Abstract
The objective of this article is to investigate how physical disabilities – adjusted for psychosocial difficulties and selected school variables – influence social security receipt among 373 former students with special needs. These individuals have been followed from their late teens and into their late twenties. Theoretically, the study draws on life course perspectives, with emphases on transitions, linked lives, geographical and historical location, human agency and cumulative processes. The logistic regression analyses show how each of eight independent variables – while simultaneously controlling for the other covariates – influences the former students’ risk of becoming social security recipients before the age of 30 years. This risk is especially high among youths with physical disabilities if they also have psychosocial problems or modest educational attainment. These cumulative processes constitute evidence of accentuation in that early disadvantages contribute to later adversities. In addition, measures meant to improve the situation for students with special needs, such as the use of individual teaching plans and teaching assistants in class, do not contribute to reducing their risk of becoming social security recipients.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Blossfeld, H. P., Schneider, T., & Doll, J. (2009). Methodological Advances of Panel Studies. Designing the New National Educational Panel Study (NEPS) in Germany. JERO, 1(1), 10–32.
Bynner, J. & Wadswort, M. (2014 [2011]). Generation and change in perspective. In M. Wadsworth & J. Bynner (Eds.). A Companion to Life Course Studies. The social and historical context of the British birth cohort studies (pp. 203–221). London: Routledge.
Båtevik, F.O. & Myklebust, J.O. (2007) Young Adults. Data Collection in 2007. http://www.hivolda.no/neted/upload/attachment/site/group1/notat16_07.pdf, Accessed 14 May 2014.
Dannefer, D. (2003). Cumulative Advantage/Disadvantage and the Life Course: Cross-Fertilizing Age and Social Science Theory. Journal of Gerontology, 58B(6), 327–337.
De Winter, C. F., Jansen, A. A. C., & Evenhuis, M. M. (2011). Physical conditions and challenging behaviour in people with intellectual disabilities: a systematic review. Journal of Intellectual Disabilities Research, 55(7), 675–698.
DiPrete, T. A., & Eirich, G. M. (2006). Cumulative Advantage as a Mechanism for Inequality: A Review of Theoretical and Empirical Developments. Annual Review of Sociology, 32, 271–297.
Easterlin, R. A. (1987). Birth and fortune: the impact of numbers on personal welfare. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Elder, G. H., & Johnson, M. K. (2003). The Life Course and Aging: Challenges, Lessons, and New Directions. In R. Settersten (Ed.). Invitation to the Life Course. Toward New Understandings of Later Life (pp. 49–81). New York: Baywood Publishing Company.
Ferraro, K. F. (2001). Aging and Role Transitions. In R. H. Binstock & L. K. George (Eds.), Handbook of Aging and the Social Sciences (pp. 313–330). New York: Academic.
Foster, E. M., Flanagan, C., Osgood, D. W., & Ruth, G. R. (2005). The transition to adulthood for vulnerable youth and families: common themes and future directions. In D. W. Osgood, E. M. Foster, C. Flanagan, & G. R. Ruth (Eds.), On Your Own Without a Net. The Transition to Adulthood for Vulnerable Populations (pp. 375–390). Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Gerber, P. J. (2012). The impact of learning disabilities on adulthood: A review of the evidence-based literature for research and practice in adult education. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 45(1), 31–46.
Giangreco, M. F. (2010). Utilization of teacher assistants in inclusive schools: is it the kind of help that helping is all about? European Journal of Special Needs Education, 25(4), 341–345.
Gillman, M., Swain, J., & Heyman, B. (2000). What’s in a Name? The Implications of Diagnosis for people with Learning Difficulties and their Family Careers. Disability & Society, 15(3), 389–409.
George, L. (2003). What Life-Course Perspecties Offer the Study of Aging and Health. In R. Settersten, (ed.). Invitation to the Life Course: Toward New Understandings of Later Life (pp. 161–189). New York: Baywood Publishing Company.
Hagestad, G., & Dannefer, D. (2001). Concepts and theories of aging. beyond microfication in social sciences approaches. In R. H. Binstock & L. K. George (Eds.), Handbook of Aging and the Social Sciences (pp. 3–21). New York: Academic Press.
Hatch, S. L. (2005). Conceptualizing and identifying cumulative adversity and protective resoursces: implications for understanding health inequalities. Journals of Gerontology, 60B, 130–134.
Kvalsund, R., & Bele, I. V. (2010). Students with special educational needs – social inclusion or marginalisation? factors of risk and resilience in the transition between school and early adult life. Scandinavian Journal of Educational Research, 54(1), 15–35.
Kvalsund, R., & Hargreaves, L. (2014). Theory as the source of “research footpring” in rual settings. In W. Simone & W. Corbett (Eds.), Doing Educational research in Rural Settings. Methodological issues, international perspectives and practical solutions (pp. 41–57). London: Routledge.
Levine, P., & Nourse, S. W. (1998). What follow-up studies say about postschool life for young men and woman with learning disabilities: a critical look at the literature. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 31(3), 212–233.
Markussen, E., Frøseth, M. W., Sandberg, N., Lødding, B., & Borgen, J. S. (2011). Early leaving, non-completion and completion in upper secondary education in Norway. In S. Lamb et al. (Eds.), School Dropout and Completion: International Comparative Studies in Theory and Practice (pp. 253–271). Parkville Victoria: Springer.
Mitchell, D., Morton, M., & Hornby, G. (2010). Review of the Literature on Individual Education Plans. Report to the New Zealand Ministry of Education. Christchurch: University of Canterbury.
Myklebust, J. O. (2007). Divergent Paths: Competence attainment among students with special educational needs. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 11(2), 215–231.
Myklebust, J. O. (2012). The transition to adulthood for vulnerable youth. Scandinavian Journal of Disability Research, 14(4), 358–374.
Myklebust, J. O. (2013). Disability and adult life: dependence on social security among former students with special educational needs in their late twenties. British Journal of Special Education, 40(1), 5–13.
Myklebust, J. O., & Båtevik, F. O. (2005). Economic independence for adolescents with special educational needs. European Journal of Special Needs Education, 20(3), 271–286.
Myklebust, J. O., & Solvang, B. (2005). Young mothers with special educational needs. Young Nordic Journal of Youth Research, 13(1), 73–87.
OECD 2014. The table Compare your country OECD Employment Outlook. http://www.oecd.org/employment/unemployment-set-to-remain-high-in-oecd-countries-through-2014youth-and-low-skilled-hit-hardest.htm (accessed 12.6.14)
O’Rand, A. M. (2009). Cumulative Processes in the Life Course. In G. H. Elder & J. Z. Giele (Eds.), The Craft of the Life Course (pp. 121–140). New York: The Guilford Press.
Robert, M., Séguin, M., & O’Connor, K. (2010). The evolution of the study of life trajectories in social sciences over the past five years: A state of the art review. Advances in Mental Health, 9(2), 190–210.
Ryder, N. B. (1965). The cohort as a concept in the study of social change. American Sociological Review, 30(6), 843–861.
The Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration (2013). https://www.nav.no/Om+NAV/Tall+og+analyse/Jobb+og+helse/Uf%C3%B8repensjon Accessed 10.9.13.
Webster, R., Blatchford, P., Basset, P., Brown, P., Martin, C., & Russel, A. (2010). Double standards and first principles: framing teaching assistant support for pupils with special educational needs. European Journal of Special Needs Education, 25(4), 319–336.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Myklebust, J.O. How Physical Disabilities Influence Social Security Receipt among Vulnerable People in their Late Twenties. J Dev Phys Disabil 27, 1–14 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10882-014-9396-y
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10882-014-9396-y