In the U.S., individuals with disabilities continue to experience higher unemployment and underemployment and worse employment outcomes than individuals without disabilities. Research suggests self-employment can be a catalyst for improving these disparities. Many individuals with disabilities receive employment-related services, including support for self-employment, through vocational-rehabilitation (VR) agencies. The rate of self-employment cases successfully closed by VR across the country, however, has remained low for decades. Meanwhile, the globalized U.S. economy continues to evolve, as technological advancements and innovations redefine employment while creating new markets and business opportunities. Thus, the potential for more individuals with disabilities to become self-employed through VR and remain successful is compelling. Agencies will be challenged to adapt to these ongoing changes and find ways they can improve clients' self-employment opportunities and outcomes.
Intellectual Merit:
The intellectual merit of this postdoctoral project is in contributing new scientific knowledge to the fields of rehabilitation and special education. The extant research literature on self-employment of individuals with disabilities in the U.S. is currently still building an empirical foundation, which only began in the mid-1990s. A small number of studies tentatively suggest self-employment success for these individuals appears to be mostly influenced by individual characteristics, level of supports, and accountability systems. Further study is needed, however, to draw any valid conclusions. The Fellow will conduct a postdoctoral study on the role of VR in self-employment of individuals with disabilities in the U.S. by utilizing a mixed method of multilevel statistical modeling and qualitative phenomenological interviewing. Data will be obtained from the Rehabilitation Services Administration and Oregon Vocational Rehabilitation Services. Seven research questions will address the current state of self-employment of individuals with disabilities through VR, the individual and programmatic factors that explain whether clients reach successful case closure, and recent national and local trends. The combined scope and methodology of this project are also necessary precursors to designing and testing interventions in self-employment and, ultimately, deriving substantive theories.
Broader Impacts:
The broader impacts of this postdoctoral project include (a) improving VR services in self-employment and clients' outcomes through the use of research evidence; (b) motivating positive changes in VR agency policies at the county and state levels; (c) expanding employment opportunities and options to individuals with disabilities to support their goals for economic independence, self-determination, and self-worth; (d) raising the visibility of individuals with disabilities in self-employment to reduce long-held stereotypes and social stigma, and increase social integration; (e) cross training of VR counselors, education professionals, and members of the business community to increase their knowledge of issues and concerns unique to each respective profession and to reconcile competing professional interests; and (f) collaborating actively and regularly with university researchers, VR, and education professionals to advocate, develop, refine, and support STEM focused curricula and experiential learning opportunities for secondary students with disabilities in preparation for post-high school life and career.
The main goal of this NSF postdoctoral research project was to conduct an empirical, mixed-method study of individuals with disabilities self-employed through Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) services in the U.S. The project aimed to fill a specific need - a greater understanding of individuals with disabilities in self-employment because only a small number of empirical studies have ever closely examined this important topic. The larger social context for this study was the many unique challenges related to employment and socioeconomic well-being that individuals with disabilities continue to experience. Thus, moving beyond the realm of scientific research, this project sought to shed light on a few of these concerns, which impact society, and to raise public awareness. The intended broader contribution of this project was to reduce the stigma of what individuals with disabilities are not capable of achieving in employment and in their career pursuits by raising the profile of self-employed individuals with disabilities in various types of businesses. Data for this postdoctoral research project were collected from two sources: the Rehabilitation Services Administration and individual interviews of VR counselors and clients with disabilities. The federal data for fiscal years 2008 to 2012, consisting of several hundred thousand de-identified client cases per year from all 50 states and the District of Columbia, were analyzed statistically with multilevel modeling. The interview data, consisting of in-person one-on-one interviews conducted by the NSF Fellow, were analyzed textually via verbatim interview transcripts using the phenomenological method. Both analyses were grounded in a theoretical foundation that had been previously developed by the Fellow for a dissertation research study in which self-employment success of individuals with disabilities was theorized to be most influenced by three interrelated factors: individual characteristics, level of supports, and accountability systems. The results from the statistical analyses showed that the national rates of VR self-employment were between 2.0 and 2.3 percent across the five fiscal years. Mississippi had the highest state rates over that period, 13 to 17 percent, which doubled those of Vermont, the state with the second highest rates. Also, the analyses consistently showed that client ethnicity, gender, educational attainment, cost of VR services, and dollar amount of public supports were statistically significant predictors of self-employment case closure. Of these, client ethnicity had the largest effect, such that a typical Caucasian VR client was 70 to 80 percent more likely than a typical non-Caucasian VR client to achieve self-employment case closure. The results from the phenomenological analyses showed that VR clients and counselors shared a similar definition of self-employment success, achieving case closure, a formal process that typically involves 90 days of stable employment by the client determined by his/her VR counselor. The clients' definition, however, also had an added dimension, to pursue the development and possible expansion of their business that was aligned with their personal values, for example, forming a green energy co-operative, or advocacy on behalf of a particular disability group. The counselors and clients identified similar challenges of self-employment - large amount of paperwork, bureaucracy, technical aspects of operating a business, and obtaining sufficient support from external sources. Clients, however, also expressed urgency and concerns about challenges that would or could happen after VR case closure, when the counselor's involvement ends and the now-former clients are solely responsible for every aspect and activity of their business. The other outcomes of this project occurred in training, career development, a plan to broaden participation in STEM fields for underrepresented groups, and dissemination of project results. Training activities involved meeting with VR counselors and discussing their services and policies. This helped the Fellow to better understand what a VR agency does and how counselors serve clients with disabilities seeking employment. Meeting twice a month during the fellowship tenure with the Sponsoring Scientist, who is a faculty member at the Host Institution, helped to further develop the Fellow's research skills in preparation for a career as a social-science researcher. Then, to address underrepresentation of individuals with disabilities in STEM fields, the Fellow met with VR counselors to discuss some of the practical activities that VR could support, such as providing clients additional services in training and education at a local community college in business technology, mathematics, and accounting. Additionally, VR, the local business community, and high schools could partner in providing mentoring opportunities that encourage individuals and students with disabilities to seek career possibilities in STEM fields. Finally, the Fellow and the Sponsoring Scientist have been collaborating on several research manuscripts that will submitted for publication consideration in peer-reviewed professional journals over the next three years and seeking appropriate venues at the Host Institution and other public settings in which to present the NSF postdoctoral project results and outcomes.
