELIGIBLE FOR PAROLE -- A SAMPLE OF 3,828. DATA FROM THE STUDY ARE PROVIDED. (RCB)