Objective: Protease inhibitors and highly-active antiretroviral therapies (HAART) enhance life expectancies for individuals diagnosed with AIDS. With increased frequency, these individuals rely on rehabilitation counselors to assist them in entering or re-entering the workforce. In this study, we used the theory of planned behavior to investigate factors influencing the intentions of rehabilitation counselors to place clients diagnosed with AIDS into jobs.
Methods: Over 155 public rehabilitation job placement professionals in five southern states were interviewed to uncover salient issues related to placing individuals with disabilities into jobs. From these data, a 75-item, self-administered questionnaire was developed using constructs of the theory of planned behavior (intention, attitude, social norm and perceived behavioral control) and was sent to 186 rehabilitation counselors who provide job placement services to persons with disabilities in Alabama.
Results: Of 186 rehabilitation counselors, 81.2% (151) completed the questionnaire. Nearly 57% of respondents reported having worked with a client diagnosed with AIDS. Over 33% of respondents had an unfavorable attitude toward placing clients living with AIDS into jobs; 43% reported unfavorable subjective norms towards placing these clients into jobs; and, 59% reported having no control over whether he or she could place these client into jobs. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses revealed the significance of each theoretical construct to predict intention to place clients diagnosed with AIDS into jobs.
Conclusions: Our data suggest that deficiencies exist among rehabilitation professionals that warrant further research and intervention to improve the quality of job placement services for clients diagnosed with AIDS.
Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session, the participants will be able to:
Keywords: Disability, HIV/AIDS
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None