Responsivity factors among offenders

Abstract

The presence of responsivity issues has the potential to interfere with the delivery of interventions to offenders. The current study investigated differences among extra- and intra-familial child molesters, sex offenders against adult victims, violent offenders, and general offenders on four potential areas of responsivity, using psychometric measures. Differences were found between sexual offenders with child victims and violent offenders on antisocial and substance abuse variables. However, offender groups did not differ on intellectual, borderline personality, mental health, and treatment motivation variables, indicating that regardless of the nature of offending, responsivity barriers should be assessed to ensure treatment gains are maximized.