View clinical trials related to Unemployment.
Filter by:The current study aims to test the efficacy of iJobs, an online intervention for the unemployed. iJobs is an online adaptation of the JOBS program.
The aim of this study is to test the feasibility and acceptability of a web-based adaptation of the Jobs program (developed by Curran et al., 1999).
The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) offers robust vocational programming that have helped countless Veterans obtain competitive employment; however, these services are not uniformly effective as recent data suggests that only 35 to 43% of Veterans are competitively employed at time of discharge. For those who become competitively employed, job tenure may be brief, which is often attenuated by underemployment or poor person-job fit. Moreover, only 3.5% of Veterans experiencing vocational problems engage in vocational services offered by the VHA. On average, it takes Veterans more than four years to utilize vocational services. These Veterans are at high risk of acquiring multiple functional losses and developing chronic disabilities as their vocational needs go unmet for years. Research suggests that intrinsic factors like lacking clear vocational goals, perceiving barriers to employment, and negative beliefs about one's ability to work contribute to low engagement, outcomes, and tenure of some consumers of vocational rehabilitation services. Thus, the VA may be able to improve vocational engagement, outcomes, and tenure of Veterans with psychiatric disorders by enhancing vocational services with added interventions targeting unhelpful psychological factors. Career counseling and development services have been shown to be effective in helping civilian populations clarify vocational goals and identity, enhance vocational self-efficacy, and increase proactive vocational behaviors in the face of obstacles. Additionally, career counseling and development services help facilitate greater "match" between a person and their job, and person-job match is a key determinant of long-term career tenure among individual with psychiatric disorders. The researchers of this project propose a three-aim study to develop a career counseling and development intervention for Veterans with psychiatric disorders (Purposeful Pathways). The first aim will focus on the design and development of the Purposeful Pathways intervention with veteran and provider input (n=16). The second aim will pilot test the intervention in an open trial (n=10) to gather Veteran input on the initial intervention. The third and final aim will consist of a feasibility pilot randomized controlled trial (n=50) to examine acceptability and feasibility outcomes and to explore the impact of the Purposeful Pathways intervention in terms of functional improvement and other vocational outcomes. Purposeful Pathways consists of up to 12 individual sessions that will be offered concurrently with existing VHA vocational rehabilitation services, (e.g., transitional work experience [TWE]). The final product of this study is to produce a manual of Purposeful Pathways, and corresponding fidelity monitoring checklist, to be tested later in a larger efficacy trial.
This project's aims are twofold (1) to uncover and define the underlying theories of change guiding competing active labor market programs (ALMP) in Sweden, and (2) to assess the relative effectiveness of these competing programs in a theory-based non-randomized controlled trial. The purpose is to assess the extent to which competing ALMPs are effective in moving long-term unemployed individuals (i.e. unemployed for 6 months or more) closer to the labor-market.
Many persons living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) are unemployed, with estimates indicating rates as high as 60%. This study will examine the efficacy of reinforcing job-acquisition activities for improving employment outcomes in PLWHA who desire to return to the workforce in part- or full-time capacity. In total, this study will randomly assign 144 unemployed PLWHA to one of two interventions. All participants will receive usual unemployment services with an emphasis on specific issues related to HIV/AIDS, plus encouragement for completing activities geared toward employment readiness and acquisition. The enhanced intervention will involve that same treatment plus chances to win prizes for engaging in job-related activities each week. Participants will receive study treatments for 16 weeks and complete follow-up evaluations throughout 18 months. The hypothesis is that participants reinforced for completing job-related activities will transition to employment at higher and faster rates and work more often than those who are not reinforced for job-related activities.
64,000 Veterans are released annually from jails and prisons. These Veterans have a weekly unemployment rate of up to 40-55%. However, many are unable to access traditional vocational rehabilitation, not to mention specialized vocational rehabilitation for those with felony histories. Distance learning may be effective in improving access to rehabilitation as well as improving employment outcomes. The Compass system was developed to incorporate both synchronous and asynchronous distance learning to provide effective services. This study will evaluate 150 Veterans with histories of legal convictions and mental illness and/or a substance use disorder. Veterans will be randomly assigned to either a basic vocational resources condition or the the Compass condition. In the basic condition, Veterans will be provided with basic information about where they can access vocational services and a paper version of a vocational reintegration manual, specifically the About Face Vocational Manual. Veterans assigned to the Compass condition will be given access to the online instruction through Videos, live chat features, and tele-health practice interviews with feedback. Veterans will be followed for 6 months. The primary outcomes are employment and interview skills.
A significant portion of Veterans who apply for disability benefits have difficulty finding and sustaining employment, and are concerned that working for pay will jeopardize their receipt of service-connection benefits. In a completed clinical trial, Veterans who received Motivational Interview-formatted counseled about opportunities to work and receive service-connection went on to work for pay significantly more often than controls. The proposed clinical trial will test this counseling's efficacy when it is delivered by an automated computer program.
Despite recent improvements in the US economy, unemployment remains a significant concern, and estimates indicate that one-third of unemployed persons drink at hazardous levels, adversely impacting their health and abilities to find jobs. Reinforcement interventions are highly efficacious in reducing substance use, and they can be applied to increase job-seeking activities as well. In partnership with CT United Labor Agency, this project is designed to reduce hazardous drinking and enhance active participation in job-seeking activities among those with job loss. It will evaluate the independent and combined effects of reinforcing negative breathalyzer samples and job-seeking activities to ascertain the simplest and most cost-effective approach to improving outcomes in this population. Unemployed individuals with hazardous drinking (N = 280) will be randomly assigned to one of four conditions using a 2 x 2 design: standard care, standard care with reinforcement for submitting negative breathalyzer samples, standard care with reinforcement for job-seeking activities, or standard care plus reinforcement for both negative breathalyzer samples and job-seeking activities. Participants in all conditions will receive usual services part of CT United Labor Agency, along with a novel remote breath alcohol monitoring procedure. The study interventions will be in effect for three months, and participants will be followed for one year. Alcohol and other drug use, employment, psychiatric symptoms, and global measures of health will be assessed throughout treatment and follow-up. Reinforcing negative breathalyzer samples is expected to significantly reduce drinking, and reinforcing job-seeking activities is expected to increase re-employment rates and reduce time until job attainment. Reinforcing both negative breathalyzer samples and job-seeking activities is hypothesized to improve outcomes along both domains. The reinforcement interventions may also decrease psychiatric distress and slow progression of physical decline, common among the unemployed. If efficacious and cost-effective, results from this study may stimulate adoption of reinforcement interventions in the context of unemployment services. Reducing the adverse consequences of hazardous drinking and improving job re-entry may have pronounced benefits in a highly vulnerable segment of the US population.
The share of young workers falling into early work disability is an increasingly important problem in Norway. Early withdrawal or exclusion from the labor market leads to large individual and societal costs. The SEED-trial is a randomized controlled trial aiming to provide evidence-based knowledge about different approaches to prevent permanent disability and increase labor market participation in this important and vulnerable group. The trial includes young adults aged 18-30 years who are at risk of early work disability, and the participants will be randomly assigned to 1 of 2 interventions, both aimed at facilitating participation in working life: 1. Traditional Vocational Rehabilitation (TVR), offering training and preparation for the labor market in a sheltered environment 2. Supported Employment (SE), focusing on competitive employment in real-life settings without long-lasting preceding training Both interventions are currently provided by The Norwegian Labor and Welfare Administration (NAV). Supported Employment was introduced recently and is currently being implemented, while traditional vocational rehabilitation with sheltered employment has been around for years. However, no Norwegian controlled studies have been conducted on these practices in this population. The current study will therefore provide new knowledge of the effect of traditional as well as new and promising interventions to increase labor market participation and prevent early disability.
The purpose of this study is to compare 6 monthly counseling sessions to 6 monthly information sessions on Veterans' decisions to (a) participate in vocational rehabilitation services and (b) become employed.