9411918 ENGEL This study explores the potential effectiveness of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Legal entitlements often fail to achieve their intended results because the beneficiaries are unwilling to perceive themselves as entitled to civil rights protections, and are therefore unwilling to invoke the law. This research asks whether American with disabilities view the law as relevant to their aspirations to obtain employment and whether they are prepared to use the law in the hiring process or in obtaining on-the-job accommodations for their disabilities. Extensive, in-depth interviews will be conducted with persons who use a wheelchair, persons with learning disabilities, and a control group at each of three different life stages. The contrasting experiences with disability and working will provide important data about the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, and about the reasons why persons with disabilities do or do not make use of the law. ***
