Employment outcomes for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities: A literature review

•This study reviewed employment outcomes for adults with IDD within the U.S.•A snapshot was provided of the individuals' employment rate, setting, income, and quality of life.•This review demonstrated that the work of such individuals enables them to contribute to the economy.•The employment settings for those with IDD have impacts on working hours and weekly wages.•There is a need to improve the employment outcomes of such individuals with IDD. This review examined various studies regarding the employment outcomes for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) within the United States. This review provides a snapshot of the individuals' employment rate, setting, income, quality of life, and well-being. A thorough literature review was conducted to retrieve studies and gather information. The studies were retrieved from Proquest, Ebscohost, Emerald, Google Scholar, and Web of Science. Other databases included Eric and PsycINFO. The inclusion criteria were the studies published after the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, as well as the studies published in English and limited to the population of the United States. A total of 27 studies were included in the review. The results indicated that the employment settings for individuals with IDD, such as sheltered, supported, or competitive employment, have different impacts on working hours and weekly wages. This paper also established that the employment of individuals with IDD has a positive influence on their self-esteem, self-confidence, career progression, and independence levels, especially in integrated employment. Furthermore, this review demonstrated that the work of such individuals provides a source of income and enables them to contribute to the national economy through taxes. However, the review suggests that there is still a need to improve the employment of such individuals in order to increase the employment outcomes to significant levels. There is a need to mainly focus on enhancing sheltered employment whose results are relatively lower when compared to the other forms of work. Practices and research implications were also discussed.