Affiliations: [a] Graduate Program in Rehabilitation Counseling, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA, USA
| [b] Department of Rehabilitation Counseling, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA
| [c] School of Rehabilitation Services and Counseling, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, Edinburg, TX, USA
| [d] Department of Rehabilitation Psychology and Special Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
Correspondence:
[*]
Address for correspondence: Dana Brickham, Ph.D., Graduate Program in Rehabilitation Counseling, Western Washington
University, Bellingham, WA, USA. Tel.: +1 425 405 1642; Fax: +1 425 405 1659;
E-mail: Dana.Brickham@wwu.edu.
Abstract: BACKGROUND: Vocational rehabilitation for people with alcohol abuse/dependence can help individuals access and maintain employment, and further enhance physical and psychological health and well-being. OBJECTIVE: To examine demographic and rehabilitation service patterns affecting employment outcomes of consumers with alcohol abuse/dependence in state vocational rehabilitation agencies. METHODS: The sample included 7,798 persons (74% men and 26% women) with alcohol abuse/dependence who were closed either as rehabilitated or not rehabilitated by their state-run vocational rehabilitation agencies in the fiscal year 2009. Mean age of participants was 40.1 years (SD = 10.2). The dependent variable was employment outcome. The predictor variables include a set of demographic variables and vocational rehabilitation service variables. RESULTS: The chi-squared automatic interaction detector (CHAID) analysis indicated that counseling and guidance services significantly enhanced competitive employment outcomes. The study also revealed the underutilization of job related services for assistance in finding employment, gaining employment, and retaining employment (e.g., job search assistance, job placement, and on-the-job supports). Also, an underutilization of training type services such as on-the-job training, miscellaneous training, occupational/vocational, and college or university training were revealed in serving consumers with alcohol abuse/dependence. CONCLUSIONS: The data mining approach (i.e., CHAID analysis) provided detailed information and insight about interactions among demographic variables, rehabilitation service patterns, and competitive employment rates ranging from a low of 41% to a high of 76%, and these differences can be explained by rehabilitation service patterns.
