The Responsivity Principle Among Justice-Involved Individuals: Conceptualization Through a Scoping Review

The responsivity principle has received relatively little attention in the scientific literature, despite being considered an important component of the Risk-Need-Responsivity (RNR) model. This scoping review aimed to synthesize how the responsivity principle has been conceptualized within the literature concerning justice-involved individuals and to identify the responsivity factors most frequently discussed across justice-involved populations. The scoping review was conducted in accordance with the JBI methodology for scoping reviews and the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR). Most papers defined responsivity as adapting interventions to individual characteristics that influence an individual’s ability to benefit from treatment. Motivation and cognitive functioning were the most frequently cited responsivity factors. Other factors included demographic characteristics, personality, mental health, socio-economic circumstances, and treatment-related variables, although these were discussed less consistently. Few papers considered practitioner, environmental, or organizational influences on responsivity. Furthermore, limited literature examined responsivity within specific subgroups of justice-involved individuals. The findings also revealed persistent uncertainty regarding the conceptual boundaries of responsivity, the status of proposed responsivity factors, and the position of the responsivity principle within the broader RNR framework. The primary challenge facing the responsivity principle is not the identification of additional factors, but clarification of their conceptual status, boundaries, and role within the treatment process. Further conceptual and empirical research is needed to support the implementation of responsivity among justice-involved individuals.