Engagement and interaction: a comparison between supported employment and day service provision

Work and non-work experiences of 16 adults with learning disabilities were compared. The results indicated that people spent significantly more of their time engaged in task-related activities during paid work than in non-work situations, where high levels of disengagement were observed. Interaction patterns varied considerably across conditions, people spending more of their time interacting with others in the non-work condition, possibly as a result of high levels of supervisory support from service staff. Differences were also observed in the direction of interaction, with clients more likely to initiate interactions in the non-work condition. A breakdown of who interactions occurred with revealed that clients tended to talk with supervisors more often than anyone else in the non-work condition. During work, clients tended to interact more often with their non-disabled co-workers, and a significant proportion of time was spent interacting with the public. The findings are discussed in relation to the relative success of the employment movement and suggestions for further research are made.