School of Social and Political Sciences - Research Publications
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ItemThe Characteristics of Effective Staff Teams in Disability Services(Wiley-Blackwell Publishing, 2019-01-01)People with autism and other developmental disabilities are often supported by staff teams in accommodation, day support, and employment services. Although the literature outlines a number of individual staff characteristics that can influence the “quality of support,” there is a paucity of research investigating the characteristics of teams as a whole. Given the emphasis placed on “team work” in human services, this study investigated what constitutes the characteristics of an effective team in disability services. An online Delphi study was employed, whereby disability support staff and their managers answered a series of surveys to build a consensus as to “what constitutes an effective team.” The emerging consensus was analyzed using inductive thematic analysis, descriptive statistics, and the intraclass correlation coefficient. A consensus emerged concerning three core elements which combined constituted an effective staff team. In order of importance, these were a shared focus on client outcomes, effective leadership, and good communication among the team. However, a range of additional factors were also identified. These represented additional considerations that were, in the opinion of the participants, also important to building and maintaining an effective team. Focusing on client outcomes, fostering effective leadership, and ensuring good communication are necessary, but insufficient to establish an effective staff team. The implications are discussed in the context of policy development concerning staff recruitment, team development, supervision, and service evaluation.
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ItemTrained assistance dogs for people with dementia: a systematic review(WILEY, 2020-02-17)This systematic review investigated evidence for the effectiveness of trainedassistance dogs as an intervention and support for people with dementia.Peer-reviewed articles were retrieved from multiple databases (SCOPUS,Web of Science, and Google Scholar).
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ItemDeveloping open employment outcomes for people with an intellectual disability utilising a Social Enterprise Framework(IOS PRESS, 2018-01-01)Background: Workplace participation for people with ID is a major policy issue, with both economic and social imperatives. Policy reforms in Australia associated with the implementation of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) require new and innovative approaches to address these problems. Objective: This project was established to investigate how a Social Enterprise Framework could be used as a mechanism to transform supported employment services (Australian Disability Enterprises) into open employment settings that secure meaningful, rewarding, and sustainable employment for people with ID. Methods: A systematic literature review was undertaken, and a model of Social Enterprise was developed that would be inclusive of people with ID. The theoretical model was reviewed by industry experts and refined. Its practical application and feasibility was then tested through the implementation of an organisational audit and strategic planning exercise. This was designed to produce an enterprise model. Results: Social Enterprise is an umbrella term describing any organisation that focuses on social change. For people with ID, its essential features include an economically viable business, which provide the payment of 'a living wage', in a setting involving meaningful work that includes opportunities for the acquisition of socially valued skills and career development, as well as contributing to the person's opportunities for social relationships. Conclusion: Though a challenging undertaking, Social Enterprise provides a promising employment option for some people with ID, when such initiatives are driven from executive and senior personnel of an organisation.
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ItemTransitioning Australian Disability Enterprises to open employment community hubs using the Australian legislative framework(IOS PRESS, 2019-01-01)The transition of sheltered workshops or Australian Disability Enterprises (ADE) as they are known in Australia, to open employment settings unlike the USA lacks the legislative driver to encourage providers to move towards the promotion of integrated employment in the community. As a result, we have witnessed a move to rebadge ADE's as social enterprises in order to change public perceptions, without changes in wage outcomes or pathways to real work in the community. ADE's in Australia present as something of a challenge for government in trying to balance the competing provider agenda, against its obligations to people with a disability underpinned by the Disability Services Act (1986), the United Nations Convention on the Rights of People with a Disability and the establishment of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). OBJECTIVE: This paper will examine the policy drivers for change and findings from work undertaken by the Centre for Disability Employment Research and Practice (CDERP) to promote provider transformation to integrated employment settings and the issues experienced in provider transformation within these policy settings. CONCLUSION: Education, ongoing support for employment staff and families, along with community partnerships are seen as ingredients for creating provider transformation and meaningful employment outcomes.
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Item“I Would Love to Just Be Myself”: What Autistic Women Want at Work(Mary Ann Liebert Inc, 2019-12-01)Autistic individuals experience barriers obtaining and sustaining employment. In the general population, gender also impacts labor market experiences. Understanding the occupational aspirations and expectations of individuals disaggregated by autism diagnosis and gender may assist the development of tailored workplace policies and support strategies.
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ItemYou Can’t Solve Homelessness Through Housing Alone(Council to Homeless Persons, 2017)Individual Supported Living (ISL) Manual - A tool to inform the planning and evaluation of individual living arrangements.
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ItemFactors associated with the use of mechanical restraint in disability services(ROUTLEDGE JOURNALS, TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD, 2019-01-02)
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ItemBarriers and Enablers to Safeguarding Children and Adults within a Disability Services Context: Insights from an Australian Delphi Study(WILEY, 2017-05)Abstract Research conducted in the 1990s revealed the tragic irony that exposure to the disability support system, and particularly to its institutional forms, was a major risk factor related to the neglect and abuse of children and adults with a disability. Subsequently, a range of policies have been introduced to minimize risk. However, recurring events of abuse and neglect in the disability services sector in high and middle income countries demonstrate that processes geared to safeguard children and adults with a disability from abuse and neglect remain insufficient. To establish the wider fabric of organizational factors that contribute to effective safeguarding practices within the Australian disability support sector, a modified online Delphi study was conducted, capturing the views of disability services staff and managers (n = 249) regarding barriers and enablers to effective safeguarding. This study identified issues concerning organizational culture, management practice, workforce development, client capacity building and contextual factors. During Round Two of the Delphi, participants were asked to rate the categorized enabler statements according to importance on a 10‐point Likert scale, to ascertain the degree of consensus. A total of 262 of the statements were regarded as important or very important. The Delphi result highlighted the considerable gap between the wider systemic and cultural processes that, in the eyes of disability services staff and management, contribute to good safeguarding practice and the safeguarding measures currently in place. The article calls for a holistic approach to safeguarding that addresses procedural issues and to the transformation of the wider systemic and cultural fabric of an organization.
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ItemChallenges for females with high functioning autism in the workplace: a systematic review(TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD, 2018)PURPOSE: Individuals with High Functioning Autism (HFA) experience high levels of underemployment and unemployment, resulting in negative economic, social, and health outcomes. Given what is known about labor market participation difficulties experienced by women generally, and the paucity of research concerning women with HFA, this systematic review synthesized what is known about the labor market experiences of women with HFA. METHOD: A systematic review of the literature concerning adult females with HFA in relation to the workplace yielded 1947 results; 11 met inclusion criteria being based on original data, but not necessarily focusing solely on women. RESULTS: The total number participants with HFA across all studies was 731 (M = 66.45, SD = 95.44, Mdn = 18.00) aged between 18 and 70 years (M = 34.38, SD = 7.71); females represented 38% (n = 279) of those sampled. The principal challenges reported for individuals with HFA at work were communication, social interaction, and stress, together with negative mental and physical health. CONCLUSION: These results should be interpreted with caution. Of the studies found, 73% were qualitative and based on small samples. Only one paper differentiated female data in analyses. These factors combined suggest large-scale mixed method research focused on females with HFA is required to gain an accurate insight into the challenges faced in the workplace, to in turn inform intervention and support. However, implications for rehabilitation based on what is known are discussed. Implication for Rehabilitation Unemployment and underemployment of persons with High Functioning Autism (HFA) poses social, health and economic issues for both individuals and the wider community. Those with HFA have the intellectual capacity to make a substantial contribution to the workplace. Based on what is known, some of the challenges for females with HFA might be similar to those experienced by men with HFA, however it is possible that there are gender-based differences (in both type and severity of challenges) that require attention.
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ItemDisability and social inclusion 'Down Under': A systematic literature review(Griffith University, School of Human Services and Social Work, 2017-01-01)This article provides a systematic literature review investigating how the social inclusion of adults with disability is conceptualised in research concerned with policy and service provision in Australia. The review will summarise this literature, and clarify its relative strengths and weaknesses. The findings from the literature review are grouped into recurring themes, namely: deinstitutionalisation; the changing nature of paid support; different forms of ‘community engagement’; and socially valued roles, particularly in the realms of employment, volunteering, and consumer transactions. The literature mostly concerns people with intellectual and cognitive disability, more so than persons with sensory, psychosocial (mental health) and physical disabilities. Several gaps emerge in the literature, such as the experiences of Indigenous people with disabilities, both in terms of exclusion they may face, and solutions being developed by Indigenous communities; ambiguous understandings of social inclusion; and a lack of acknowledgement of prominent critiques of social inclusion. The review builds on these findings to make recommendations for policy, practice, and further research.