Different paths to justice: the ADA, employment, and administrative enforcement by the EEOC and FEPAs

Under Title I of the ADA, individuals who believe they have been subjected to disability-based employment discrimination may file an administrative charge. This article looks at who files charges; over what issues, and with what outcomes in both Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) field offices, and state and local fair employment practice agencies (FEPAs). The data for the article are computerized records of all ADA charges filed through March 31, 1998. The data indicate that individuals who rely on a FEPA to investigate their charge have a greater likelihood of obtaining a beneficial outcome than individuals who rely on the EEOC, but proportionately more individuals receiving a beneficial outcome are likely to receive monetary benefits from the EEOC than from a FEPA. Further, those who receive beneficial outcomes will probably receive greater monetary benefits from charges investigated by the EEOC than from those investigated by a FEPA.     

Empirical study of the Americans with Disabilities Act: employment issues from 1990 to 1994

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 is the most comprehensive federal civil rights law addressing discrimination against one-fifth of the American population. This article is meant to contribute to the emerging dialogue on ADA implementation by presenting information from a longitudinal investigation of employment integration and economic opportunity under the employment provisions of the ADA, set forth in Title I of the act. The broader relevance of the investigation to emerging questions under Title I law is described. Thereafter, the investigation's seven core findings are presented, and then the implications for future investigation of the ADA are examined.     

Adolescent romantic relationships as a tug of war: The interplay of power imbalance and relationship duration in adolescent dating aggression

The present study investigates the link between power imbalance within the romantic couple and psychological, relational and physical adolescent dating aggression (ADA) perpetration, considering also the role of relationship duration as an indicator of the developmental stage of the relationship. This is the first investigation into whom is perceived to have power in the relationship (the partner or the subject him/herself) by distinguishing between male and female adolescents. Participants were 805 Italian adolescents (36.1% males; 63.9% females) aged 14–20 years (M_age = 17.16 years, SD_age = 1.34), all reporting having been in a romantic relationship currently or within the past 6 months. Males perceiving a balanced relationship reported lower levels of psychological ADA perpetration, and they perpetrated more relational ADA in longer relationships where the partner is perceived to have the power. No significant findings emerged regarding physical ADA. Females perceiving themselves as having the power in the relationship reported higher levels of psychological and physical ADA perpetration. They perpetrated more relational ADA when they perceived the partner as having the power in the relationship. Also, females in longer relationships in which power was not perceived as equally shared between partners reported higher physical ADA perpetration. Finally, for both males and females, longer relationships were characterized by higher levels of ADA toward the partner. Findings highlight the importance of studying the interplay between power imbalance and relationship duration on ADA perpetration, and provide the way to understand possible functions of ADA within a romantic relationship.     

Will the costs of accommodating workers with disabilities remain low?

Whether the costs of job accommodation remain low as more persons with disabilities enter the work force is a crucial issue in evaluating the progress of the employment provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Much depends on the extent to which health and economic factors thought to raise or lower the costs of accommodation to employers actually predict accommodation outcomes. An empirical model of employer accommodation is specified and tested with data on a representative sample of Americans in their fifties. Among others, the results show that both the likelihood and extent of job accommodation are significantly influenced by cost-increasing and cost-decreasing factors, in each case in the direction predicted by the model. Inferences about the future trajectory of the costs of job accommodation and the employment effects of the ADA are discussed. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The Economic Benefits of Increased Treatment Duration and Intensity in Residential and Outpatient Substance Abuse Treatment Settings

This study presents estimates of the economic benefits to society from community-based substance abuse treatment. The analysis focused on the impact of length of stay and frequency of counseling on clients' crime-related and health care costs, welfare receipts, and income taxes. The results indicate that the benefits from an additional day of treatment were on average $21 for short-term residential treatment (or 29% the cost of a day of care), $13 for outpatient drug-free treatment (or 94% the cost of a day of care), and $5 for long-term residential treatment (or 9% the cost of a day of care). No benefits were found from additional counseling provided by a client's primary therapist. Withthe exception of short-term residential care, estimated increases in client earnings from longer lengths of stayexceeded the benefits to society. Our estimates do not include benefits realized during treatment or beyond the year after treatment.     

Longitudinal trajectories of perpetration of adolescent dating abuse in a national sample

Despite extensive research regarding patterns and outcomes of victimization in dating relationships, there has been limited investigation of the developmental profiles of the perpetration of adolescent dating abuse (ADA). We estimated longitudinal latent growth models of ADA perpetration in a sample of 2,269 U.S. adolescents/young adults ages 12–18 at baseline, drawing on four waves (2013–2017) of data from the nationally representative Survey of Teen Relationships and Intimate Violence. Model results revealed three classes representing “nondaters,” respondents showing “increasing dating/ADA,” and respondents with “high/stable dating/ADA.” Results support prior research finding heightened patterns of ADA perpetration by older youth, and distinguish individual and family characteristics associated with adolescent/young adults’ ADA perpetration for the purpose of informing individual and programmatic prevention efforts.     

Reasonable accommodation for employees with mental disabilities: a mandate for effective supervision?

Reasonable accommodation under Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) for employees with mental disabilities is explored from a behavior analytic perspective. Although much of the attention in issues of reasonable accommodation is concentrated on persons with physical disabilities, it is argued that the needs of individuals with mental disabilities are in greater need of further study. The criteria for successful accommodation in the workplace for employees with mental disabilities is seen to be structurally different, but functionally similar to successful accommodations for employees with physical disabilities, and is based on the development of enabling environments. Behavior analysis offers a theoretical basis and performance management presents a methodological basis for analyzing, developing, implementing, and evaluating reasonable accommodation for persons with mental disabilities, largely in terms of effective supervision. It is concluded that Title I of the ADA may be seen as providing a mandate for effective supervision, which may also be extended to all employees.     

Applicability of the ADA to "Ticket to Work" employment networks. Americans with Disabilities Act

This article examines the applicability of the antidiscrimination provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 to The Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act (TWWIIA) passed in 1999. Among other policy changes, under the Ticket to Work program, eligible recipients of disability insurance (SSDI) and supplemental income (SSI) receive a voucher or "ticket" to obtain services from qualified employment networks (ENs). ENs provide employment services and supports to designated beneficiaries and must meet certain qualification requirements. The ADA is applicable to ENs in several ways: primarily, in the EN's responsibility to provide appropriate access and services to program participants. This article discusses application of the ADA to the Ticket Program as ENs begin to serve program beneficiaries.     

A multiple-attribute decision-making approach to assess the disability of visually impaired workers

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) has redefined employability and disability. The measurement and evaluation of the disabled worker's residual capabilities, in terms of worker strengths and weaknesses, job requirements and work environment, is the first step to comply with the ADA. This study presents an application of multiple-attribute decision-making procedures. The task is to develop a single index for use in assessing the disability of visually impaired workers through a consideration of factors defined by the U.S. Employment Service for successful job performance. The index can also be used to identify and prioritize the need for reasonable accommodation and to match visually impaired workers to appropriate employment.     

Employment of individuals with mental disabilities: business response to the ADA's challenge

This research examines the response of the business community to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) with specific focus on the employment of those with mental disabilities. The ADA is viewed as an important "rational myth" in that it represents both a legal and normative demand with which businesses are expected to comply. Yet employers' responses will be influenced by their attitudes toward persons with mental disabilities as well as their concern with legal sanction for discriminatory behaviors. A telephone survey was completed in a southern metropolitan area with a random sample of 117 businesses in order to access the knowledge employers have about the ADA (and its inclusion of those with mental disabilities), the compliance with the ADA, the employment practices, and the role played by stigma in the employment of individuals with mental disabilities. In terms of specific practices which indicated compliance with the ADA, a little over one-third of the companies which were surveyed by telephone had a Title 1 implementation plan, 15% had specific policies for hiring those with mental disabilities, and 37.6% had indeed hired such an individual. The role of coercive and normative rationales for compliance to the ADA was examined. It was found that receiving formal information about the ADA, threat of legal sanction, and previous employment of those with mental disabilities were all significant predictors of compliance with the ADA. Stigmatizing attitudes did not predict compliance, though employers did view those with mental disabilities with more discomfort than other types of employees.     

Sustainable Environmental Development: The Moderating Role of Environmental Identity

This study develops and tests a model of Chinese residents' evaluation of government developmental activities based on identity theory and social exchange theory. The study proposes hypotheses regarding the influences of perceived benefits and environmental identity on residents' satisfaction with the government, the moderating role of environmental identity in the relationship between perceived benefits and satisfaction, and the effect of satisfaction on residents' support intentions. The model is tested with data collected from 474 residents of four cities in China. Results show environmental identity, along with perceived economic and environmental benefits, plays a very important role in residents' satisfaction with the government. The significant moderating role of environmental identity suggests differential effects of perceived benefits on satisfaction are observed based on the level of environmental identity. Satisfaction is found to be important for obtaining residents' support for the government and future environmental development. Implications of the study are discussed.     

The assessment of attitudes toward individuals with disabilities in the workplace

The authors conducted 2 studies to develop and test measures that assess beliefs about what constitutes a disability, affective reactions to working with individuals with disabilities, and beliefs about the reasonableness of workplace accommodations, in general and within the context of the Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA). The results of these 2 studies showed substantial differences in what was considered to be a disability. In general, more physical and sensory-motor conditions were considered disabilities than were psychological conditions. Furthermore, the conditions believed to be disabilities did not necessarily match what is covered by the ADA. Gender and experience with individuals who are disabled were also found to predict affective reactions and the reasonableness of accommodations. Implications for organizations are discussed.     

Persons with disabilities

In 1990, the United States Congress enacted legislation protecting the civil rights of persons with disabilities. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) (1990) has been termed the most significant civil rights legislation since the 1960s (Rothstein, 1992/1994; see also Drimmer, 1993; Gostin & Beyer, 1993). The intent of the ADA is to provide “not only equal treatment [for persons with disabilities], but also equal opportunity” (Rothstein, 1992, p. 19, emphasis in original). The purpose of the ADA is not only to eliminate intentional discrimintion, but also to change “policies and practices that have a discriminatory impact” on persons with disabilities (p. 19). The ADA was implemented in the wake of decades of growing awareness of and responses to the numerous societal barriers confronted by persons with disabilities. The civil rights movement for persons with disabilities was spawned by grass roots movements (Scotch, 1984). Over time, this civil rights movement has been aided by behavioral science research as well as by legal actions (see, e.g., Scotch, 1984, 1988; see also Ainlay, Becker, & Coleman, 1986; Asch & Fine, 1988; Rothstein, 1992/1994; Shapiro, 1993). It is still too early to assess the ultimate success of the specific ADA legislation, much less the general disability-rights, advocacy movement. Nevertheless, as the articles in this special issue of Behavioral Sciences and the Law reflect, the behavioral-science-and-law community has much to contribute to the elimination of the marginalization of persons with disabilities in modern society. As shown in the articles in this issue, these efforts can include a) assessing progress in light of legislation and policy reforms, b) identifying on-going barriers, and c) offering ideas for different ways to conceptualize not only the problems, but also the solutions to problems confronting persons with disabilities. Ultimately, these and the other efforts being undertaken in the legal, social, and political arenas should help in the fight to fully integrate persons with disabilities into every part of the social fabric. The issue begins with two articles that report on empirical research. First, Professor Peter Blanck presents results from his longitudinal study of the ADA. Specifically, Professor Blanck has been examining employment integration and economic opportunity. His article summarizes the findings from his program of research: There are seven core findings, indicating both successes in employment (e.g., an increase of employment in integrated work settings) as well as continuing concerns (e.g., wage disparities as a function of gender; a leveling off of economic opportunities). The other empirical study is presented by Professor Delbert Rounds. Professor Rounds interviewed individuals with legal blindness in order to learn about their experiences of criminal victimization. One of only a handful of studies on the impact of crime on persons with disabilities, the research indicates that although individuals with legal blindness may not be victimized at rates different than sighted persons, the legally-blind appear to be vulnerable to specific kinds of victimization and their victimization experiences may differ from other crime victims' experiences. The remaining five articles assess different issues related to persons with disabilities. All draw, to some degree, on behavioral science research to argue for the elimination of barriers to persons with disabilities so that they can share the same social and legal rights and responsibilities as non-disabled persons. Professor Harlan Hahn offers a sociopolitical definition of disability. Instead of conceptualizing disability as a functional impairment, Professor Hahn advocates the use of a minority model that stresses attitudinal discrimination as the principal problem facing disabled persons. Professor Hahn suggests that the reconceptualization of disability could benefit persons with disabilities in both social scientific and legal contexts. For example, it would focus social scientific investigations on such issues as the concept of aesthetic anxiety. Research undertaken in light of the minority/attitudinal model, Professor Hahn argues, could have the same positive consequences in aiding persons with disabilities in their fight for legal and social equality as did social scientific research regarding race issues. Professor Michael Perlin presents a different twist on sociopolitical implications of disability issues. He shows how a seemingly “minor” decision by the United States Supreme Court in the mental disability case of Godinez v. Moran (establishing a unitary standard for the determinations of competence to stand trial, competence to plead guilty, and competence to waive counsel) had a substantial influence on the way in which the courts recently handled the high-visibility case of Colin Ferguson. Ferguson, a very bright but mentally disabled Black man, was the defendant charged with the murder of six people and the wounding of 19 others. Professor Perlin uses the filters of sanism and pretextuality to examine the Ferguson trial and to provide insight into how the American criminal justice system reacts to defendants with mental disabilities. Whereas Professor Perlin analyzed criminal law issues that disenabled persons with mental disabilities rather than enabled them, Professor Roger Levesque analyzes recent civil law reforms that have the same consequence. Professor Levesque's focus is on the way in which laws (statutes and case decisions) have intruded on the rights to engage in sexual, marital, and parental relationships. His analyses are very similar to Professor Perlin's in the demonstration of sanist and pretextual approaches to these issues taken by the law. Professor Levesque advocates that the law adopt the approach taken by many (but not all) social scientists — viz., the examination of behavior in context without preconceived, moralistic positions, resulting in individual assessments of competency — in order to provide a better understanding of rights and abilities for persons with mental disabilities, and, ultimately, an end to restrictive legal rules. Professor Donald Hantula and Ms. Noreen Reilly also focus on persons with mental disabilities. They contend that under the reasonable accommodation provisions of the ADA, persons with mental disabilities should and could have successful employment opportunities if only the social and managerial environments were to be modified. Professor Hantula and Ms. Reilly suggest the use of behavior analysis and performance management perspectives as bases for analyzing, developing, implementing, and evaluating reasonable accommodation for persons with mental disabilities. They also argue that the changes needed for persons with disabilities would actually benefit non-disabled employees as well. Finally, Dr. McCay Vernon, Dr. Lawrence Raifman, and Professor Sheldon Greenberg analyze the problems associated with providing Miranda Warnings to deaf suspects. They provide caselaw, empirical, and analytical evidence demonstrating that present law enforcement practices fail to inform deaf suspects of their legal rights, resulting in adverse consequences for both law enforcement and the suspects. Dr. Vernon and his colleagues identify techniques that not only promote an awareness of the problems, but also help to address the problems for criminal justice officials and for deaf suspects.     

Children of divorce in a Scandinavian welfare state: Are they less affected than US children?

A fairly common view holds that children's risks of negative outcomes associated with family dissolution are generally small or even nonexistent in Scandinavia, and clearly smaller than what is usually found in the United States. This view was empirically examined in a recent large-scale study of 4,127 12–15-year-old children in Norway, of whom 623 had experienced parental divorce and lived in a single-mother family. The somewhat paradoxical pattern of findings was as follows: (a) The negative associations between parental divorce and various outcomes were found to be generally very similar in Norway and the United States in spite of the great differences in family policy and welfare benefits for single mothers (at the macro level); and (b) Mediational effects of family economic resources were in both countries most marked for the academic achievement area, and the predictive power of such variables was quite similar, again in spite of the great differences in absolute level of the economic resources available to single-mother families in the two countries. The results cast some doubt on the value of the absolute economic deprivation perspective in explaining the results, and the many Norwegian welfare benefits do not seem to mitigate the association between divorce and negative outcomes for the children involved. Also policy implications derived from the economic deprivation perspective are questioned. Alternative interpretations of the findings involving relative deprivation and economic resources as a partial proxy for other non-economic factors are briefly discussed.     

Cognitive Constraints on How Economic Rewards Affect Cooperation

ABSTRACT— Cooperation often fails to spread in proportion to its potential benefits. This phenomenon is captured by prisoner's dilemma games, in which cooperation rates appear to be determined by the distinctive structure of economic incentives (e.g., $3 for mutual cooperation vs. $5 for unilateral defection). Rather than comparing economic values of cooperating versus not ($3 vs. $5), we tested the hypothesis that players simply compare numeric values (3 vs. 5), such that subjective numbers (mental magnitudes) are logarithmically scaled. Supporting our hypothesis, increasing only numeric values of rewards (from $3 to 300¢) increased cooperation ( Study 1 ), whereas increasing economic values increased cooperation only when there were also numeric increases ( Study 2 ). Thus, changing rewards from 3¢ to 300¢ increased cooperation rates, but an economically identical change from 3¢ to $3 elicited no gains. Finally, logarithmically scaled reward values predicted 97% of variation in cooperation, whereas the face value of economic rewards predicted none. We conclude that representations of numeric value constrain how economic rewards affect cooperation.     

The effects of impairments on employment and wages: estimates from the 1984 and 1990 SIPP

Unlike the minority groups covered by civil rights laws in the past, the disabled population is a heterogeneous group. Because of differences in the nature and onset of health conditions, it is important to study the labor market experiences of different impairment groups separately, rather than treating "disabled workers" as a single group. This article uses data from the 1984 and the 1990 panels of the Survey of Income and Program Participation to analyze trends in the employment and wages of six impairment groups in the years immediately preceding the ADA. The results confirm the diversity of labor market experiences within the disabled population and suggest that policies designed to improve labor market outcomes for workers with disabilities in response to the ADA should be targeted to the different needs of different impairment groups.     

How Can Ethics Support Innovative Health Care for an Aging Population?

The rapidly expanding aging population presents an urgent global challenge cutting through just about every dimension of worldly life, including the social, political, cultural, and economic. Developing innovations in health and assistive technology (AT) are poised to support effective and sustainable health care in the face of this challenge, yet there is scant (but growing) discussion of the ethical issues surrounding AT for older persons with dementia. Demands for ethical frameworks that can respond to frontline dilemmas regarding AT development and provision, and how the needs of aging persons themselves are defined throughout this development process, are increasing. This article suggests that fulfilling the promises of AT to provide effective and ethically informed solutions may demand shifting away from standard bioethical analyses that centralize the principle of respect for autonomy. An autonomy-centric paradigm is dubiously equipped to theorize the foundational ethical issues in dementia care and to effectively guide AT development and implementation. An agency-centered approach to dementia care, which could engage more adaptively with the perspectives and choices of older persons themselves while offering strong support to AT research and stakeholders, may offer an attractive alternative.     

When is individual mobility costly? The role of economic and social identity factors

Two studies considered when the individual mobility strategy of attending university has psychological costs in terms of poor adjustment to university life. Study 1, (N = 74) examined both economic considerations affecting university choice and identity‐related factors among open day attendees. Expected identification as a university student and preparedness for university life was affected by economic factors (economic benefit of university attendance and status of the considered universities) but also negatively related to perceived incompatibility with one's social background. These findings were replicated in a longitudinal study in which students' perceptions were assessed before entering university (T1), after being at university for two months (T2) and again after being at university for 8 months (T3; N = 109). Social class (T1) predicted perceived incompatibility but not economic factors. In addition, economic factors and incompatibility predicted group identification (T2) but only perceived incompatibility predicted longer‐term identification (T3). Belief that university education serves as a successful individual mobility strategy (T3) was indirectly negatively affected by initial incompatibility (T1), but positively with perceiving economic benefits of a university degree (T1). Implications for the (economic) benefits versus (identity) costs of individual mobility strategies are discussed. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The effect of relational benefits in loyalty programmes: Evidence from Chinese milk formula customer clubs

Although the value of relational benefits has been recognised in customer relationship management, the impact of these benefits on loyalty behaviours is yet to be investigated in the context of loyalty clubs. Little is known why some loyalty programmes outperform others. By using both qualitative and quantitative research approaches, this research developed and estimated a conceptual model that describes the interaction of key relational benefits and their contributions to customer loyalty in a set of milk formula customer clubs in China. Data were collected from 300 Chinese infant milk formula buyers, including both customer club members and nonmembers. This study confirms that the customer‐confidence benefits and identity‐related benefits precede other loyalty rewards and strengthen other loyalty incentives in a loyalty programme. The economic benefits and information‐sharing benefits play a mediating role and contribute directly to customer loyalty. The findings of this research help better understand the mechanism behind loyalty behaviours in customer clubs.     

High ambient temperature reduces rate of body-weight loss produced by wheel running

This study examined the effect of ambient temperature (AT) on the relationship between activity and weight loss. Compared with a neutral AT of 21°C, high ATs of 27–29°C produced a slower rate of weight loss in rats given 1.5-hr food access and 22.5-hr running-wheel access in a standard activity-based anorexia (ABA) procedure (Experiments 1 and 2). The high AT did not affect food intake or wheel running in Experiment 1, but did reduce running in Experiment 2. Switching from neutral to high AT had only a transient effect on weight loss when wheel access was maintained (Experiment 2) but resulted in less weight loss when wheel access was prevented (Experiment 3). Giving rats only 3 hr of wheel access each day at a neutral AT also produced substantial weight loss, but less if for the rest of each day they were maintained at a high AT (Experiment 4).