A subtle change may increase disability disclosures

DeKalb, IL — Could altering the language on disability disclosure forms encourage more workers to disclose their conditions? A recent study explored this idea.

“Disclosure is an opportunity for employees to present a more authentic version of themselves at work, which may bring psychological benefits in supportive work environments,” study author Alecia Santuzzi, a psychology professor at Northern Illinois University, said in a press release.

Santuzzi and a team of researchers from NIU and the Illinois Institute of Technology used online survey responses from 1,600 employed adults. Respondents were given one of four versions of the Voluntary Self-Identification of Disability Form. 

The original form has three response options:

• Yes, I have a disability.
• No, I don’t have a disability.
• I do not wish to answer.

Using that format, 20% of the respondents disclosed they had a disability. When the word “disability” was replaced with “qualifying condition,” 29% of the respondents disclosed they had a disability. “Two other response options with terms replacing ‘disability’ also elicited higher rates of disclosure, though they were not statistically significant,” the release states.

“Terms such as ‘qualifying condition’ may cue respondents to think more broadly about limitations that might affect work performance and then perhaps disclose these limitations even if they do not adopt the label ‘disability,’” Santuzzi said in the release. “Even if employees greatly value their disability as part of their identity, many employees use different terms to express that part of themselves in the workplace."

She added: “Authenticity cannot be experienced if employees are not given the opportunity to report in a way that aligns with how they define themselves. For many employees, the term ‘disability’ does not reflect how they define their health, function and ability differences.”

The study was published online in the journal Group & Organization Management.