Occupational Therapy Interventions to Promote Action-Oriented Self-Determination Skills in Children: A Scoping Review

This scoping review examines how occupational therapy interventions support self-determined action in children and adolescents. Grounded in Causal Agency Theory and guided by PRISMA-ScR and JBI methodology, we analyzed 61 studies using structured coding in Dedoose and Excel. Most interventions supported several self-determination skills, though self-advocacy was least addressed. Three themes emerged: charting their own course, empowerment through occupation, and multiple pathways to self-determination. While self-determination is rarely the explicit focus of occupational therapy research, it is often embedded. Findings underscore the need to measure and clearly articulate Occupational therapy’s contributions to fostering self-determined action in children.