Exploring the impact of mental health symptoms in the workplace and supportive accommodations for young adults with intellectual/developmental disabilities and co-occurring mental health conditions

ABSTRACT

Background

Young adults (YA) with intellectual/developmental disabilities and co-occurring mental health conditions (MH) are underemployed. One reason may be a lack of accommodations that mitigate the impact of MH challenges at work. We explored common workplace MH impacts and supportive accommodations.

Methods

Interviews with YA with intellectual/developmental disabilities and co-occurring MH conditions (n = 12) and focus groups with professionals who support them to attain and maintain jobs (n = 17). YA also completed a survey describing MH impacts and accommodations.

Findings

Although individualized, common MH impacts included challenges with attendance, performing and switching between work tasks, feeling overwhelmed, and sensory overload. Participants valued breaks, individualized scheduling, and social supports. Participants endorsed the potential usefulness of several accommodations they had not previously requested.

Conclusions

Accommodations should be tailored to each YA. Further, YA may benefit from education about the range of accommodations that may support them to manage their MH symptoms at work.

KEYWORDS:

• Mental health
• intellectual disability
• developmental disability
• employment
• accommodations
• work

Acknowledgments

Thank you to the co-researchers for their invaluable work on this project: Jesse Corey, Jenna Duff, and Alix Herer. Thank you to Isabelle Everett for assistance transcribing and coding the interviews.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

The research reported herein was performed pursuant to a grant from Policy Research, Inc. as part of the U.S. Social Security Administration’s (SSA’s) Analyzing Relationships Between Disability, Rehabilitation and Work. The opinions and conclusions expressed are solely those of the author(s) and do not represent the opinions or policy of Policy Research, Inc., SSA or any other agency of the Federal Government.This research was conducted while the first author was a postdoctoral fellow supported by funding from the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR, ARRTP grant #90AREM0001). NIDILRR is a Center within the Administration for Community Living (ACL), Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The contents of this manuscript do not necessarily represent the policy of NIDILRR, ACL, or HHS, and you should not assume endorsement by the Federal Government.