cite: Gates2000
author: Gates, L. B.
year: 2000
title: Workplace Accommodation as a Social Process
publisher: Journal of Occupational Rehabilitation
uri: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1009445929841
pubtype: article
discipline: sociology

country: United States
period: 2000
maxlength: 12
targeting: explicit
group: mentally ill workers
data: survey, protocol

design: qualitative
method: action protocol development
sample: 12
unit: individual
representativeness: local
causal: 0 # 0 correlation / 1 causal

theory:
limitations:
observation:
  - intervention: counseling (workplace accommodation)
    institutional: 0
    structural: 1
    agency: 1
    inequality: disability
    type: 1 # 0 vertical / 1 horizontal
    indicator: 0 # 0 absolute / 1 relative
    measures: employment (rtw)
    findings: successful accommodation requires social component; relationship largest barrier; agency of returnee must be strengthened
    channels: unsuccessful accommodations rely on the functional aspect; supervisors play primary role in success of accommodation process
    direction: 1 # -1 neg / 0 none / 1 pos
    significance: # 0 nsg / 1 msg / 2 sg

notes:
annotation: |
  A qualitative study on the mechanisms of workplace accomodation for people with mental health conditions to allow their successful return-to-work.
  The intervention is based on an accommodation which disaggregates the effects of social and technical components of the process and included a disclosure and psychoeducational plan.
  It finds that successfull return-to-work through accommodation requires consideration of the social component ('who is involved'), with unsuccessful accommodation often only relying on the functional aspect ('what is involved').
  The primary barrier identified for successful return-to-work are actually relationship issues not functional ones, with supervisors playing a key role for the success of the accommodation process.
  Additionally, it highlighted the necessity of strengthening the individual agency of the returnee, accomplished in the intervention through a concrete training plan with the worker but also with other key workplace players such as the supervisors.
  Additionally, providers must be willing to develop a disclosure plan with the employee and enter the workplace itself to adequately assist in the accommodation process.
  Limitations to the study include the limited generalizability of its findings with a small non-randomized sample size and restriction to mental health disability.