Abstract
Objective: Years after the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act, little empirical information exists about the relationship between the functional limitations experienced by individuals with psychiatric disabilities, and related reasonable accommodations provided on the job.
Design: A multi-site, longitudinal study was conducted with 191 employees in 22 supported employment programs across 3 states during a 1-year study period. Data were gathered prospectively in a structured, narrative form designed to describe both the functional limitations and accommodations of participants.
Results: The most frequent functional limitations among this group of employed persons with psychiatric disabilities were cognitive in nature, followed by social, physical, and emotional/other. There was a significant relationship between the type of functional limitation and the number and type of accommodations received. There was a marginally significant relationship between type of functional limitation and a diagnosis of schizophrenia. There were no significant relationships between any other clinical or demographic factors, functional limitations or reasonable accommodations.
Conclusion: Functional limitations and their associated accommodations can be defined and categorized. Cognitive limitations were the most prevalent in this sample and the best predictor of the number of accommodations provided. Implications of these findings for accommodations under the ADA, eligibility for Social Security Disability benefits, and vocational assessment and planning are discussed