Clinical trial NCT04247932: Pathways to Employment for the Long-term Unemployed
Official title: Pathways to the Labor Market for Long-term Unemployed: a Comparison of Labor Market Interventions Effects Mechanisms and Implementation
Study type: OBSERVATIONAL
Overall status: UNKNOWN
Conditions: Unemployment
Keywords: Adolescent
Disabled Persons
Immigrants
Lead sponsor: Göteborg University
Sponsor class: OTHER
Collaborators: name: Swedish Council for Working Life and Social Research
First posted: 2020-01-30
Enrollment: 200
Sex: ALL
Minimum age (years): 18
Maximum age (years): 65
Standard ages: ADULT
OLDER_ADULT
Accepts healthy volunteers: no
Observational model: COHORT
Time perspective: PROSPECTIVE
Sampling method: NON_PROBABILITY_SAMPLE
Study population: All individuals receiving intervention from participating service providers during the inclusion period that meet the inclusion criteria.

Brief summary: This project's aims are twofold (1) to uncover and define the underlying theories of change guiding competing active labor market programs (ALMP) in Sweden, and (2) to assess the relative effectiveness of these competing programs in a theory-based non-randomized controlled trial. The purpose is to assess the extent to which competing ALMPs are effective in moving long-term unemployed individuals (i.e. unemployed for 6 months or more) closer to the labor-market.

Detailed description: Long-term unemployment has a profound impact on the health and wellbeing of individuals, families, and communities. In addition, the effects of long-term unemployment have been found to impact subgroups differently. Today there is scant knowledge on the mechanisms that are influential in moving individuals from long-term unemployment closer to the labor market. This study is designed to answer six research questions using a variety of methods (mixed-methods) and outcome measures (self-report, official register). In addition, this study leverages official register data to construct an untreated control group. This study will assess the extent to which an emerging theory of becoming job ready holds under experimental scrutiny.

This project will engage ALMP program administrators and service providers in semi-structured interviews. A total of 6 competing ALMPs will be included in the study. The transcribed interview material will be used as a basis for program theory reconstruction. All specified program theories will be presented back to program stakeholders for validation. ALMP program effectiveness will be assessed quasi-experimentally with pre- (T1) and posttest (T2) collection of self-reported data. Additionally, official register data from the Longitudinal integrated database for health insurance and labor market studies (LISA) will be collected for all participants. In addition, a matched sample will be collected from LISA to be used as a non-treated control group on final policy outcomes (e.g., employment, salary/wage). This study also assesses program implementation and economic outcomes of competing the competing ALMPs.

Eligibility criteria: Inclusion Criteria:

* Unemployed for a period of at least 6 months, and
* 25 years old or younger, or
* born outside of Sweden, or
* 55 years old or older without higher education, or
* has a disability (physical, intellectual, neuropsychiatric, or mental) and
* receives social insurance benefits, or
* receives social welfare benefits

Exclusion Criteria:

* referred for services primarily by the Department of Justice

Primary outcomes:
measure: Change in employment and earnings
timeFrame: baseline, 6 months post baseline
Secondary outcomes:
measure: Change in general health
timeFrame: baseline, 6 months post baseline
measure: Change in resilience
timeFrame: baseline, 6 months post baseline
measure: Change in perceived employment obstacles
timeFrame: baseline, 6 months post baseline
measure: Change in perceived employment hope
timeFrame: baseline, 6 months post baseline
Other outcomes:
Locations:
Study officials:
affiliation: Department of Social Work, Gothenburg University
name: Mikaela Starke, PhD
role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR
References: