The proposed project is an analysis of the data gathered on an eleven-year follow-up study of 423 mentally disabled individuals living in sheltered-care homes throughout California. In addition, it is a study of the fates of the 211 sheltered-care facilities originally studied in 1973. The study is based upon interviews with over 85% of the living sheltered-care residents and facility managers who comprised the original sample, and an accounting of the history of all the facilities and communities involved. It is intended to provide the first view over time of sheltered-care residents, facilities, and the neighborhoods that host them. The research will identify and describe strategies that have been most effective in promoting the independence and social functioning of sheltered-care residents, and will specify personal, facility, and community factors which represent significant obstacles to these individuals. The research will also determine those factors that have enabled or hindered the survival of sheltered-care programs. Results will have great value in the planning and implementation of sheltered-care programs and allied community services, and will provide unique data on the outcomes of the long-term community care of the mentally ill.
