Self-determination across living and working environments: a matched-samples study of adults with mental retardation

The environments in which people live, learn, work, and play influence many aspects of their lives, including their self-determination. These environments differ in the degree to which they enable people to receive personally designed and individualized supports. In the present study self-determination, autonomy, life choices, and lifestyle satisfaction for adults with mental retardation matched by level of intelligence, age, and gender but differing in type of residence or working environment were examined. Analyses indicated that respondent self-determination, autonomy, and satisfaction as well as opportunities for choice-making differed according to settings.