| Purpose. This study investigated the effects of disclosure of chronic pain disability during the employment interview. The research examined how the presentation and specific Impression Management tactic of timing of chronic pain disclosure during an employment interview affects perceptions of an applicant's employability. This research focused on applicant disclosure of chronic pain and the timing of disclosure during the job interview, as these relate to hiring decisions. The study was designed to assess rehabilitation counseling students' perceptions and compare them to the evidence-based literature on employer perceptions of job applicants with disabilities.;Research Design. Eighty-four students taking courses in rehabilitation counseling or special education read and responded to a vignette of a job applicant (e.g., job description, job applicant cover letter and resume, job interview transcript) who (a) did not disclose a chronic pain disability, (b) disclosed a chronic pain disability early, or (c) disclosed a chronic pain disability late in the interview. One-way Analysis of Variance tests were calculated to determine if there were differences between groups on dependent measures of (a) general impression of the applicant, (b) the likelihood that this applicant is qualified for the job, (c) likelihood that the applicant will perform well on this job, or (d) likelihood that the participant will hire the applicant for the job. In addition, Pearson's product-moment correlation was run to determine the relationship between the Contact with Disabled Persons (CDP) scale (measuring the quantity and quality of contact the participant has had with individuals with disabilities) and each of the dependent variables.;Results. This study found no significant effects for pain disclosure nor pain disclosure timing (i.e., early or late in the interview) among the dependent measures. No significant correlations were found between the dependent variables and the CDP scale. Implications for future research on disclosure during the employment interview are discussed. |
