Self-Determination and Positive Adult Outcomes: A Follow-Up Study of Youth with Mental Retardation or Learning Disabilities

There is increased emphasis on self-determination as an important outcome for youth with disabilities if they are to achieve positive adult outcomes after they leave school. However, the causal link between self-determination and positive adult outcomes has remained untested. The Arc conducted a follow-up study of students with mental retardation or learning disabilities for whom data regarding self-determination had been collected prior to their high school exit. Data regarding adult outcomes for these students nearly 1 year after graduation were collected. The resulting analysis determined that self-determined students were more likely to have achieved more positive adult outcomes, including being employed at a higher rate and earning more per hr than peers who were not self-determined. A framework for promoting self-determination as an educational outcome is presented. From 1989 to 1993 the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education Programs funded a series of model-demonstration projects to promote self-determination for youth with disabilities (Ward & Kohler, 1996). This funding initiative was implemented in response to (a) the growing body of literature indicating that students with disabilities were graduating to generally disappointing adult outcomes (Chadsey-Rusch, Rusch, & O'Reilly, 1991) and (b) the call from people with disabilities for increased choice and more control over decisions that impact their lives (Gagne, 1994; Kennedy, 1996). Self-determination has been identified as a critical outcome of the transition process for students with disabilities (Halloran, 1993; Wehman, 1993).