The Importance of Building Soft Skills in Vocational Training for Youth with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities: Evidence from the Impact Project.
Background: Research has identified employment as a social inclusion priority for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and has emphasized person-centered vocational training as a predictor of future employment. The Impact Project is a summer program offered by project p...
| Published in: | Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation Vol. 64; no. 1; pp. 14 - 26 |
|---|---|
| Main Authors: | , , |
| Format: | research tables/charts Journal Article |
| Published: |
Sage Publications Inc.
Jan2026
|
| Online Access: | View this record in EBSCOhost |
| fields | @attributes: recordID: 1 pdfLink: plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ccm&AN=190326279&site=ehost-live header: @attributes: shortDbName: ccm uiTerm: 190326279 longDbName: CINAHL Complete uiTag: AN controlInfo: bkinfo: dissinfo: jinfo: jid: 10522263 3O2 jtl: Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation issn: 10522263 maglogo: N pubinfo: dt: Jan2026 vid: 64 iid: 1 pid: 344 pub: Sage Publications Inc. place: Thousand Oaks, California artinfo: ui: 190326279 189115385 190326279 190326279 10.1177/10522263251394318 190326279 ppf: 14 ppct: 12 formats: fmt: – @attributes: type: T – @attributes: type: P tig: atl: The Importance of Building Soft Skills in Vocational Training for Youth with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities: Evidence from the Impact Project. aug: au: Mudde, Laura Reid, R. Colin Hole, Rachelle affil: Canadian Institute for Inclusion and Citizenship, University of British Columbia Okanagan, Kelowna, Canada sug: subj: Skill Acquisition Social Skills Vocational Education Intellectual Disability Developmental Disabilities Employment of Persons with Disabilities Human Qualitative Studies Confidence Social Capital British Columbia Adolescence Male Female Multimethod Studies Funding Source Adolescent: 13-18 years Male Female ab: Background: Research has identified employment as a social inclusion priority for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and has emphasized person-centered vocational training as a predictor of future employment. The Impact Project is a summer program offered by project partners in British Columbia, Canada, that provides youth with IDD vocational training to improve their employment experiences in preparation for future employment. Objective: This study explicates the importance of soft skills in vocational training identified by youth and their parents/carers regarding attained employment experiences during the Impact Project (2020–2022). Methods: This study evaluates qualitative data from youth and their parents/carers who reflected on their vocational training and attained employment experiences. Results: Qualitative findings highlight the significance of soft skills, namely confidence, social capital, and job readiness in the youth's employment experiences and outcomes. Youth and parent/carer observations about these soft skills add insight to understanding positive employment outcomes from the Impact Project. Conclusion: Qualitative data from the Impact Project (2020–2022) illuminate how soft skills contributed to the youth's employment experiences. These findings contextualize quantitative employment outcomes and can guide vocational training programs for youth with IDD in preparation for future employment. pubtype: Academic Journal doctype: research tables/charts Journal Article ougenre: Article language: English refInfo: holdings: @attributes: islocal: N |
|---|