TDNet Discover

This quantitative study examined the intersection of disability and poverty among working-age adults in Arizona and Oklahoma. People with disabilities constituted a significant portion of the working-age population, with the World Health Organization (2023) estimating that approximately 1.3 billion individuals, representing 16% of the global population, were living with significant disabilities. This demographic was disproportionately affected by poverty, experiencing higher mortality rates compared to their non-disabled peers who did not live in poverty (Mode et al., 2016). In the United States, about 22 million working-age adults were reported to have had at least one disability that significantly impacted their daily lives (University of New Hampshire, 2024). Moreover, around 18 million working-age adults in the U.S. lived in poverty (University of New Hampshire, 2024), with higher poverty rates observed among those with disabilities (Mode et al., 2016). Utilizing secondary data from the Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Disability Statistics and Demographics, this research investigated the relationship between disability status and poverty among working-age adults in Arizona and Oklahoma. The findings aimed to contribute to a deeper understanding of the challenges faced by disabled individuals in these states and to inform policy interventions to address these disparities.