PREDICTING THE LIKELIHOOD OF JOB PLACEMENT - A SHORT-TERM PERSPECTIVE

This research examined the association between individual characterist ics and obtaining a job within six months of program entry for 200 ind ividuals with mental retardation, severe learning and psychiatric disa bilities. The most significant finding was that in each disability cat egory, an age by gender interaction contributed to differential placem ent probabilities, In early adulthood, the probability that men would obtain a job was greater than for women; however, this probability rev ersed after age 35 when women were more likely to obtain a job than me n. In addition the findings indicated that individuals with mental ret ardation and severe learning disabilities were placed in jobs at simil ar rates whereas individuals with psychiatric disabilities had lower p robabilities to be placed than either those with mental retardation or learning disabilities.