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Predictors of Referral to Supported Employment Among Consumers with Co-Occurring Mental and Substance Use Disorders

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Abstract

Clinical trials demonstrate that Supported Employment is effective in assisting persons with severe mental illness in obtaining competitive employment. However, little is known about the factors related to consumers’ decisions to pursue employment, especially for consumers with co-occurring substance and mental disorders. This study examines the demographic, socioeconomic and illness characteristics of consumers referred for Supported Employment services. Consumers were drawn from Integrated Dual Diagnosis Treatment programs in four community mental health agencies. Study participants included 113 consumers referred for Supported Employment services and 78 randomly selected non-referred consumers as the comparison group. Results suggest that consumers who have past work experience are more likely to be referred to Supported Employment, while consumers who perceive themselves as disabled or who are diagnosed as substance dependent are less likely to be referred to Supported Employment. Implications for agency practice and future research are discussed.

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Notes

  1. Due to space limitations, only operationalization of variables significant at the bivariate or multivariate levels will be presented here. Information on the operationalization of all study variables is available from the first author.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by Grant # 07.1209 from the Office of Program Evaluation and Research, Ohio Department of Mental Health. Gary Bond is thanked for reviewing an earlier draft of this manuscript. A previous version of these findings was presented at the Society for Social Work and Research Conference in Washington, DC from January 17–January 19, 2008.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Evidence-Based Practices at Case, Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA

    David E. Biegel & Patrick Boyle

  2. Minnesota State University of Mankato, Mankato, MN, USA

    David Beimers

  3. Louis Stokes Cleveland Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Department of Veterans Affairs, Cleveland, OH, USA

    Lauren D. Stevenson

  4. Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Center for Evidence-Based Practices at Case, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA

    Robert J. Ronis

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  1. David E. Biegel
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  2. David Beimers
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  3. Lauren D. Stevenson
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  4. Robert J. Ronis
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  5. Patrick Boyle
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Correspondence to David E. Biegel.

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Biegel, D.E., Beimers, D., Stevenson, L.D. et al. Predictors of Referral to Supported Employment Among Consumers with Co-Occurring Mental and Substance Use Disorders. Community Ment Health J 45, 427–438 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10597-009-9242-3

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