A paper published in December 2010 by Abbye Andrews (undergraduate student currently training to become a clinical psychologist) and Professor John Rose has been cited as the most read article within the Journal of Policy and Practice in Intellectual Disabilities

The paper, titled ‘A Preliminary Investigation of Factors Affecting Employment Motivation in People with Intellectual Disabilities’, explores the factors which motivate people with intellectual disabilities (ID) to work. Relatively small numbers of people with ID are engaging in paid employment and those who are tend to be working only part-time. The issue was investigated in a sample of ten young work-age adults attending supported learning courses at a further education college in England. Participants were asked directly about their feelings through a focus group. A set of questions with additional prompts was used to elicit responses, and cards and scales were used as visual aids. Participants were asked about what factors motivated them to work and what factors deterred them from working. Thematic analysis of the transcribed tapes revealed three major themes that affected participants' motivation to work: monetary gain, social aspects, and perceived competence. More detailed research is needed in order to validate these findings with a larger, more representative sample. 

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