Youth with Disabilities (YwD) at Work: Investigating Best Practices for Effective Disability Disclosure

Women writing on paper

Grant Recipients

Jay Michela, Psychology

Roxy Merkand, Psychology

Description

When navigating co-operative education programs and early-career employment, YwD face barriers to securing work and gaining relevant employment experiences that their non-disabled peers do not encounter. YwD generally lack knowledge of how best to disclose invisible disabilities during job search and in the workplace, often resulting either in self-selection out of co-operative education programs or in disclosure that negatively impacts employment.

Our previous research with more than 150 YwD at UW revealed 6 strategies students use to communicate disability-relevant information in employment contexts—informing development of a measure that assesses the extent to which these strategies are used. Using this measure, this project will investigate YwD’s use of these strategies at work; link strategy use to workplace outcomes; and examine how these relationships shift once youth transition into adulthood. By compiling and disseminating effective strategies, we aim to promote meaningful employment experiences and support YwD as they manage work-related self-disclosures.

References

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