The goal of this assessment is to identify how receptive or able a person is to assume the responsibility associated with work. It does not make any moral or demographic judgments about a person but tries to assess potential impediments that may reduce a person's ability/inclination to work. The barriers may be social in nature and might include unreliable transportation or lack of appropriate home support. They may be attitudinal issues of either a positive (i.e., work interest) or negative (i.e., work avoidance) bias.

Additionally, the person may feel they don't have the energy or physical attributes needed to withstand work or they might find the work setting "too intrusive" because of authority concerns. The assessment goal may be to identify potential limits for either remediation and/or support or it may be used as an adjunct to supplement interviews with the aim to reduce the potential of inappropriate placements.

Work Readiness Definitions

1. Transportation

   1. Often many people would like to take on a steady job but a lack of reliable transportation precludes them from experiencing success. This scale measures the a person's access to personal, public, or shared transportation.

2. Home Life

   1. Some people are "torn between" family obligations (everything from children to aged parents) and the desire to hold down a job. This scale taps into potential difficulties such as a lack of support at home (e.g., single parent), limited help and other "home demand" issues.

3. Work Interest

   1. Some people enjoy work and take pride in their sense of accomplishment and earning their own way. However, others (for both good and bad reasons) may dislike work, find it boring or don't feel like assuming the responsibility. This scale is designed to address those issues and raise interview questions that can be helpful in clarifying a person's position on work.

4. Work Avoidance

   1. This scale measures a person's predisposition to dislike and therefore avoid work. This is in contrast to the Work Interest scale, that ranges from strong interest to neutral (apathetic). Someone with work avoidance issues will actively avoid work rather than just display a passive lack of interest.

5. Physical Stamina

   1. Some people feel they would like to work but for medical, personal or health reasons, they find they just don't have the energy or commitment required for successful work habits. This is not meant to diagnose any health problems/concerns but is a self-report scale where a person can state they have "stamina concerns" and may not be able to work full time.

6. Authority Issues

   1. Some people enjoy working but the work setting is critical. Many entry level jobs require supervision and clear objectives so the presence of a supervisor and company rules is often the norm. However, some people dislike supervision and external standards. They find this setting objectionable and view such forms of authority negatively. This scale looks at the propensity of a person to have "concerns" with those in a position of authority.

7. Withholding II

   1. This is a Bias scale that measures a person's tendency to give reasonable or realistic responses versus a "distorted" response. High scores suggest a person may be withholding data about him/herself and may be exaggerating the positive (socially desirable) aspects of their behavior. Low scores can indicate a self-critical approach. Hence, high and low scores cause one to interpret the data either up or down.

8. Anchor Cherry Picking (ACP)

   1. Some people use extreme scores creating a True/ False test which may not invalidate it. However, with a HIGH overall score (>85%) and an ACP score is (>80%), they may be "Cherry-picking" answers that may not reflect their real style.