Background: This article presents an insight into the supported participation of older men with a lifelong disability in community Men's Sheds. We draw on a subsample of men from a 3-year study that explored how older people with a lifelong disability could be supported to transition to retirement from sheltered workshops. Method: Data arose from…

We examined the frequency and stability of family contact with long-term institutional residents during a major deinstitutionalization project. Movers relocated to community accommodation between Assessments 1 (baseline) and 2. Stayers remained institutionalized. We investigated family contact longitudinally over four annual assessments. There was…

This article reviews the current and changing status of residential supports for persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities (ID/DD). It examines four major trends in those supports: (1) Decreasing use of larger institutions and increasing use of community housing; (2) Decreasing size among community settings; (3) Increasing numbers…

This study provides longitudinal analysis of day program and work activities of 61 individuals leaving Minnesota state institutions and a comparison group of 71 people remaining institutionalized. Only 13% of movers experienced integrated employment. As a group, the people who remained institutionalized actually earned more money. (Author/CR)

The quality, number, and content of residential Individualized Habilitation Plans (IHP) objectives were evaluated for 155 adult institution and community residents. Over 90 percent of objectives were functional and age appropriate. Community residents had significantly more IHP objectives and also had objectives from a wider variety of content…

Personal control exercised by 74 adults from community living settings in Minnesota were evaluated. Individuals living semi-independently exercised more personal control than did residents of HCBS Waiver-funded supported living services, who had more personal control than did those living in community ICFs/MR. Personal characteristics and…

Adaptive and challenging behavior changes associated with movement from Minnesota's state institutions to community homes were examined in 148 participants with mental retardation. Adaptive behavior declined among residents who moved to community programs but was unchanged for persons who moved to Home and Community Based Services Waiver-Funded…

Consumer outcomes and recurrent service costs were compared for 31 individuals with disabilities in group homes and 56 individuals living semi-independently in Australia. Participants living semi-independently had significantly less social dissatisfaction, used community facilities more frequently and independently, participated more in domestic…

A study of 65 Australian adults with mental retardation who lived in staff-supported community residences examined the impact of size of residence on residents' opportunities for choice. Participants were interviewed and assessed using the Choice Questionnaire and other testing instruments. Results found that residents in smaller settings with…

This introductory article discusses major Australian deinstitutionalization initiatives and presents data on trends in institutional living in Australia, the United States, and the United Kingdom. All three countries continue to witness a fall in the institutional population of people with intellectual disability and an increase in community…

An examination of expenditures, staffing, and outcomes for 116 adults with severe mental retardation who moved from state institutions in Minnesota to community living settings and a comparison group of 71 persons who remained institutionalized, found community residences were less costly, had more favorable staffing, and better outcomes.…