Predicting and Assessing Work Performance of People with Limited Work Capacity (LWC): A Multi-Wave, Multi-Source Study.

Purpose Occupational integration is vital for the health of all people, also for people with Limited Work Capacity (LWC). Therefore, participation in regular work is a legal right for people that are restricted in their work capacity due to a disability and/or lack sufficient education. Full and effective integration is dependent on the person-job fit, and adequate vocational support should focus on meeting performance standards, as is common practice in traditional personnel selection and development programmes. Despite the huge amount of valid instruments for personnel selection and development, these tests are not suitable people with LWC. Recently, an instrument was developed for assessment and development purposes specifically for this target group. That study provided evidence for reliability and dimensionality this instrument. In our study, we add criterion-related measures to this instrument to demonstrate that assessment at T1 predict performance at T2, thus validating the instrument. Method We conducted a four-source data study, two sources for independent and two for outcome variables, to test the predictive validity of this instrument in a multi-wave setup. Results This study largely supports the validity of the instrument in predicting work behaviour and task performance of people with LWC. More specific, when measures are tailored to this target group, this group is able to predict their work behaviour and task performance accurately just like the general population. Conclusion We conclude that this instrument contributes to science, vocational support practices, and the personal and professional development of people with LWC, which is required for sustainable work.

The Development of an Instrument to Measure the Work Capability of People with Limited Work Capacity (LWC).

Purpose Participation in regular paid jobs positively affects mental and physical health of all people, including people with limited work capacities (LWC), people that are limited in their work capacity as a consequence of their disability, such as chronic mental illness, psychological or developmental disorder. For successful participation, a good fit between on one hand persons' capacities and on the other hand well-suited individual support and a suitable work environment is necessary in order to meet the demands of work. However, to date there is a striking paucity of validated measures that indicate the capability to work of people with LWC and that outline directions for support that facilitate the fit. Goal of the present study was therefore to develop such an instrument. Specifically, we adjusted measures of mental ability, conscientiousness, self-efficacy, and coping by simplifying the language level of these measures to make the scales accessible for people with low literacy. In order to validate these adjusted self-report and observer measures we conducted two studies, using multi-source, longitudinal data. Method Study 1 was a longitudinal multi-source study in which the newly developed instrument was administered twice to people with LWC and their significant other. We statistically tested the psychometric properties with respect to dimensionality and reliability. In Study 2, we collected new multi-source data and conducted a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Results Studies yielded a congruous factor structure in both samples, internally consistent measures with adequate content validity of scales and subscales, and high test-retest reliability. The CFA confirmed the factorial validity of the scales. Conclusion The adjusted self-report and the observer scales of mental ability, conscientiousness, self-efficacy, and coping are reliable measures that are well-suited to assess the work capability of people with LWC. Further research is needed to examine criterion-related validity with respect to the work demands such as work-behaviour and task performance.

Lending a Helping Hand at Work: A Multilevel Investigation of Prosocial Motivation, Inclusive Climate and Inclusive Behavior.

Purpose People with disabilities often encounter difficulties at the workplace such as exclusion or unfair treatment. Researchers have therefore pointed to the need to focus on behavior that fosters inclusion as well as variables that are antecedents of such 'inclusive behavior'. Therefore the purpose of this study was to research the relationship between prosocial motivation, team inclusive climate and employee inclusive behavior. Method A survey was conducted among a sample of 282 paired employees and colleagues, which were nested in 84 teams. Employees self-rated prosocial motivation and team inclusive climate, their inclusive behavior was assessed by colleagues. Hypotheses were tested using multilevel random coefficient modeling. Results Employees who are prosocially motivated will display more inclusive behavior towards people with disabilities, and this relationship is moderated by team inclusive climate in such a way that the relationship is stronger when the inclusive climate is high. Conclusion This study shows that inclusive organizations, which value a diverse workforce, need to be aware of not only individual employee characteristics, but also team level climate to ensure the smooth integrations of people with disabilities into regular work teams.

Toward More Inclusive Work Organizations by Redesigning Work.

Inclusive Work Redesign (IWR) is an innovative strategy to create feasible job opportunities for job seekers from vulnerable groups at the labor market, in particular people with disabilities, in such a way that it contributes to sustainable employment for all staff and to the organization's performance. As an element of active labor market policies (ALMP), in the Netherlands, IWR is used as an instrument for Public Employment Services (PES) and professionals in occupational rehabilitation to support employers, using a demand-oriented approach. IWR is also a potential valuable asset for strategic human resource management (SHRM) aimed at inclusion and sustainable employment. The article describes IWR in the context of social security and staffing problems of organizations, and the application of IWR in the Netherlands and Germany.