Work Accommodations and Natural Supports for Maintaining Employment

Objective: Job tenure for people with severe mental disorders, even for those enrolled in supported employment programs, is typically brief. Few studies to date have investigated the relationship between accommodations and natural supports available in the workplace, and job tenure for this populati...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Psychiatric rehabilitation journal 2014-06, Vol.37 (2), p.90-98
Main Authors: Corbière, Marc, Villotti, Patrizia, Lecomte, Tania, Bond, Gary R., Lesage, Alain, Goldner, Elliot M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
British Columbia
Correlation analysis
Discriminant analysis
Employment
Employment Status
Employment, Supported - methods
Female
Human
Humans
Interviews as Topic
Male
Mental Disorders
Mental Disorders - psychology
Mental Disorders - rehabilitation
Middle Aged
Occupational Tenure
Personnel Turnover
Severity of Illness Index
Supported Employment
Workplace - organization & administration
Young Adult
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Description
Summary:Objective: Job tenure for people with severe mental disorders, even for those enrolled in supported employment programs, is typically brief. Few studies to date have investigated the relationship between accommodations and natural supports available in the workplace, and job tenure for this population. The main objectives of this study were to develop and to validate a new measure to describe work accommodations and natural supports available in the workplace and to determine which of them are significantly related to job tenure for participants enrolled in supported employment services. Methods: In total, 124 people with a severe mental disorder enrolled in supported employment programs and who obtained only one competitive employment at the 9-month follow-up answered the Work Accommodation and Natural Support Scale (WANSS). They also provided information regarding their disclosure (or non-) of mental disorders in the workplace and the length of their job tenure. Results: Confirmatory factor analysis conducted on the WANSS showed 40 items distributed on 6 dimensions (e.g., Schedule flexibility). Correlation results showed that disclosure was significantly related to the number of work accommodations and natural supports available in the workplace. Survival analyses indicated that one WANSS dimension was more salient in predicting job tenure: Supervisor and coworker supports. Conclusion and Implication for Practice: The WANSS is a valid and useful tool to assess work accommodations and natural supports available in the workplace that employment specialists could use in their practice.
ISSN:1095-158X
1559-3126
DOI:10.1037/prj0000033