Effect of job skills training on employment and job seeking behaviors in an American Indian substance abuse treatment sample | Knowledge Translation for Employment Research Center

Authors:	Fong, C. J., Murphy, K. M., Westbrook, J. D., & Markle, M. M.
Year Published	2010
Publication	Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation
Volume	33
Number	3
Pages	181-192
Publisher	IOS Press
Background	Employment problems are often significant in American Indian communities. Barriers such as historically high unemployment rates or a lack of job finding skills may contribute to lower than expected job skills and career development. Likewise, unemployment is high for those with substance abuse disorders. There is little empirical research addressing interventions for American Indians with substance abuse disorders for improving employment status.
Purpose	The purpose of this study was to implement the Job Seekers Workshop (JSW), a 12-hour job search-training program, in an American Indian addiction treatment program, and to evaluate its outcomes in comparison to the Job Interview Videos (JIV), a 40-minute two-part video.
Setting	The study setting was the Na Nizhoozhi Center (NCI) in Gallup, NM. The NCI is a 150-bed facility that provides culturally specific treatment programs to meet the needs of American Indian.
Sample	The study sample consisted of 102 individuals with American Indian heritage who were drug and/or alcohol dependent, 18 years of age or older, enrolled at NCI for at least 10 days, categorized as either unemployed (i.e., not having worked at all for the month prior to study recruitment) or underemployed (i.e., having worked no more than 20 hours/week in any given week during the past month), and interested in obtaining a job. The majority were Navajo males.
Data Collection	The measures included several standardized instruments measuring addiction severity, current use of substances, reading ability, and life experiences. Employment information was captured using the Timeline Follow Back for Employment (TLFB-E). Two variables served as primary outcomes: 1) time (number of days) to employment, either a new taxed job or enrollment in a job-training program within the follow-up period, and 2) total hours either working or enrolled in a job-training program within the time period. Time to employment and time to enrollment in a job-training program were tested using the Cox Regression procedure. Analyses addressing the number of participants reporting employment or enrollment in a training program were conducted using Chi-square tests. Analyses focused on hours spent working or in training were conducted using an analysis of variance (ANOVA). Comparisons based on repeated measures over time were tested using multivariate repeated measures analyses of variance (MANOVA).
Control	The study used a two-group comparison design.
Findings	There were no significant differences between the JSW and JIV groups at baseline, nor were there differences in completion time of the program or time to employment at either three or six months following completion or in job-seeking behaviors. A significant difference was found on enrollment in a training program, with more participants who were involved in the JIV intervention enrolled in a training program than in the JSW intervention. Satisfaction was rated relatively high for both programs. There were also no differences in substance use post-completion, with both groups reporting reduced use.
Conclusions	Although both groups showed some gains in employment from baseline to follow-up, overall rates of employment remained low at follow-up, averaging less than 50 total hours worked within the first three months following randomization. However, positive changes were observed related to substance use. Significant differences in the primary outcomes were not detected between the JSW and JIV interventions
URL	http://content.iospress.com/articles/journal-of-vocational-rehabilitation/jvr526
Disabilities
Populations	Male & Female \| Hispanic or Latino \| American Indian or Alaska Native
Outcomes	Employment acquisition \| Increase in hours worked \| Part-time employment
NIDILRR Funded	No
Research Design	Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs)
Peer Reviewed	Yes

Year Published

2010

Publication

Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation

Volume

33

Number

3

Pages

181-192

Publisher

IOS Press

Background

Employment problems are often significant in American Indian communities. Barriers such as historically high unemployment rates or a lack of job finding skills may contribute to lower than expected job skills and career development. Likewise, unemployment is high for those with substance abuse disorders. There is little empirical research addressing interventions for American Indians with substance abuse disorders for improving employment status.

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to implement the Job Seekers Workshop (JSW), a 12-hour job search-training program, in an American Indian addiction treatment program, and to evaluate its outcomes in comparison to the Job Interview Videos (JIV), a 40-minute two-part video.

Setting

The study setting was the Na Nizhoozhi Center (NCI) in Gallup, NM. The NCI is a 150-bed facility that provides culturally specific treatment programs to meet the needs of American Indian.

Sample

The study sample consisted of 102 individuals with American Indian heritage who were drug and/or alcohol dependent, 18 years of age or older, enrolled at NCI for at least 10 days, categorized as either unemployed (i.e., not having worked at all for the month prior to study recruitment) or underemployed (i.e., having worked no more than 20 hours/week in any
given week during the past month), and interested in obtaining a job. The majority were Navajo males.

Data Collection

The measures included several standardized instruments measuring addiction severity, current use of substances, reading ability, and life experiences. Employment information was captured using the Timeline Follow Back for Employment (TLFB-E). Two variables served as primary outcomes: 1) time (number of days) to employment, either a new taxed job or enrollment in a job-training program within the follow-up period, and 2) total hours either working or enrolled in a job-training program within the time period. Time to employment and time to enrollment in a job-training program were tested using the Cox Regression procedure. Analyses addressing the number of participants reporting employment or enrollment in a training program were conducted using Chi-square tests. Analyses focused on hours spent working or in training were conducted using an analysis of variance (ANOVA). Comparisons based on repeated measures over time were tested using multivariate repeated measures analyses of variance (MANOVA).

Control

The study used a two-group comparison design.

Findings

There were no significant differences between the JSW and JIV groups at baseline, nor were there differences in completion time of the program or time to employment at either three or six months following completion or in job-seeking behaviors. A significant difference was found on enrollment in a training program, with more participants who were involved in the JIV intervention enrolled in a training program than in the JSW intervention. Satisfaction was rated relatively high for both programs. There were also no differences in substance use post-completion, with both groups reporting reduced use.

Conclusions

Although both groups showed some gains in employment from baseline to follow-up, overall rates of employment remained low at follow-up, averaging less than 50 total hours worked within the first three months following randomization. However, positive changes were observed related to substance use. Significant differences in the primary outcomes were not detected between the JSW and JIV interventions

URL

http://content.iospress.com/articles/journal-of-vocational-rehabilitation/jvr526

Disabilities

Populations

Male & Female | Hispanic or Latino | American Indian or Alaska Native

Outcomes

Employment acquisition | Increase in hours worked | Part-time employment

NIDILRR Funded

No

Research Design

Randomized Controlled Trials (RCTs)

Peer Reviewed

Yes