Electronic assistive technology use and supported employment

Abstract

Background: Level of electronic assistive technology use by people with intellectual disabilities is lower than for other disability groups.Methods: In this mixed-methods exploratory study during the pandemic, staff (online survey) and executive administration (focus group) from a regional supported employment service provider in the Midwest US were surveyed about use of and barriers to use of electronic assistive technology for their clients with intellectual disabilities.Results: Forty percent of staff reported 'not' using any of the assistive technologies with their clients. Executive administration perceived that they should be providing technology resources to clients and staff. Both groups rated expense, access, and complexity as barriers to assistive technology use at the client's worksite.Conclusions: Identifying the types of assistive technologies that can be most easily accessed and most cost-effective, including lower-cost consumer market devices, as employment supports for people with intellectual disabilities may be a first step in helping to overcome perceived barriers to use. K E Y W O R D S administration, assistive technology, intellectual disabilities, supported employment 1 | BACKGROUND People with intellectual disabilities, developmental disability that includes limitations in intellectual functioning and conceptual, social, and practical skills (AAIDD, 2021), are generally underemployed compared to people without disabilities and people with other disabilities (Almalky, 2020). Competitive employment challenges faced by people with intellectual disabilities generally stem from cognitive difficulties that affect memory , comprehension, communication, and social skills (Almalky, 2020). Employment supports such as accommodations, strategies, and systems to help people with intellectual disabilities find and maintain jobs may be needed. Supports can include skill assessment, job matching, and partnerships between supported employment service providers and employers (AAIDD, 2021). In reviews, supported

No Barriers: Strategies and Best Practices for the Employment of Individuals with Intellectual Disability

“…Research has demonstrated that AT can positively impact the work performance of PwID (Morash Macneil et al, 2018). Furthermore, it has been suggested that AT could reduce the need for dependency on others such as job coaches (Heman et al, 2022). AT, is therefore considered to be of fundamental importance for PwID as it can enhance functional abilities and independence thereby ensuring inclusion in all aspects of life including the workplace (Boot et al, 2018).…”

“…Damianidou et al (2019) note that as more sophisticated technology becomes available on the market, the need to select AT on an individual level has become even more important. Furthermore, once the AT is identified, there may be difficulties with access to AT products due to cost and a lack of funding mechanisms (Heman et al, 2022). When AT is procured, support to learn to use the AT is required, yet this may not be available (Ward Sutton et al, 2022).…”

Digitalisierung und Teilhabe in der Bildung

“…Ein Teil der technologiebezogenen Literatur aus der Recherche befasst sich mit digitalen Anwendungen in sozialen Organisationen, wie etwa Rehabilitationseinrichtungen. Untersucht wird beispielsweise der Einsatz von Social Media bei der Stellensuche (Garcia et al, 2016;Ipsen & Goe, 2018) oder der Einsatz von technikbasierten Kommunikationsmitteln zwischen beeinträchtigten Personen und Fachkräft en der Rehabilitation (Heman et al, 2022;Leonet & Orcasitas-Vicandi, 2021). Weiterhin werden in einigen Publikationen computergestützte Technologien oder Soft waresysteme zur Organisation von Berufsberatung, Rehabilitation und der Vermittlung von Arbeitssuchenden mit Behinderung durch Akteur:innen des VR-Systems (Gorokhov et al, 2017;Michelsen et al, 2020;Migliore et al, 2022;Truthan & Field, 2014) vorgestellt und untersucht.…”

Teilhabe durch digitale Medien im häuslichen Umfeld

“…Ein Teil der technologiebezogenen Literatur aus der Recherche befasst sich mit digitalen Anwendungen in sozialen Organisationen, wie etwa Rehabilitationseinrichtungen. Untersucht wird beispielsweise der Einsatz von Social Media bei der Stellensuche (Garcia et al, 2016;Ipsen & Goe, 2018) oder der Einsatz von technikbasierten Kommunikationsmitteln zwischen beeinträchtigten Personen und Fachkräft en der Rehabilitation (Heman et al, 2022;Leonet & Orcasitas-Vicandi, 2021). Weiterhin werden in einigen Publikationen computergestützte Technologien oder Soft waresysteme zur Organisation von Berufsberatung, Rehabilitation und der Vermittlung von Arbeitssuchenden mit Behinderung durch Akteur:innen des VR-Systems (Gorokhov et al, 2017;Michelsen et al, 2020;Migliore et al, 2022;Truthan & Field, 2014) vorgestellt und untersucht.…”