The Family Employment Awareness Training (FEAT): A Mixed-method Follow-up
Issue Date
2014-01-13Author
Francis, Grace L.
Gross, Judith M. S.
Turnbull, Ann P.
Turnbull, H. Rutherford, III
Publisher
IOS Press
Type
Article
Article Version
Scholarly/refereed, author accepted manuscript
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
BACKGROUND: Although competitive employment (i.e., employment in community settings among peers without disabilities for minimum wage or higher) is associated with numerous benefits for individuals with disabilities (Johannesen, McGrew, Griss, & Born, 2007), people with disabilities are underrepresented in the competitive workforce (National Disability Rights Network, 2011).
OBJECTIVES: This study sought to determine the longer-term effectiveness of the Family Employment Awareness Training (FEAT) on the expectations and knowledge of participants who attended the program in 2010-2011. The study also sought to explore the perceptions of families who attended the program.
METHODS: We distributed a FEAT Follow-up Survey to 220 participants to evaluate the program’s longer-term influence on participants’ expectations and knowledge and conducted 13 semi-structured interviews using a FEAT Interview Protocol to explore families’ perceptions.
RESULTS: Study findings indicated that participants who attended FEAT rated their expectations as average and rated their knowledge above average one to two years after attending FEAT. An analysis of interview data indicated that families described several aspects of FEAT they liked, aspects they disliked, and suggested improvements for the program.
CONCLUSIONS: Results from this study indicate that FEAT is a promising approach to improving competitive employment outcomes for individuals with disabilities.
Description
This is the author's accepted manuscript. The original publication is available at http://dx.doi.org/10.3233/JVR-130652.
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Citation
Francis, G., Gross, J.M.S., Turnbull, A.P., & Turnbull, H.R. (2013). The Family Empowerment Awareness Training (FEAT): A mixed-method follow-up. Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation, 39(3), 167-181. http://dx.doi.org/10.3233/JVR-130652
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