Eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing (EMDR) is an established trauma therapy with potential relevance for criminal justice settings (CJS), where trauma exposure is highly prevalent. This study aims to map the current evidence base for EMDR with criminal justice-involved populations, with particular attention to trauma-related outcomes and the feasibility of delivery in these contexts.
Seven electronic databases were searched from inception to November 2024, with an updated search conducted in November 2025, identifying one additional eligible study. One further study was identified through contact with the author of an included study. Studies were eligible if they reported the use of EMDR as an intervention with criminal justice-involved populations. Included studies were charted by setting, population, study design, outcomes and key findings.
Twelve studies were identified: five quantitative, two qualitative and five case studies covering prison, youth residential, probation/parole and community forensic settings. Six of the seven empirical studies reported broadly positive findings, including reductions in post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, behavioural problems and deviant arousal and improved treatment engagement. However, the evidence base was small, methodologically varied and limited in scope. Several studies noted that the custodial environment affected delivery, with limited privacy, disrupted session continuity and reduced psychological safety. Preparation and stabilisation before trauma processing was a recurring consideration.
Practitioners should ensure adequate stabilisation prior to trauma processing, plan for session continuity disruptions and avoid overstating EMDR’s impact on reoffending risk. Psychiatric complexity, including comorbid psychosis, substance use and neurodevelopmental presentations, require careful formulation and potential protocol adaptation before commencing EMDR in CJS. While the existing evidence is broadly encouraging, it does not yet support claims about EMDR’s effectiveness across the full range of CJS populations.
To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first scoping review to map the evidence base for EMDR with justice-involved individuals. Prior work has reviewed trauma-focused interventions in prisons (Malik et al., 2023), a recent editorial outlined the need for research into EMDR in CJS contexts (Crole-Rees et al., 2025) and a systematic review of EMDR for PTSD in forensic settings has been reported in conference abstract form (Prasad et al., 2025). However, no full peer-reviewed review has synthesised the available empirical and qualitative evidence across this whole population. This review addresses that gap and provides a foundation for future research prioritisation and practice development.
