Background Image Alternative Text: Two people analyzing papers of pie charts and graphs. On the desk is a tablet, with a woman adjusting the screen with a stylus.

Leveraging National and Social Media Data to Explore Employment Trends, Outcomes, and Needs

Purpose

The purpose of this project is to explore employment trends, outcomes, and needs of people who are blind or have low vision (B/LV), including outcomes of people who are deafblind, providing insight into their post-pandemic employment experiences using publicly available data from large national datasets and a social media platform.

Research Questions

  1. How do employment rates and earnings of people who are B/LV vary by individual factors?
  2. How do employment rates and earnings of people who are deafblind vary by individual factors?
  3. Are the relationships between specific occupations and earnings the same for workers who are B/LV as for sighted workers?
  4. What individual and work-related factors are associated with remote work for people who are B/LV?
  5. To what extent is remote work associated with increasing employment rates for people who are B/LV?
  6. How do employment rates for people who are B/LV vary spatially across counties, and what geographic patterns emerge?
  7. What environmental factors are associated with county-level employment rates of people who are B/LV?
  8. How do employment rates for people who are deafblind vary spatially across counties, and what geographic patterns emerge?
  9. What environmental factors are associated with county-level employment rates of people who are deafblind?
  10. What are the most common themes in social media discussions related to employment of people who are B/LV? How have these themes changed over time? Are the themes associated with employment rates for B/LV people?
  11. What types of information and support do people seek and receive on social media regarding experiencing vision loss while employed?

Study Summary

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, employment rates for people who are B/LV, including those who are deafblind, have reached record highs. However, we lack details about the post-pandemic employment outcomes of these groups beyond their employment rates, such as who within these large groups has experienced employment gains, how remote work impacted employment, and whether earnings gaps have narrowed alongside employment gaps.

To investigate these issues, we will use data from the National Health Interview Survey and the American Community Survey. We will explore how personal, job-related, and environmental factors affect employment for people who are B/LV and those who are deafblind. We will also explore social media data to better understand the employment-related concerns and needs of people who are B/LV and how these concerns and needs have changed over time.

Expected Outcomes and Benefits

This project will advance knowledge about employment for people who are B/LV, including post-pandemic outcomes, factors associated with these outcomes, employment-related concerns, changes over time, and differences within subgroups of this population. This new information can inform practices, policies, and programs to maximize employment outcomes and economic self-sufficiency for the B/LV population.