Investigating the Link between Unemployment and Disability
Informed by an overview of job advertisement research published during the past two decades, the purpose of this study is to address disability and employment in library and information science by investigating job ads for academic library reference positions for their written language comprehension...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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East Carolina University
2019-11-01
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| Series: | The International Journal of Information, Diversity, & Inclusion |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://jps.library.utoronto.ca/index.php/ijidi/article/view/32369 |
| _version_ | 1797935649666367488 |
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| author | Mirah J. Dow Brady D. Lund William K. Douthit |
| author_facet | Mirah J. Dow Brady D. Lund William K. Douthit |
| author_sort | Mirah J. Dow |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Informed by an overview of job advertisement research published during the past two decades, the purpose of this study is to address disability and employment in library and information science by investigating job ads for academic library reference positions for their written language comprehension qualities. With concerns for rising unemployment rates of qualified, college educated individuals with disabilities including Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and the need to increase diversity in the workforce, we conducted a multi-step content analysis of all academic library reference position advertisements (43) published by libraries in the 12 member states of a Midwestern United States regional library association. The theoretical lens for our study draws on the field of linguistics and particularly two important components of discourse, the reading of 1) words and sentences containing lexically ambiguous words and 2) fixed formulaic sequences. From the identified reference position job ads (148 pages, 16,724 words), 79 passages were coded as problematic in the announcement areas of 1) general position information (23), 2) duty and/or responsibility (34), and 3) qualifications (22). Passages were organized into 32 categorical examples of lexically ambiguous words and 15 examples of formulaic sequences that do not in our view have universal meaning and can lead to uncertainty and misunderstandings among potential applicants with and without intellectual disabilities. Examples of clear, accurate language to replace problematic language are presented. While this study focuses on job ads in the United States, it has international implications and relevance as ASD and related disabilities exist worldwide. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T18:17:25Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e7ec5a61f6504c8f9c419c03a0243e6b |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2574-3430 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T18:17:25Z |
| publishDate | 2019-11-01 |
| publisher | East Carolina University |
| record_format | Article |
| series | The International Journal of Information, Diversity, & Inclusion |
| spelling | doaj.art-e7ec5a61f6504c8f9c419c03a0243e6b2023-02-02T08:17:35ZengEast Carolina UniversityThe International Journal of Information, Diversity, & Inclusion2574-34302019-11-014110.33137/ijidi.v4i1.32369Investigating the Link between Unemployment and DisabilityMirah J. Dow0Brady D. LundWilliam K. Douthit1Emporia State UniversityEmporia State UniversityInformed by an overview of job advertisement research published during the past two decades, the purpose of this study is to address disability and employment in library and information science by investigating job ads for academic library reference positions for their written language comprehension qualities. With concerns for rising unemployment rates of qualified, college educated individuals with disabilities including Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and the need to increase diversity in the workforce, we conducted a multi-step content analysis of all academic library reference position advertisements (43) published by libraries in the 12 member states of a Midwestern United States regional library association. The theoretical lens for our study draws on the field of linguistics and particularly two important components of discourse, the reading of 1) words and sentences containing lexically ambiguous words and 2) fixed formulaic sequences. From the identified reference position job ads (148 pages, 16,724 words), 79 passages were coded as problematic in the announcement areas of 1) general position information (23), 2) duty and/or responsibility (34), and 3) qualifications (22). Passages were organized into 32 categorical examples of lexically ambiguous words and 15 examples of formulaic sequences that do not in our view have universal meaning and can lead to uncertainty and misunderstandings among potential applicants with and without intellectual disabilities. Examples of clear, accurate language to replace problematic language are presented. While this study focuses on job ads in the United States, it has international implications and relevance as ASD and related disabilities exist worldwide.https://jps.library.utoronto.ca/index.php/ijidi/article/view/32369semantic ambiguity;reference librarianjob adAutism Spectrum Disorderdisability unemployment |
| spellingShingle | Mirah J. Dow Brady D. Lund William K. Douthit Investigating the Link between Unemployment and Disability The International Journal of Information, Diversity, & Inclusion semantic ambiguity; reference librarian job ad Autism Spectrum Disorder disability unemployment |
| title | Investigating the Link between Unemployment and Disability |
| title_full | Investigating the Link between Unemployment and Disability |
| title_fullStr | Investigating the Link between Unemployment and Disability |
| title_full_unstemmed | Investigating the Link between Unemployment and Disability |
| title_short | Investigating the Link between Unemployment and Disability |
| title_sort | investigating the link between unemployment and disability |
| topic | semantic ambiguity; reference librarian job ad Autism Spectrum Disorder disability unemployment |
| url | https://jps.library.utoronto.ca/index.php/ijidi/article/view/32369 |
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