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Article Excerpt
In the U.S. population, 51.2 million persons have disabilities, of which 21.3 million have disabilities impacting their ability to work. Among persons with disabilities, 35% report being employed fulltime or part-time compared to 78% of persons without disabilities. Of persons aged 21 to 64 years with a disability, 56% of those who had some type of disability were employed and only 13% of persons with a severe disability were employed full time. When seeking employment, people with disabilities may lack the necessary job-seeking skills needed to secure successful job searches, resulting in an increased risk of unemployed (Hirst & Baldwin, 1994; Kroll & Peake, 1996; National Organization on Disability, 2004; Rubin & Roessler, 2001; U.S. Census Bureau, 2001). During the past four decades, the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Civil Rights Commission Act of 1978, and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 have enhanced opportunities for persons with disabilities to participate in society through employment. The ADA reflects Congressional intent to prohibit discrimination against persons with disabilities. Within the ADA, a person has a disability if she or he (1) has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity, (2) has a record of such impairment, or (3) is regarded as having such an impairment. At least one of these three parts of the definition must be met to be considered an individual with a disability. Under the ADA, persons meeting disability criteria are eligible for specific services which may include provision of employment services through public vocational rehabilitation services (ADA, 1990; McCarthy, 1998).
Among persons with disabilities who are unemployed and seeking employment, strengthening one's self-efficacy in job-seeking skills has been identified as important for a person to successfully engage in job readiness and job maintenance activities (Strauser & Berven, 2006; Strauser, Ketz, & Keim, 2002). Bandura (1977) defined self-efficacy in the context of cognitive behavior modification as influencing one's abilities to think, feel, and act. Self-efficacy pertains to personal action in regard to one's beliefs in their capabilities to organize and execute a course of action to achieve a desired outcome. Levels of self-efficacy have been correlated with subsequent performance, such that a perceived higher level of self-efficacy has been correlated with higher levels of performance, higher levels of achievement, more social integration, and better health. Lower levels of self-efficacy have been correlated with depression, anxiety, helplessness, and inability to identify barriers toward performing a behavior, which impact one's motivation and ability to make decisions to perform that behavior (Bandura, 1997; Bandura, Reese, & Adams, 1982; Wood & Bandura, 1989; Schwartz & Fuchs, 1999).
Persons with a positive perception of self-efficacy are likely to engage in activities that facilitate the development of new competencies; whereas persons with low levels of self-efficacy are likely to create self-limiting avoidance behaviors that create obstacles that block opportunity for new experiences. When faced with challenges, persons with higher levels of self-efficacy are more likely to persevere and succeed; whereas persons with lower levels are likely to view challenges as unsuccessful and disengage, thereby reinforcing their beliefs that they lack the skills needed to be successful. Although self-efficacy is an important factor in regard to performing a behavior, adequate incentives toward performing the specific behavior must be available. Incentives, perceived or tangible, are a determinant of one's behavior to extend and sustain effort toward a behavior when faced with challenges and difficulties (Bandura, 1977, 1986, 1997; Brown, 1999; Larson, Suzuki, Gillespie, Potenza, Bechtel, & Toulouse, 1992; Strauser, 1995).
Self-efficacy has been identified as a predictor of successful job-seeking behavior. Higher levels of self-efficacy have been correlated with higher levels of self-initiated job searches, increased motivation, promoting higher employment goals, increased frequency of job-seeking behavior, and increased persistence for longer periods of time in job search activities when faced with repeated failure. Lower levels of self-efficacy have been correlated with the withdrawal from the job-seeking process. Work readiness factors, such as self-efficacy, warrant further exploration as correlates of successful placement outcomes in vocational rehabilitation (Anthony, 1994; Eden & Aviram, 1993; Kanfer & Hulin, 1985; Rife & Kilty, 1990; Kulik & Rowland, 1989; Lent & Brown, 1996; Wanberg, Watt, & Rumsey, 1996; Wiener & Oei, 1999; Blau, 1994). Level of self-efficacy has been statistically significant with training performance outcomes and levels for unemployed trainees. Among unemployed persons seeking employment, increases in levels of job-seeking self-efficacy have been correlated with higher attendance rates at job-seeking skills training. Participants with lower levels of self-efficacy were more likely to not complete job-skills training (Creed, Bloxsome, & Johnston, 2001; Eden & Aviram, 1993; Phelps & Creed, 1995; van Ryn & Vinokur, 1992).
Among persons with disabilities, level of self-efficacy correlates with one's ability to perform job-seeking skills leading to successful job-seeking behavior. Job-seeking skills are identified as the skills needed to competitively pursue employment which include: writing, reading, basic mathematics, how to look for a job, where to look for a job, completing an employment application, preparing a resume, interview skills, social skills competence, interests, abilities, and job market familiarity (Betz & Hackett, 1981 ; Fletcher, Hansson, & Bailey, 1992; Hergenrather & Alan, 2004; Krumboltz, 1988; Rooney & Osipow, 1992; Taylor & Betz, 1983; Wanberg et al., 1996). Improvements in self-efficacy have been recognized as critical factors in the long-term success of rehabilitation of persons with disabilities. Public rehabilitation placement professionals have identified the lack of job-seeking skills as a barrier to employment among consumers seeking services which include those diagnosed with a disability of major depressive disorder, mental impairment, substance abuse, and HIV/AIDS (Hergenrather & Rhodes, 2004; Hergenrather, Rhodes, & Clark, 2004, 2005, 2006; Hergenrather, Rhodes, & McDaniel, 2005; Murphy & Murphy, 2006).
Self-efficacy is contingent on the behavior within a context. In a person's plan of action to achieve a desired outcome, a person is likely to have a range of high to low self-efficacy toward specific tasks, goals, situations, or behaviors to be performed within a context (Caplain, Vinokur, Price, & van Ryan, 1989; Sardi & Robertson, 1993). Vinokur, van Ryan, Gamlich, and Price (1991) suggested that successful job-search behaviors are mediated through changes in self-efficacy of job-seeking skills. Among unemployed persons seeking employment, one's level of self-efficacy was found to be the best predictor of success for employment, having a positive correlation with job-seeking skills and reemployment (Clifford, 1989; Eden & Aviram, 1993; Kanfer & Hulin, 1985). Job-seeking self-efficacy is essential in successful performance of the tasks needed to become employed. It enhances the likelihood that a person will become successful and satisfied in securing employment (Hackett & Betz, 1981; Judge & Bono, 2001; Judge, Locke, Durham, & Kluger, 1998).
One way to further the research on the self-efficacy of job-seeking behavior among persons with disabilities is to assess the job-seeking skills of persons with disabilities, who meet the criteria of the ADA, and are seeking employment through public vocational rehabilitation services. This population represents individuals who perceive employment as an outcome of performing job-seeking skills. The major premise of this article is that the evaluation of perceived self-efficacy of job-seeking skills among persons with disabilities provides formative data and identifies variables on which to intervene and modify job-seeking skills readiness interventions for persons with disabilities.
Job-seeking Self-efficacy Measure
Barlow, Wright, & Cullen (2002) developed the Job-seeking Self-efficacy Measure (JSM) as a short self-administered 18-item survey that contained the Job-seeking Self-efficacy Skills (JSS) subscale and Managing Disability at Interview (MDI) subscale. The development of the 18 item JSM was based on (1) the research of Wanberg et al. (1996), Taylor and Popma (1990), Taylor and Betz (1983), Betz and Hackett (1986, 1981) to quantify an individual's perceived confidence at performing job-seeking skills and (2) the research of Enright (1997) on persons with disabilities and employment in the U.S. Each of the 18 items was rated on a 10-point Likert scale, for which 1 represented not at all confident and 10 represented very confident. The original 18-items were piloted in two studies that included 334 students enrolled at...
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