From mainstream employment to mainstream retirement: A randomised controlled trial of a transition to retirement intervention for adults with intellectual disability

Abstract

Background: We evaluated a transition to retirement intervention that adapted strategies used to support employment of people with intellectual disability in mainstream workplaces. The intervention facilitated their independent participation in mainstream community groups and volunteering.Methods: We randomised 29 older Australians who currently/previously worked in mainstream employment into an intervention group or wait-list control group. Hours of independent participation in target activities were collected before and after the 13-week initial intervention/waiting period, and at 52 weeks for intervention participants.Results: Six of the 12 intervention participants selected an activity and increased hours of independent participation following 13 weeks in the Keeping Active (KA) program and eight were independently accessing their selected activity at 52-week follow-up. None of the 19 wait-list participants increased their independent participation after 13 weeks. Conclusions:The intervention was effective and highlighted the need to account for factors such as participant choice in evaluation of individualised programs.

Transition to retirement: The lived experiences of adults with intellectual disabilities

“…Our findings highlight the need for an increased focus on retirement planning that is person-centered supports individual choice (Brotherton, 2022;Brotherton et al, 2020). Some participants retired in their mid-forties, so this planning should begin early.…”

“…Bill's view that "I've got the years in," and Robert's 70th birthday are examples. Australian retirement research has reported similar findings (Brotherton, 2022;Brotherton et al, 2020).…”

“…In mainstream retirement research, reasons for retirement are frequently described as "push" (e.g., poor health) and "pull" (more leisure time) factors (De Preter et al, 2013), with the former often linked to involuntary retirement. Push and pull factors are beginning to be applied to retirement by people with intellectual disabilities (Brotherton, 2022;Brotherton et al, 2020).…”

Retirement and People with Intellectual Disability in the Australian Context

“…The Keeping Active intervention supported 19 of 22 (86%) participants to independently engage in a mainstream leisure group or customised volunteering role of their choice, with 77% of these continuing to participate in their selected activity after 12 months. The study evaluation included a randomised controlled trial, showing that compared to those in a wait-list control group (n = 17), intervention participants (n = 12) had a significantly increased level of independent mainstream community group or volunteering participation after 13 weeks [27]. These findings highlight the potential for existing employment support strategies to be applied to supporting older workers with intellectual disability in their preparation for and transition to retirement from mainstream employment.…”

“…In response to these issues, an Australian intervention model, Keeping Active, similar to the active mentoring approach mentioned previously, was developed. The aim was to facilitate independent participation in mainstream community activities as part of developing a retirement lifestyle for people with intellectual disability transitioning from mainstream employment [27]. This approach adapted the employment support strategies used by the DES Jobsupport program described earlier in this paper and differed from the programs mentioned so far, which were all developed for older workers retiring from sheltered employment.…”