The findings of the paper attribute people with early onset disabilities as having higher employment rates due to having easily accommodated career or being better at finding resources. However, it is also important not to undermine the underlying resilience of these individuals, who, most likely, succeeded in higher educational outcome because they were able to persevere and overcome adversity with a disability.

University of Notre Dame

Low employment is correlated with lower levels of education, but people with early onset disabilities have higher employment rates compared to people with late onset. This is possibly because people with early onset disabilities choose careers that can be easily accommodated or are more adept at seeking resources.

Relation between Early Onset Disabilities, Labor Force Participation, and Educational Attainment

Loprest, P., &amp; Maag, E. (2007). The relationship between early disability onset and education and Employment. Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation, 26(1), 1–43. https://doi.org/10.1037/e723332011-001 

The Relationship Between Early Disability Onset and Education and Employment

Loprest and Maag Findings Reflecting Resilience

In recent times, there has been an increase in employment opportunities due to disability policies, i.e. the ADA and the SSA return-to-work programs. However, there are concerns that younger people with disabilities will become over-reliant on such programs instead of work, which raises questions of whether return-to-work and other programs are best suited for those with early onset disabilities.
- Need for understanding of overall employment outcomes to determine best points of intervention (at secondary education, etc.)
- Necessary for economic and social reasons (full participation in society)

Need to Study the Relationship Between Employment and Early Onset Disabilities

Greater educational attainment correlated with greater labor force participation for people with disabilities compared to those without. People with disabilities display lower educational attainment overall. They also display lower economic outcomes due to lower levels of employment.

Relation between Disability, Employment, and Education

Schooling was not reported to be significantly interrupted by initial onset, but the student must deal with their disability (and its severity) in later educational years. People with early onset before age 5 compared to after are less likely to graduate from high school, most probably due to severity and types of disabilities.

Learn Before

Related