Competitive integrated employment outcomes for transition-aged young adults with cognitive disabilities: Assistive technology and supported employment services

BackgroundTransition-aged young adults (TAYA) with cognitive disabilities face significant challenges in achieving competitive integrated employment (CIE). Despite being the largest group of vocational rehabilitation (VR) service users, they frequently experience poor employment outcomes at program exit. Limited research has assessed the impact of assistive technology (AT) and supported employment (SE) services on achieving CIE, particularly during and after the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.ObjectiveThis study examined the independent associations of AT and SE services with achieving CIE at program exit and evaluated variations in CIE outcomes across the pre-COVID, during-COVID, and post-COVID periods among TAYA with cognitive disabilities served by state VR programs.MethodsA retrospective cross-sectional analysis of data from the Rehabilitation Services Administration's Case Service Report (July 2017-June 2022) was conducted, involving 238,561 TAYA with cognitive disabilities. Logistic regression analyses examined associations between AT/SE services and CIE outcomes, including interaction terms to assess variations over time.ResultsAmong TAYA with cognitive disabilities, 96.8% had significant disabilities, 90.9% were unemployed, and 83.0% were not enrolled in post-secondary education. Over half of participants (55.9%) did not achieve CIE at program exit. Only 1.4% received AT services and 10.7% received SE services. Both AT and SE services were positively associated with achieving CIE, and the effects of these services varied across the COVID-19-related periods.ConclusionsThe study indicates that AT and SE services were positively associated with achieving CIE outcomes. These findings underscore the importance of prioritizing access to these services through state VR programs to better support employment transitions.