Navigating First Jobs: A Conceptual Framework for Advancing Self-Determination in High School Employment for Transition Students

Vollständiger Abstract

Worum geht es in dieser Arbeit?

Paid employment during high school is among the strongest predictors of postschool competitive integrated employment for students with disabilities. Yet, access to early work experiences and the quality of those experiences remain uneven. The existing transition research emphasizes the importance of obtaining paid work; however, there is less guidance on how to structure first jobs to promote self-determined behavior that supports long-term career development. This conceptual article advances self-determination theory (SDT) as an applied framework for understanding how first-job contexts shape motivation and functioning by satisfying the needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Building on evidence that self-determination is associated with improved employment, community participation, and quality of life, we propose the First Job Self-Determination Framework (FJ-SDF). The model specifies how (a) job design and supervision features; (b) coordinated supports and scaffolding delivered through vocational rehabilitation (VR), schools, and families; and (c) contextual moderators (e.g., culture, family expectations, disability-related needs, transportation, and scheduling demands) interact to influence SDT need satisfaction. We translate the framework into three actionable implementation steps—design autonomy, scaffold competence, and engineer belonging—and present a case vignette of a high school student with mild autism spectrum disorder who works in a hotel to illustrate applied use. A practice table maps common first-job barriers to SDT need disruptions and corresponding FJ-SDF strategies, offering concrete targets for VR counselors, employers, and transition teams. Implications emphasize shifting from placement-first practices to a quality-and-development orientation that strengthens self-advocacy, persistence, and vocational identity formation.