Self-Determination for Adults with Intellectual Disabilities: Effects on Goal Attainment

Special education and related services are undergoing a time of reformation in the United States at all levels. Self-determination in programming and life planning is becoming the expected standard of care for all individuals with an intellectual disability, regardless of severity. To that end, recent legislation has made individuals’ involvement in planning their own lives mandatory, particularly at the adult level (Department of Health and Human Services, 2014). However, there has been limited research into the effect of teaching self-determination skills to adults who attend adult day programs who are not employed. The current study seeks to examine the effect of teaching self-determination skills using the Take Action intervention package (Marshall et al., 1999) on short-term goal attainment.