This document is also available in MS Word 328KB (.DOC), and Adobe PDF (.PDF), as well as Federal Register: Text File (.HTM) file formats.

Skip to Table of Contents

Adapted from: Federal Register: February 15, 2006 (Volume 71, Number 31)
Department of Education

National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR)

Long-Range Plan for Fiscal Years 2005-2009

Table of Contents


Summary

The Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) publishes the Final Long-Range Plan (Final Plan) for the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) for FY 2005 through 2009. As required by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended (Act), the Assistant Secretary takes this action to outline priorities for rehabilitation research, demonstration projects, training, and related activities, and to explain the basis for these priorities.

Dates

Effective Date: The Final Plan is effective March 17, 2006.

For Further Information Contact:

Donna Nangle, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 6030, Potomac Center Plaza, Washington, DC 20204-2700. Telephone: (202) 245-7462. If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) at 1-800-877-8339 between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m., Eastern time, Monday through Friday. Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer diskette) on request to the contact person listed in this section.

Supplementary Information:

Background

The Final Plan presents a five-year research agenda anchored in legislative mandate, consumer goals, and scientific initiatives. The Final Plan has several distinct purposes:

  1. To set broad general directions that will guide NIDRR's policies and use of resources.
  2. To establish objectives for research and related activities from which annual research priorities can be formulated.
  3. To describe a system for operationalizing the Final Plan in terms of annual priorities, evaluation of the implementation of the Final Plan, and updates of the Final Plan as necessary.
  4. To direct new emphasis to the management and administration of the research endeavor.

The Final Plan was developed with the guidance of a distinguished group of NIDRR constituents—individuals with disabilities and their family members and advocates, service providers, researchers, educators, administrators, and policymakers, including the Commissioner of the Rehabilitation Services Administration, members of the National Council on Disability, and representatives from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The authority for the Secretary to prepare the Final Plan is contained in section 202(h) of the Act (29 U.S.C. 762(h)). NIDRR published a Notice of Proposed Long-Range Plan for FY 2005-2009 (Proposed Plan) on July 27, 2005 (70 FR 43522). The Act requires that NIDRR consider all public comments received regarding the Proposed Plan and then transmit the Final Plan to Congress.

The Final Plan is published as an attachment to this notice.

Public Comments

In response to the invitation in the Notice of Proposed Long-Range Plan for FY 2005-2009, NIDRR received 45 comments regarding the Proposed Plan. The majority of the comments were positive and supportive of the Proposed Plan. Comments that suggested changes in the Proposed Plan generally fell into one of two categories. One small group of comments suggested changes to the Proposed Plan that NIDRR does not have the authority to make (e.g., requests to increase funding for NIDRR) or that would result in NIDRR not complying with the Act (e.g., changes to the mandatory set-aside requirements for minority institutions). NIDRR is unable to make these changes.

Another group of comments requested that NIDRR include more references to specific target populations, disability groups, and therapeutic modalities in the Proposed Plan. NIDRR believes that it is unnecessary to make any changes to the Proposed Plan based on these comments because the long-range plan is a strategic plan designed to provide a broad framework for funding research that is consistent with NIDRR's mission, including research that both addresses specific target populations (as defined in 34 CFR Sec. 350.5) and relates to the outcomes described in NIDRR's Logic Model, as presented in the Proposed Plan.

While the Proposed Plan is organized along domains of research (i.e., employment, health and function, technology for access and function, participation and community living, and disability demographics) for the sake of manageability, it also makes clear that disability is a holistic phenomenon that involves many overlapping and cross-domain issues. For example, through the Field-Initiated (FI) Program, which covers all aspects of NIDRR's research domains and addresses all disability populations with a wide range of research approaches, NIDRR encourages applications that address overlapping and cross-domain issues for any relevant populations. In addition, with respect to those programs for which NIDRR establishes annual priorities—Rehabilitation Research and Training Centers (RRTCs), Rehabilitation Engineering Research Centers (RERCs), and Disability and Rehabilitation Research Projects (DRRPs)—NIDRR may require applicants to focus on one or more target populations or issues that cut across domains. Increasingly, NIDRR is asking for cross-disability and multidisciplinary research. For example, NIDRR could establish a research priority in the employment domain that requires applicants to focus on persons with intellectual disabilities and issues related to technology. Given the structure of NIDRR's research programs, therefore, NIDRR believes that the concerns of commenters who seek more attention on specific target populations, disability groups, or therapeutic modalities can be accommodated within the framework of the Proposed Plan.

Changes to Proposed Plan

Following publication of the Proposed Plan, NIDRR realized that it inadvertently had failed to discuss in the Proposed Plan the Disability and Business Technical Assistance Centers (DBTACs) that it supports under its DRRP program and its work on coordinating the Federal response to emergency preparedness and disability based on Executive Order 13347, Individuals with Disabilities in Emergency Preparedness. Commenters also noted the absence of this information in the Proposed Plan. Accordingly, NIDRR has made changes to the Proposed Plan as follows:

DBTAC

The Proposed Plan did not include references to NIDRR's ongoing DBTAC program, which is NIDRR's program for facilitating implementation of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA). The following language, therefore, has been added as the third paragraph under the heading Future Agenda in the section entitled Knowledge Translation:

"Knowledge Translation includes the provision of information, technical assistance, and training in areas related to disability policy. The Act assigns to NIDRR the responsibility for those activities in relation to the ADA. NIDRR intends to implement those activities through a national network of regionally-based centers that will provide assistance to disability organizations, individuals with disabilities, businesses, public agencies, and the general public, and that will contribute to research on topics covered under the ADA."

Individuals With Disabilities in Emergency Preparedness

In recognition of NIDRR's ongoing work in the area of emergency preparedness for individuals with disabilities, NIDRR has made the following changes to the Proposed Plan:

Under the heading National Policy Context for NIDRR Research in Part A: Introduction and Background Introduction, we have revised the second sentence to reference Executive Order 13347, Individuals with Disabilities in Emergency Preparedness, such that the sentence now reads as follows: "These include the U.S. Supreme Court's 1999 decision in Olmstead v. L.C. (527 U.S. 581), the President's New Freedom Initiative (NFI), the report of the President's New Freedom Commission On Mental Health, and Executive Order 13347, Individuals with Disabilities in Emergency Preparedness." In addition, at the end of the National Policy Context for NIDRR Research section, NIDRR has added the following language:

"On July 26, 2004, President George W. Bush issued Executive Order 13347, `Individuals with Disabilities in Emergency Preparedness'. This Order establishes a policy that the Federal government appropriately support the safety and security of individuals with disabilities in situations involving both natural and man-made disasters. The Order directs Executive departments and other Federal agencies to include individuals with disabilities in emergency preparedness planning. Also included in the Order was the establishment of an Interagency Coordinating Council (ICC) to coordinate the Federal response to emergency preparedness and disability. The ICC established a research committee, which was co-chaired by NIDRR staff. The ICC concluded, and reported to the President, that it is critical to transition from suggestions and ideas to empirically-based research that provides evidence of what works."

In addition to the few changes identified in the preceding paragraphs, the Final Plan reflects a number of additional non-substantive and clarifying revisions.

NIDRR appreciates the many thoughtful comments it received regarding the Proposed Plan, and will continue to consider them in updates to the Final Plan and in future priorities.

Electronic Access to This Document

You may review this document, as well as all other Department of Education documents published in the Federal Register, in text or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) on the Internet at the following site: http://www.ed.gov/news/fedregister.

To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at this site. If you have questions about using PDF, call the U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO), toll free, at 1-888-293-6498; or in the Washington, DC, area at (202) 512-1530.

Note: The official version of this document is the document published in the Federal Register. Free Internet access to the official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal Regulations is available on GPO Access at: http://www.gpoaccess.gov/nara/index.html

Dated: February 7, 2006.

Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.


Return to: Table of Contents

National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research:
Long-Range Plan for 2005-2009

Preface

The introductory section of the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) Long-Range Plan 2005-2009 (Plan) provides basic background about NIDRR. This includes its mission, its administrative location, the legislative and administrative environments in which NIDRR operates, intended beneficiaries of NIDRR research, conceptual overview of the Plan, management and evaluation principles, general highlights of 25 years of NIDRR research, and the structure of the Plan. The first section of the Plan also includes a chapter that defines and describes NIDRR's target population, providing some data on population characteristics. The second section of the Plan presents NIDRR's Logic Model and research domains, and operational strategies to implement the Plan and enhance the accountability and responsiveness of NIDRR. The third section of the Plan delineates each domain of NIDRR research and related activities and the strategies that will be employed to address NIDRR's mission.

Part A: Introduction and Background

I. Introduction

The mission of the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR or the Institute) is to generate new knowledge and promote its effective use to improve the abilities of people with disabilities to perform activities of their choice in the community, and also to expand society's capacity to provide full opportunities and accommodations for its citizens with disabilities.

The timely convergence of technological breakthroughs and empowerment of people with disabilities has resulted in increased demand for the products of disability and rehabilitation research. These include not only technological devices but also new knowledge about interventions and policies that will further the mission of NIDRR to advance all aspects of life for people with disabilities.

Organizational Context

NIDRR is located within the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) at the U.S. Department of Education (Department). OSERS has two other components: The Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA), which administers the State-Federal Vocational Rehabilitation Program, and the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), which oversees the implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, as amended (IDEA). NIDRR, therefore, is ideally situated to facilitate the transfer of knowledge to consumers, practitioners, and administrators in vocational rehabilitation and special education. NIDRR also has developed extensive linkages to the broader disability and rehabilitation research community through its leadership work chairing the Interagency Committee on Disability Research (ICDR) and through development of significant partnerships with many Federal agencies, research institutions, and consumer organizations. NIDRR values and encourages the collaborative and synergistic nature of its many partnerships, as significant advancements in disability knowledge are achieved through the efforts of many researchers and others over time.

Statutory Mandates

The 1978 amendments to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, (the Act) created NIDRR 1 in recognition of both the opportunities for scientific and technological advancements to improve the lives of people with disabilities and the need for a comprehensive and coordinated approach to research, development, demonstration, and information dissemination and training. These amendments charged NIDRR with providing a comprehensive and coordinated program of research and related activities designed to maximize the inclusion and social integration, health and function, employment and independent living of individuals of all ages with disabilities.

1 Established as the National Institute on Handicapped Research (NIHR) in the 1978 amendments, the Institute's name was changed to the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) by the 1986 amendments to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended.

In addition to research and development (R&D), the Act authorizes widespread dissemination of research-generated knowledge to rehabilitation service providers, people with disabilities and their families, researchers, and others; promotion of technology transfer; leadership of an Interagency Committee to coordinate Federal disability and rehabilitation research; advanced training in disability and rehabilitation research; and increased opportunities for minority institutions and researchers with disabilities or from minority groups.

To guide rehabilitation research, the Act requires publication of the proposed Plan in the Federal Register, public comment on the Plan, and subsequent production of a final Plan. The Act specifies that in developing and implementing the Plan, NIDRR should: outline priorities for NIDRR's activities and provide the basis for such priorities; specify appropriate goals and timetables for covered activities to be conducted under sections 202 and 204 of title II of the Act; develop the Plan in consultation with the Commissioner of RSA, the Commissioner of the Administration on Developmental Disabilities, the National Council on Disability (NCD), and the ICDR; and provide full consideration to the input of people with disabilities and their family members, organizations representing people with disabilities, researchers, service providers, and other appropriate entities. The Plan also must provide for widespread dissemination of the results of funded activities, in accessible formats, to rehabilitation practitioners and individuals with disabilities and their families, including those who are members of minority groups or underserved populations.

This final Plan was developed by NIDRR with extensive input from an expert panel of researchers, service providers, and people with disabilities. Appendix 1 of this Plan contains a list of the expert panel members. In addition, NIDRR actively solicited comments through a Web site and through six national videoconferences. NIDRR also consulted with the ICDR, the NCD, and other Federal partners.

National Policy Context for NIDRR Research

In recent years, several major policy directives have influenced activities and initiatives in disability and rehabilitation research, including implementation of the 1999-2003 NIDRR Long-Range Plan and development of the proposed Plan. These include the U.S. Supreme Court's 1999 decision in Olmstead v. L.C. (527 U.S. 581), the President's New Freedom Initiative (NFI), the report of the President's New Freedom Commission On Mental Health, and Executive Order 13347, Individuals with Disabilities in Emergency Preparedness. The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), now in existence for more than a decade, has continued to provide a strong framework for all disability-related activities.

Because maximum community participation for persons with disabilities is the ultimate objective of NIDRR research, the important directives in the Olmstead decision resonate with and inform NIDRR's agenda. The Olmstead decision stated that Title II of the ADA requires public agencies that provide services to people with disabilities do so in the most integrated settings appropriate to their needs. Moreover, State agencies that provide housing and services must make plans to move individuals from institutions to community environments and to divert others from institutionalization when appropriate. The Olmstead decision allows State agencies to take into consideration limited available funds, but does require that they show progress through planning for the implementation of change. Full implementation of this decision eventually will have far-reaching consequences for people with disabilities and the service systems they use.

The Olmstead decision affects disability and rehabilitation research as it highlights the need for new, validated strategies; and supports programs, interventions, guidelines, and policies to make living in the community successful for deinstitutionalized individuals or those diverted from potential institutionalization. Individual States are serving as de facto laboratories for research into social policy implementation, and generate a need and an opportunity for the evaluation of best practices. NIDRR will continue its focus on research that addresses effective use of information for people with disabilities and access to appropriate accommodations in society; both are essential components of the Institute's research agenda.

The NFI was announced by President George W. Bush on February 1, 2001, to further the full participation of people with disabilities in all areas of society by increasing access to assistive and universally designed technologies, by expanding educational and employment opportunities, and by promoting full access to community life. Several provisions of the NFI have had a direct impact on NIDRR activities. The NFI included a proposal to increase funding for NIDRR's Rehabilitation Engineering Research Centers (RERCs). Substantial funding was earmarked for the ICDR, which is chaired and staffed by NIDRR, in order to increase coordination of Federal research efforts related to technology and disability. Other aspects of the NFI, such as increased preparedness and more opportunities for employment, telework, universal design, access to assistive technology, increased homeownership, and access to mental health services, also influenced NIDRR's activities and research during much of the preceding four years.

The President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health (Commission), established through Executive Order 13263 on April 29, 2002, examined the mental healthcare system in the Nation and issued recommendations for change. In July 2003, the Commission issued its final report, "Achieving the Promise: Transforming Mental Health Care in America." The report identified barriers to care within the mental health system and provided examples of community-based care models that have worked successfully to coordinate and provide treatment services. The Commission concluded that the mental health service delivery system in the United States is fragmented and should be substantively transformed. Goals for the transformed system include ensuring that: (1) Americans understand that mental health is essential to overall health; (2) Mental healthcare is consumer and family-driven; (3) Disparities in mental health services are eliminated; (4) Early mental health screening, assessment, and referral to services are common practice; (5) Excellent mental health services are delivered and research is accelerated; and (6) Technology is used to access mental healthcare and information.

The realization of these goals will require the development and transfer of new knowledge about barriers to recovery and community integration, effective treatment interventions and supports, best practices in services delivery and increasing access to care, technology to support living independently in the community, and accommodations to promote employment. The Commission's final report contains substantial implications for NIDRR's research agenda, as well as those of its Federal partner agencies.

On July 26, 2004, President George W. Bush issued Executive Order 13347, "Individuals with Disabilities in Emergency Preparedness." This Order establishes a policy that the Federal government appropriately support the safety and security of individuals with disabilities in situations involving both natural and man-made disasters. The Order directs Executive departments and other Federal agencies to include individuals with disabilities in emergency preparedness planning. Also included in the Order was the establishment of an Interagency Coordinating Council (ICC) to coordinate the Federal response to emergency preparedness and disability. The ICC established a research committee, which was co-chaired by NIDRR staff. The ICC concluded, and reported to the President, that it is critical to transition from suggestions and ideas to empirically-based research that provides evidence of what works.

Overview of Long-Range Plan Concepts

The proposed Plan builds on the work of the 1999-2003 Long-Range Plan, while responding to new developments in the disability and rehabilitation research field and in government. Both plans stress the importance of NIDRR's significant role as a research institute in the public interest, carrying out scientific research to meet the diverse needs of people with disabilities.

The contextual paradigm of disability and rehabilitation research will continue to frame the NIDRR research agenda. This paradigm overcomes the limitations imposed by a medical model of disability. The new paradigm of disability maintains that "disability is a product of the interaction between characteristics of the individual (e.g., conditions or impairments, functional status, or personal and social qualities) and the characteristics of the natural, built, cultural, and social environments." (NIDRR Long-Range Plan 1999-2003).

The contextual paradigm of disability was explicated in the 1999-2003 NIDRR Long-Range Plan and significantly influenced the design of NIDRR research during the past five years. The contextual paradigm of disability helps to focus NIDRR research on new research issues; new approaches for defining, measuring, counting, and categorizing disability; and new methods for conducting and managing research. Definitions and enumeration of disability are addressed in the subsequent chapter on the characteristics of the target population and in the demographics research chapter. New approaches to measurement issues and research methods will be addressed in each of the chapters on research domains (e.g., participation and community living, health and function, technology for access and function, employment, and demographics), as will new research methods. New research issues will be discussed in the individual chapters on research domains.

The Plan continues the important research areas of universal design and the emerging universe of disability. The new Plan further recognizes the importance of interdependence, not only in its continued emphasis on personal assistance services, but also on supports for family and other informal caregivers, direct care workers, and paraprofessionals in facilitating community living and participation in the community.

The Plan expands NIDRR's emphasis on the major research "domains" of employment, participation and community life, health and function, and technology for access and function. In these areas, the Plan continues to emphasize areas of employment incentives and accommodations, access to healthcare, and the preference for supports rather than services as the model for facilitating the community integration of people with disabilities. The previously termed domain of independent living and community integration in the 1999-2003 Long-Range Plan has been renamed participation and community living to better capture the broad goal of increased participation, which is intrinsic to the NIDRR mission. Additionally, the area of disability demographics has been elevated to a major domain. This change recognizes and reinforces the importance of improved disability data for policy, design of services, and future research initiatives.

The Plan also embraces the concept of disability as a holistic phenomenon by extending this concept into the research field. This is achieved by emphasizing interactions between two or more domains, thus indicating and stressing the important interrelationships among the research domains throughout the Plan.

Accountability, Management, and Evaluation of Research

The Plan introduces major changes in accountability, management, and evaluation of the research portfolio, some of which reflect new standards of accountability for NIDRR as an entity, while others relate to the performance of grantees.

In 1993, Congress passed the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA), intended to improve accountability of Federal programs through strategic planning and performance assessment. GPRA requires Federal agencies to develop strategic plans for all programs, identifying performance goals and the indicators that would be used to measure progress. In 2002, the President's Management Agenda was announced, emphasizing the use of objective criteria to assess program results for budgeting purposes. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) developed the Program Assessment Rating Tool (PART) to assess each program's performance. Government-wide policy shifts have resulted in changes in NIDRR management procedures to emphasize standards for assessing its work and that of its grantees. NIDRR has developed its response to the PART document by using a logic model, as presented in the next part of the Plan.

While NIDRR will continue to emphasize the same or similar research areas as those delineated in the 1999-2003 Long-Range Plan (i.e., employment, health and function, technology for access and function, participation and community living, and disability demographics, which are termed domains in this Plan), there will be new emphases on stages of knowledge development. These stages relate to the types of objectives and end products that grantees are expected to pursue. These stages include:

  1. Discoveries;
  2. theories, measures, and methods; and
  3. interventions, products or devices, and environmental adaptations.

In program reviews and other evaluations, NIDRR has found that disability and rehabilitation research often lacks validated theories and measures. The degree of deficit varies from one domain to another, and within domains, in relation to certain disability types or other target populations. Equally important is the tendency to sometimes reinvent data collection instruments for each individual study, rather than create a more robust knowledge base by using instruments that already are validated. Validated measurement tools are critical to research outcomes, and for determining which research findings are appropriate for dissemination to various constituents. Research projects at the second stage of knowledge development will develop and test the validity of theories, measures, and methods as applied to disability research.

The focus on research stages of knowledge development will enable NIDRR to set more measurable goals and to assess the extent to which grantees have produced relevant outputs and outcomes. For example, whether a particular research topic is appropriate for the interventions, products, and environmental adaptations stage will be an important judgment, and one that NIDRR generally will announce with a published priority. In this third stage of knowledge development, researchers will test the effectiveness of specific interventions or program configurations.

Accomplishments of NIDRR Researchers

NIDRR researchers and representatives of the disability community generally attribute two categories of accomplishments to NIDRR. The first category includes NIDRR leadership in important areas, pioneering inquiries, and general principles. The second category consists of the work of NIDRR-supported grantees in enhancing the knowledge base and disseminating new findings. The two categories are often complementary and interdependent. The Institute has reached its 25th Anniversary, and a backward glance will highlight some important NIDRR achievements.

The need to examine the many dimensions of the new paradigm of disability, also referred to as the contextual paradigm of disability, provided the catalyst for an innovative collaboration between NIDRR and the American Psychological Association (APA). The Bridging Gaps research conference examined the impact of the paradigm shift on psychology and rehabilitation research. One presenter at the Bridging Gaps conference described the significant effects of the paradigm shift:

NIDRR's new paradigm for conceptualizing disability is a powerful tool for focusing both research and service delivery systems on interactions that can significantly affect outcomes for persons with disability. If we are trying to understand outcomes through research or attempting to influence outcomes by direct intervention, or both, it is critical to understand and apply this paradigm by paying increased attention to the person-environment interactions. As with any good theory, this one illuminates aspects that were in the dark under the older paradigm and suggests ways of thinking that were not intuitively obvious.2

2 Nirenberg, B., "A system for bridging the financial and cultural gaps in the well-being of persons with disabilities", in Bridging gaps: Refining the disability research agenda for rehabilitation and the social sciences—Conference proceedings. Menomonie: University of Wisconsin-Stout, Stout Vocational Rehabilitation Institute, Research and Training Centers, edited by F.E. Menz and D.F. Thomas, 2003, p. 239 (http://www.rtc.uwstout.edu/pubs/pubs.htm).

Related to the new paradigm are several new directions in research that also have served to lead the field. Among the research issues are universal design, the concept of an emerging universe of disability, and emphasis on accommodations. NIDRR has been a leading international proponent of universal design, which is defined as design for a built environment that can be used by nearly all people—living, working, and playing together. Rather than using design parameters based on idealized measures of human factors that restrict usability to a narrow segment of the population, universal design works to accommodate a wider range of functional abilities through approaches including modular designs that easily can be modified.

The emerging universe of disability refers to a disabled population that is shaped by demographic changes in age, immigrant status, and other socioeconomic factors, by new types of potentially disabling conditions, by consequences of treatments of existing conditions, and by differential distribution of conditions and their consequences. The concept of an emerging universe of disability has helped to increase attention in the last five years to the unique needs of this population, and to multiply the research endeavors focusing on cultural and economic factors affecting disability.

NIDRR has pursued a model for addressing obstacles facing people with disabilities that have shifted from service provision to supports that enable self-direction. Supports may include personal assistance services (PAS), assistive technology, civil rights, and peer support, and involving people with disabilities in the conduct and administration of disability and rehabilitation research. Promoting accommodations and assistive technology have been two areas of NIDRR leadership that are reflected in new public policy, including in the ADA and the NFI. Accommodations may be physical, technological or programmatic, and entitlement to accommodations is a cornerstone of the ADA. Accommodations are particularly important in supporting work and education. NIDRR researchers have developed assistive technology devices addressing information technology (IT), communications and speech, and neurological, mobility, and manipulation issues, among other functional areas. Accommodations also encompass changes in program operations to enable people with disabilities to participate fully; these changes may include times and locations, structure of activities, and accessibility.

NIDRR has sponsored research on supports that help individuals with disabilities make their own choices and direct their own lives. Supports include peer-to-peer and family-to-family programs, PAS, self-advocacy skill development, consumer direction, assistive technology, and environmental modifications, all which have been subjects of considerable NIDRR research.

In 1982, NIDRR convened the first meeting of the member agencies of what is now known as the Interagency Subcommittee on Disability Statistics (ISDS), to coordinate and promote the generation of improved statistical knowledge about disability populations. This committee has met monthly for 20 years. The ISDS achievements include: collaborating to publish a book on statistics of disability populations (Thompson-Hoffman, S. Fitzgerald Storck, I. (Eds.), Disability in the United States: a Portrait from National Data (1991); and serving as a consultation and review resource for other public and private agencies designing surveys of individuals with disabilities. The ISDS also has facilitated a substantial amount of sharing and exchange of information among member agencies, and joint funding of projects among these agencies.

Structure of the Plan

The Plan is divided into three parts. Part A includes this introduction and a chapter on NIDRR's target population. NIDRR has, by law, a number of target populations, including people with disabilities and their families; individuals who provide vocational rehabilitation, or medical, technological, and direct support services; educators; policymakers; businesses; and the general public. However, people with disabilities clearly are intended to be the ultimate beneficiaries of all NIDRR activities, and the next chapter focuses on defining and describing that population.

Part B (Managing for Success) addresses accountability, management, and evaluation through the use of a logic model and a strategy of "managing for results." The NIDRR Logic Model provides a theoretical base for the evaluation of program outcomes, and will serve to ensure consistency throughout a planning and feedback cycle. In "managing for results," NIDRR presents its strategy for making its operations more systematic and responsive to the concerns of all its constituents. The management chapter focuses on setting regular, fixed dates for the steps of annual grants competitions—announcement of priorities and closing dates, peer reviews, and grant award announcements—and establishing standing panels for consistency and expertise in peer review. Additionally, NIDRR will focus on setting priorities that encourage greater leeway for applicants in designing research. NIDRR will be enhancing its monitoring and evaluation processes to provide continuous feedback to improve its research portfolio.

Part C discusses three arenas of outcomes achievement: research and development (R&D), capacity building (C-B), and knowledge translation (KT). The R&D arena is divided according to the domains of NIDRR research—employment; health and function; technology for access and function; participation and community living; and disability demographics.

Each domain of the R&D arena may include a discussion of one or more of the identified stages of knowledge development which include: discoveries; theories, measures and methods; and interventions, products and devices, and environmental adaptations. Under each of these domains, NIDRR will develop a set of implementation strategies that will identify potential research that could address the anticipated outcomes in the given domain. NIDRR will publish these implementation strategies as proposed priorities and, following public comment, final priorities annually, on a combined basis.

In the arena of capacity building (C-B), NIDRR has focused its efforts on the personal and professional development of scientists, advocates, and people with disabilities, and is expanding this approach to include development of the capacity of institutions and organizations, especially those that address the needs of underserved populations.

The Knowledge Translation (KT) chapter discusses the arena of KT and introduces reforms in NIDRR's current knowledge dissemination program. The new approach to KT features a process for assessing the scientific validity of findings to be transferred, using consortia and other external organizations for evaluation.

Appendix 1 to this Plan lists the NIDRR 2005-2009 Long-Range Plan expert panel members.

II. The Target Population: Definitions and Characteristics

Definitions of Disability

The ICDR, based on a survey of publicly available documents, identified more than 60 definitions of disability in the Federal government alone, generally related to eligibility requirements for benefits or services, but also reflected in major national surveys that determine the Nation's estimates of disability. NIDRR is governed by the definitions in Title II of the Act. The definition that applies to Title II describes a person with a disability as: "any person who (i) Has a physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more major life activities, (ii) has a record of such an impairment, or (iii) is regarded as having such an impairment" (29 U.S.C. 705).

NIDRR is required to focus especially on experiences of individuals with the most significant disabilities. The Act defines an individual with a significant disability in functional terms, the resulting need for multiple vocational rehabilitation services over an extended period of time, and indicates that the definition includes, but is not limited to, a list of specific conditions (29 U.S.C.705). Multiple services over an extended period of time include accommodations needed during the rehabilitation process and/or during subsequent employment. Under this definition of an individual with a significant disability, NIDRR is concerned with finding research solutions for people with all types of disabilities—mobility and manipulation, sensory, cognitive, and emotional. The target population includes individuals of all ages. Section 21 of the Act requires specific attention to underserved populations, those individuals with disabilities who are additionally marginalized by membership in minority racial or ethnic populations.

Prevailing definitions of disability used by Federal agencies do not reflect the new paradigm of disability concepts because the Federal definitions typically stress limitations and do not mention the potential role of accommodations or environmental conditions. The field of disability and rehabilitation research also continues to lack a widely accepted conceptual framework to identify and measure disability. The newer conceptual frameworks all focus on some continuum that progresses from etiology through disease, impairments, and functional limitations, which, when combined with external or environmental conditions, may cause deficits in the performance of daily activities or desired social roles. The latest proposal for classifying disability is the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) developed by the World Health Organization (WHO), and last revised in 2001.3 A diagram of the ICF classification schema can be found at http://www.cessi.net/longrangeplan/icf.htm.

3 The ICF represents a revision of the International Classification of Impairments, Disabilities, and Handicaps (ICIDH), which was first published by the WHO for trial purposes in 1980. Developed after systematic field trials and international consultation, it was endorsed for international use on 22 May 2001 by the Fifty-fourth World Health Assembly (resolution WHA54.21). http://www3.who.int/icf/intros/ICF-Eng-Intro.pdf.

The ICF allows one to view disability as a dynamic interaction between the person and the environment. ICF's diagram of its classification schema depicts the multiple interactions of the person with the environment, and the various aspects of the person. The ICF provides a method for organizing measures of function, activity, participation, and environmental context. NIDRR and many of its partner agencies are considering the appropriateness of applying the ICF to U.S. populations, and are engaged in assessments of the necessary measurement tools and data systems. A later chapter of this Plan, Disability Demographics, presents a more thorough discussion of the ICF.

Prevalence of Disability

Current figures on the number of people with disabilities in the United States indicate an estimated 54 million individuals have disabilities, based on definitions employed in national surveys, and self-reported responses to them. General definitions and descriptions of the target population, in terms of the domains of NIDRR research—employment, health and function, participation and community living, and technology for access and function—are provided in this section. A later chapter of the Plan includes an analysis of the data in current measurement systems, and identifies gaps to be addressed by future research.

General descriptors of NIDRR's target population, drawn from data about the disabled population, show that disability is closely related to aging and poverty. Persons with disabilities are more likely to be elderly, poor, of low educational status, and unemployed than those with no disabilities. People with disabilities are less likely to participate in community and social activities and are more likely to lack adequate transportation. However, persons with disabilities are about as likely as those without disabilities to have health insurance (relying heavily on Medicare and Medicaid) and somewhat more likely to have an identified source of healthcare. The disabled population is not monolithic, and there are many variations based on type of disability and age of onset, for example, as well as on the demographic characteristics mentioned here.

Tables 1 and 2 describe the overall disabled population—its size, age and race distributions, and the frequency of conditions underlying the disabilities. Table 3 includes type of disability in the characterization. These tables are from the U.S. Census Bureau, Census 2000, Summary File 3.

Table 1.—Prevalence of Disability by Age and Race

Percent with a disability
Race and Hispanic or Latino Origin Total population aged 5 and older 5 and older 5 to 15 16 to 64 65 and older
Total 257,167,527 19.3 5.8 18.6 41.9
White alone 195,100,538 18.5 5.6 16.8 40.6
Black or African American alone 30,297,703 24.3 7 26.4 52.8
American Indian and Alaska Native alone 2,187,507 24.3 7.7 27 57.6
Asian alone 9.455,058 16.6 2.9 16.9 40.8
Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone 337,996 19 5.1 21 48.5
Some other race alone 13,581,921 19.9 5.2 23.5 50.4
Two or more races 6,206,804 21.7 7.1 25.1 51.8
Hispanic or Latino (of any race) 31,041,269 20.9 5.4 24 48.5
White alone, not Hispanic or Latino 180,151,084 18.3 5.7 16.2 40.4

Table 2.—Prevalence of Disability by Age and Gender

Total Males Females
Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent
Population 5 years and over 257,167,527 100 124,636,825 100 132,530,702 100
With any disability 49,746,248 19.3 24,439,531 19.6 25,306,717 19.1
Population 5 to 15 years 45,133,667 100.0 23,125,324 100.0 22,008,343 100.0
With any disability 2,614,919 5.8 1,666,230 7.2 948,689 4.3
Population 16 to 64 years 178,687,234 100.0 87,570,583 100.0 91,116,651 100.0
With any disability 33,153,211 18.6 17,139,019 19.6 16,014,192 17.6
Population 65 years and over 33,346,626 100.0 13,940,918 100.0 19,405,708 100.0
With any disability 13,978,118 41.9 5,634,282 40.4 8,343,836 43.0

The following table, Table 3, presents information about three categories of disability—sensory, physical, and mental—by age and gender. The table also includes additional information about major life activities. Thus, these are not unduplicated counts, and the totals exceed the estimated number of individuals who have disabilities.

Table 3.—Characteristics of the Civilian Non-Institutionalized Population by Age, Disability Status, and Type of Disability: 2000

Total Males Females
Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent
Population 5 years and over 257,167,527 100 124,636,825 100 132,530,702 100
With any disability 49,746,248 19.3 24,439,531 19.6 25,306,717 19.1
Population 5 to 15 years 45,133,667 100.0 23,125,324 100.0 22,008,343 100.0
With any disability 2,614,919 5.8 1,666,230 7.2 948,689 4.3
Sensory 442,894 1.0 242,706 1.0 200,188 0.9
Physical 455,461 1.0 251,852 1.1 203,609 0.9
Mental. 2,078,502 4.6 1,387,393 6.0 691,109 3.1
Self-care 419,018 0.9 244,824 1.1 174,194 0.8
Population 16 to 64 years 178,687,234 100.0 87,570,583 100.0 91,116,651 100.0
With any disability 33,153,211 18.6 17,139,019 19.6 16,014,192 17.6
Sensory 4,123,902 2.3 2,388,121 2.7 1,735,781 1.9
Physical 11,150,365 6.2 5,279,731 6.0 5,870,634 6.4
Mental. 6,764,439 3.8 3,434,631 3.9 3,329,808 3.7
Self-care 3,149,875 1.8 1,463,184 1.7 1,686,691 1.9
Going outside the home 11,414,508 6.4 5,569,362 6.4 5,845,146 6.4
Employment disability 21,287,570 11.9 11,373,786 13.0 9,913,784 10.9
Population 65 years and over 33,346,626 100.0 13,940,918 100.0 19,405,708 100.0
With any disability 13,978,118 41.9 5,634,282 40.4 8,834,836 43.0
Sensory 4,738,479 14.2 2,177,216 15.6 2,561,263 13.2
Physical 9,545,680 28.6 3,590,139 25.8 5,955,541 30.7
Mental. 3,592,912 10.8 1,380,060 9.9 2,212,852 11.4
Self-care 3,183,840 9.5 1,044,910 7.5 2,138,930 11.0
Going outside the home 6,795,517 20.4 2,339,128 16.8 4,456,389 23.0

Return to: Table of Contents

Part B: Managing For Success
Preface

This section of the Plan contains two chapters. The first chapter describes NIDRR's logic model for outcomes achievement, which has served as the basis of development of the Plan.

The second chapter details the systematic approaches NIDRR intends to pursue to advance the management of the Institute's operations. A central feature is a move toward a fixed competition schedule. The second chapter also describes efforts to enhance NIDRR's scientific review process, and the emphasis on outcomes evaluation.

I. NIDRR Logic Model

Introduction

NIDRR has based the development of the Plan on its mission statement. The mission statement emphasizes participation in the community by persons with disabilities as the overall objective of NIDRR's investment activities. NIDRR's mission statement was derived from the enabling legislation for NIDRR. In developing its research agenda, NIDRR drew upon accountability guidelines from the Department and OMB, which focus on outcomes of research activities.

To provide a theoretical framework for the Plan and guide its implementation, NIDRR developed its program Logic Model (see Appendix 2), which represents graphically the different types of short-term and intermediate outcomes that NIDRR's investments in R&D are designed to produce or contribute to and the interrelationships among these intended outcomes. The Logic Model also serves as the framework for depicting NIDRR's planned performance assessment and outcomes evaluation processes, which are key to demonstrating the Institute's accountability for research results. The width and density of the upward-directed arrows, at the bottom of the Logic Model diagram, indicate that the degree of accountability and hence intensity of NIDRR efforts in assessment and evaluation is greatest for the short-term outcome arenas.

How the NIDRR Logic Model Contributes to the Long-Range Plan

The value of any logic model is that it provides:

Definitions of Components of the NIDRR Logic Model Situation

The uppermost block in the Logic Model, labeled "situation," highlights the gaps in knowledge, skills, policy and practice that hinder attainment of parity in employment, health and function, and participation for people with disabilities compared to the non-disabled population (see Appendix 2). The Logic Model depicts the short-term and intermediate outcomes that NIDRR seeks to achieve directly and indirectly through its investments in research and related activities to eliminate these gaps and inform needed changes in policy, practice, behavior, and system capacity. These advancements and changes, in turn, contribute to the long-term outcome of improving the lives of people with disabilities.

Major Domains of NIDRR Mission

The substantive focus of NIDRR's investment activity is R&D applied to maximizing the participation of people with disabilities. This activity is centered on the three major life domains of interest to NIDRR: (a) Employment, (b) participation and community living, and (c) health and function. In the Logic Model, interlocking circles represent these inter-related domains (see Appendix 2). The achievement of goals related to the three major life domains is facilitated by technology, which addresses both access and function, and knowledge of disability demographics, including characteristics and trends in the population of people with disabilities. Policymakers, service providers, researchers, and disability advocates are the principal users of demographic data. NIDRR is uniquely positioned to address these inter-connected domains.

The employment circle of the Logic Model represents research on employment-related activities and strategies to improve employment outcomes and labor force participation. Lack of parity in employment remains one of the greatest barriers to independence for people with disabilities. Research is needed on strategies to enable Americans with disabilities to access careers, integrate into the workforce, and participate as full citizens in the economic marketplace. Employment, although an integral part of community participation, is treated as a separate domain because of NIDRR's statutory relationship with the Federal-State vocational rehabilitation program, and because of its overwhelming significance to people with disabilities and society.

The participation and community living circle of the Logic Model represents the interaction with the social and built environment in a way that maximizes full inclusion and integration of people with disabilities. This domain focuses on direct supports that increase the availability of acceptable options and opportunities to make choices and enhance participation in everyday activities. For the promise of full participation and community living to become a reality, people with disabilities need safe and affordable housing; access to transportation; access to the political process; and access to the services, programs, and activities offered to all members of the community at public and private facilities.

The health and function circle of the Logic Model represents individual factors such as the structure and function of the human body, as well as strategies to prevent, identify, assess, or resolve causes and consequences of disability. In this domain, as in the others, NIDRR stresses the importance of individual choice—choosing providers, services and objectives. The health and function domain encompasses research to achieve outcomes at the individual level—improved functioning, fitness, and health, including mental health. This domain also addresses goals at the system level, such as more effective service delivery systems, better access (financial and logistical) to healthcare services, and the assessment of rehabilitation effectiveness.

The outer ring of the Logic Model includes two additional domains: technology for access and function and disability demographics. Technology for access and function is essential to community integration, employment, and health and function, and plays a major role in enabling a good fit between individuals with disabilities and the environment. The domain of disability demographics emphasizes describing and characterizing people with disabilities to provide a better understanding of the phenomenon of disability. Improved statistics on disability and participation are critical to developing policies and strategies that will be effective in addressing barriers to participation faced by individuals with disabilities, and in assessing the Nation's progress in improving life outcomes for individuals with disabilities.

Long-term Outcomes

Generally, outcomes refer to anticipated or actual changes in a target system that occurs from carrying out program activities and outputs. Long-term outcomes are the desired end-results of a program at the societal level; long-term outcomes are indicated by changes in overall conditions of the target population. Given their scope, long-term outcomes go beyond the direct or indirect influence and control of any one agency. Because of this, NIDRR is not accountable for producing, by itself, societal level improvements in the overall conditions of people with disabilities. Rather, the Institute's long-term outcomes, which focus on eliminating disparities in employment, participation and community living, and health and function, serve as critical anchor points guiding all strategic planning and research management efforts. Consistent with the Act, NIDRR's span of accountability centers on generating, romoting, and disseminating short-term outcomes that consist of new knowledge resulting from the combined accomplishments of its grantees. These short-term outcomes, when combined with KT activities, can be used to inform policy, change practice and behavior, and expand system capacity, which in turn will contribute to improving the lives of individuals of all ages with disabilities.

Short-Term Outcome Arenas

Short-term outcomes refer to advancements in understanding, knowledge, skills, and learning systems that result from the successful implementation of program activities and the use of R&D related outputs. Within the Logic Model and in the context of disability and rehabilitation research, there are three short-term outcome arenas, corresponding to NIDRR's investments in three functional programs. These functional arenas are: (1) C-B; (2) R&D; and (3) KT, corresponding to NIDRR's three strategic goals (See Part C). Given its centrality to the NIDRR mission, the R&D arena is further divided to reflect three stages of knowledge development. The three stages recognize that advancements in knowledge may occur through (a) Discoveries, (b) new or improved theories, measures, and methods, or (c) interventions, products, devices, and environmental adaptations. The generation of new knowledge in this short-term outcomes block is the primary area of direct responsibility for which NIDRR holds itself accountable.

Although the three strategic goals are discussed separately in Part C of the Plan, they are inextricably intertwined, in that research is supported by C-B and feeds KT, but the process is not linear. Inevitably, the generation of new knowledge raises new questions, calls for new skills and leads to further discoveries, theories, and interventions, multiplying the efficacy of NIDRR's investment.

Research and Development

R&D is divided into three generally sequential, but closely related, outcome arenas, corresponding to stages in knowledge development. Characteristically, research begins with significant discoveries (stage one) and moves through theory, measure, and method development (stage two) ultimately to enable the development of effective new and improved interventions, products and devices, and environmental adaptations (stage three). In this context, a product may be a new device or technique. An adaptation may include methods to improve physical, behavioral, or virtual environments.

The first two stages—discoveries and new or improved theories, measures, and methods—provide the critical foundation for new ideas, information, analyses, and scientific tools (i.e., theories, measures, methods) upon which to base the conduct of valid and reliable research and development activity. NIDRR will shape future priorities based on considerations of the state of knowledge development in a particular subject area to determine, for example, if an adequate theoretical basis exists upon which an intervention can be developed.

Capacity Building

NIDRR will focus its specific C-B activities primarily on the need to train new investigators to enable them to pursue topics of importance to NIDRR's research agenda, and to otherwise increase the capacity of the system to carry out complex studies. The Institute's training agenda includes cross-training of individuals already skilled in other disciplines in topics relevant to disability issues, and training of promising young investigators, with particular emphasis on underrepresented groups and persons with disabilities to facilitate their participation in the research process. In addition, NIDRR specifically supports institutional C-B through targeted initiatives. Finally, NIDRR plays an active leadership role throughout the Department and the Federal government in raising awareness of the needs of people with disabilities and issues of equity.

Knowledge Translation

Equally critical to NIDRR's mission is the ability to effectively translate and transfer the knowledge and products generated through R&D activities. NIDRR must successfully disseminate this information for use by intended target audiences, including individuals with disabilities and their families and caregivers. Indeed, NIDRR will include an assessment of the potential for translation of knowledge gained through the project to the target audiences in considering new projects for support. KT includes the important work of technology transfer that directly promotes the widespread commercialization and utilization of research results. Previously referred to as the "Knowledge Dissemination and Utilization (KDU)" component of NIDRR's agenda, this arena has been renamed KT to reflect the evolution of translation science as a field and increased emphasis in the Federal government on the importance of systematic review and synthesis of R&D results.

Intermediate Beneficiaries

This component refers to the immediate intended beneficiaries of NIDRR products and services as well as the recipients of the outputs and outcomes generated by NIDRR-funded grantees. This array of recipients includes individuals with disabilities and family members, researchers, clinicians and engineers, educators, service providers, product developers, policy experts and decision-makers, Federal and non-federal partners, industry representatives, employers, media, and consumer advocates.

Intermediate Outcome Arenas

Intermediate outcomes refer to changes in policy, practice, behavior, and system capacity that occur in part as a result of the external use or adoption of NIDRR-funded outputs and advances in knowledge. Unlike short-term outcomes, intermediate outcomes are under the indirect influence of program activities and outputs and consist of changes in decision-making and societal action. Because of the multiple influences on these intermediate outcomes, NIDRR can only partially influence these outcomes, and thus cannot be held accountable to the same degree as for short-term outcomes.

Intended Beneficiaries

The intended beneficiaries of NIDRR's overall investments are people with disabilities and their families. These individuals may benefit either directly, or more likely, indirectly through changes in policy, practice, behavior, and system capacity brought about through NIDRR's investments. The of purpose of NIDRR's activities, as described above in discussing the Long-term Outcomes, is the elimination of disparities in employment, participation and community living, and health and function. Intended beneficiaries include people with impairments or limitations in mobility, communications, cognition, and behavior.

Performance Assessment & Outcomes Evaluation

The last component of the NIDRR Logic Model depicts NIDRR's multi-level evaluation system. The intensity of the assessment and evaluation efforts is proportional to the thickness of the arrows of the Logic Model, and is greatest for short-term outcomes (see Appendix 2). Performance assessment takes place annually and is focused on evaluating grantee progress and the quality and relevance of the aggregate of R&D findings and accomplishments. Moreover, the performance assessment identifies the strengths and weaknesses of portfolio areas, which are defined as clusters of projects in NIDRR's domains and the Institute's program funding mechanisms. Data from these annual performance assessment and portfolio reviews are used to satisfy GPRA and PART requirements and inform program improvement efforts. Outcomes evaluation, in contrast, occurs periodically and is focused primarily on a retrospective assessment of the long-term achievements in a portfolio area relative to both short-term and intermediate outcomes, as well as any contributions at the societal level toward improving the overall condition of people with disabilities. Both types of evaluations are performed by independent review panels comprised of scientists, engineers, clinicians, service providers, policy analysts, industry representatives, consumer advocates, individuals with disabilities, and family members.

Contextual Factors

Some of the factors that may change the activities implemented by NIDRR, both directly and indirectly, are called "contextual factors" and are shown at the base of the Logic Model (see Appendix 2). Changes may be mandated directly in changing policies or indirectly in a changing environment that might require new strategies. The contextual factors include variable funding, scientific and technological advancements, societal attitudes, economic conditions, changing public policies, and coordination and cooperation with other government entities.


II. Managing for Results

A. Overview

In this chapter, NIDRR presents the management agenda for implementing its disability and rehabilitation research portfolio. Management of NIDRR research programs and projects encompasses many distinct aspects: provision of a results-oriented planning environment, selection and scheduling of priorities, operation of program mechanisms to carry out research and related activities, organization and monitoring of projects, and support for interagency and international research efforts.

To further advance the management of research and related activities, NIDRR is developing plans to improve its grant-making procedures and to expand the scope and enhance the effectiveness of its standing peer review panels. The Plan delineates and clarifies the processes of decision-making, and includes a new emphasis on research portfolios and research clusters, which use the different program mechanisms to integrate disparate research projects in a given topical area. Over the lifetime of the Plan, NIDRR will systematically evaluate all aspects of its management activities.

B. Results-Oriented Planning Environment

To facilitate advancements in rehabilitation and disability and rehabilitation research, NIDRR will delineate and plan strategic goals, identify specific program options for achieving the goals over time, and manage a wide range of projects derived from priorities based on these goals and program decisions. GPRA requires that all Federal managers link resources to results through use of outcome performance measures.

NIDRR research comprises a diverse portfolio of projects. As is true of overseeing and directing any sizeable portfolio of investments, management must set criteria for choices, time investments, execute decisions, monitor returns, evaluate outcomes, rebalance as necessary, and report results. NIDRR anchors its portfolio management and performance evaluation systems in the legislative mandate set forth in the Act. As described in the previous chapter, NIDRR translates the legislative mandate into its mission and strategic goals through continually assessing performance, measuring project progress and short-term outcomes, tracing intermediate outcomes as the target systems use the projects' results, and identifying long-term outcomes as depicted in the NIDRR Logic Model.

Within the accountability goals established by GPRA and PART, NIDRR is responsible for measuring and reporting the progress of its many research projects. NIDRR managers and program stakeholders face the continuing challenge of delineating longer-term achievements, as these will improve the use of scarce resources, advance outcome measures, and provide feedback on strategic goals.

Priority Planning

NIDRR, like all Federal agencies, must plan and schedule its decision-making for portfolio management over a multi-year time frame. At any given time, NIDRR is engaged in implementing and managing ongoing projects, conducting grant competitions and making new awards, planning for the next immediate budget cycle, and assessing the consequences of multi-year funding decisions for subsequent funding cycles. Table 4 presents time frames and descriptions of activities for the management of NIDRR research.

Table 4.—Time Frames for Planning and Implementing Management Improvements

Time horizon Process Description of activities Product
36-24 months prior to start of fiscal year (FY). Pre-planning Review Plan, strategic and performance goals, portfolio of existing projects to address emerging opportunities and ongoing needs. Potential priority areas in broad terms.
24-18 months prior to start of FY Planning Initial environmental scan, identification of potential projects. Refined list of priorities.
9 months prior to start of FY through start of FY. Program Priority Choices. Based on budget and identified goals and criteria, establish specific priorities and issue announcements. Priorities.
During FY Pre-Award Decision and Award. Make award decisions based on peer review and program considerations. Projects chosen for award based on peer review and extent to which proposed activities match Plan.
1 to 5 years post-award Post-Award Management. Throughout project periods, monitor progress, assess trends, feed back data for planning and portfolio decisions. Data on project and center operations.
3-10 years post-award Performance evaluation Review goal measurements, programs, and combinations of projects for outputs, outcomes, and impacts. Documented outcomes.

Timeline

This Plan describes a number of important changes that will improve the way NIDRR manages its multiple responsibilities to constituencies, grantees and potential grantees, and the public. These changes will take five years or longer to be fully realized. The timeline for completion of these efforts is identified in Table 5.

Table 5.—Timeline for Management Achievements

Item Description/Implication Timeframe
Regulation changes Update selection criteria and legislative references; implement small grant authority; describe procedures for resubmission; establish proposal content. 1 year.
Fixed competition schedule Annual announcement of priorities; notices inviting applications, peer reviews, and grant awards at regular dates. 3 years.
Standing panels for competition review Enhance expertise of standing panels. 3 years.
Evaluate clusters Using expert panels, review topical project clusters. 5 years.
GPRA panels Establish standing panels for annual review of quality of outputs, research rigor, short-term outcomes. 3 years.
Environmental scan Establish procedures for conducting comprehensive studies of relevant technological, scientific and policy changes with implications for disability. 4 years.
Independent Expert review Conduct comprehensive review by independent panel of status of research on disability. 3 years.

To accomplish a number of goals, NIDRR plans to initiate efforts to change regulations governing the management of its research portfolio. NIDRR will make changes to selection criteria that will improve the quality of its peer review and provide for more consistent evaluation. Moreover, the initiation of a streamlined, systematic process for resubmission of applications would be useful for grantees and peer reviewers. The establishment of elements needed for a standardized proposal narrative would facilitate a more consistent review. The following steps are intended to advance NIDRR research management:

Funding Mechanisms and Strategies

NIDRR operates a number of program mechanisms to support research and related activities. These mechanisms vary in purpose, duration, and resource allocation. Rehabilitation Research and Training Centers (RRTCs) and the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Centers (RERCs) are primary recipients of NIDRR resources and carry out many of NIDRR's major research efforts.

NIDRR support of RRTCs is specified in the Act. RRTCs are funded to conduct coordinated and advanced programs of research, training, and information dissemination in priority areas that are specified by NIDRR. RRTCs are expected to be multidisciplinary; involve people with disabilities and their families; provide advanced research training, as well as training for rehabilitation practitioners, consumers, and families; and provide undergraduate education. RRTCs are designed to be national centers of scientific research and resources for the disability and rehabilitation field, providing information and technical assistance to a broad constituency. Each RRTC typically is funded for five years.

RERCs also are specified in the Act, and conduct engineering and technological research to design, develop, and test equipment, technologies, assistive devices, and methods that will remove environmental barriers and provide innovative models for rehabilitation technology service delivery.

The Act also provides for discrete research projects and other related work. These undertakings are carried out either through Disability and Rehabilitation Research Projects (DRRPs) that are directed toward solving specific problems identified by NIDRR, or through the Field-Initiated (FI) Program.

A program of investigator-initiated research was created by NIDRR in 1984, under its R&D authority. This FI program supplements NIDRR's directed research portfolio by addressing diverse research issues in promising and innovative ways. FI research projects cover all aspects of NIDRR's domains, including employment, independent living, medical rehabilitation, and development of new technologies, and address all disability populations with a wide range of research approaches.

The Act also provides for two C-B programs—Fellowships and Advanced Rehabilitation Research Training Grants (ARRTs). Fellowships are awarded to individuals in various stages of their careers to support one year of independent research in a selected area. ARRTs are awarded to institutions of higher education to support advanced training in research in any discipline investigating issues of disability and rehabilitation. ARRTs, which typically are funded for five years, provide stipends to trainees and funding for mentoring, instruction, hands-on research experience, and opportunities for presentation and publication.

NIDRR also supports service demonstration and research programs to develop and evaluate improved methods and systems of rehabilitation care for individuals with spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury, and burns.

Fixed Competition Schedules

NIDRR will move toward a fixed schedule for competitions that will enable potential grantees to better plan application efforts, facilitate NIDRR's work with reviewers, and increase efficient grant-making operations at NIDRR. Fixed schedules will maintain consistent dates for key activities in the competition process, including announcements of final priorities, application due dates and award dates. These goals are consistent with the Department's overall management directions. To accomplish these goals, NIDRR intends to publish all of its proposed priorities and, following public comment, final priorities annually, on a combined basis. This will allow NIDRR's constituents to view the overall scope of NIDRR's planned priorities and to evaluate and submit comments on these priorities at one time rather than at different times throughout the year.

Managing for Results at NIDRR

NIDRR research management will be guided by many elements and will employ several research planning and decision-making principles in its work. These principles include:

For both dimensions, NIDRR management must assess the ways in which investments support not only new research areas, but also the development of methods and measures that improve outcome assessment and evidence-based practices, and the investment in people to improve research capacity. NIDRR also has responsibilities to address areas of special need, such as improving services and opportunities for racial and ethnic minority populations (see section 21 of the Act); research capacity to address specific geographic issues; and training for individuals with disabilities and their families.

Internal and external controls will assist in assessing program progress in implementing the Plan. High-quality scientific peer review with preeminent peers will ensure high quality research. Participation of people with disabilities at all stages of NIDRR-funded work also will contribute to quality outcomes. Monitoring of project and research activity will ensure that funds are spent wisely, efforts are on target, effective feedback is provided, and best practices are identified. Formative and summative "in-process" peer reviews will continue to establish quality mechanisms for evaluating and disseminating research findings.

Peer Review Processes

Application review is central to efforts that ensure the integrity and validity of the research agenda. This review provides both face and content validity to the research portfolio. Thus, it is imperative that this process be as effective as possible.

As mandated by the Act, NIDRR continues its commitment to a review of its research portfolio by a fully representative audience that includes both researchers and consumers. NIDRR envisions a standardized peer review process across NIDRR's research portfolio, with standing panels servicing many program funding mechanisms.

NIDRR will establish standing panels as part of an overall revision of program operations. By providing standing panels, NIDRR anticipates achieving a more consistent review of applications, thereby encouraging continued growth and improvement in those applications. A fixed competition schedule, as described above, will allow panelists to reserve time for the reviews and enable a higher percentage of individuals to complete their term of service. Such consistency should increase reviewer familiarity and skill with NIDRR research programs, allow effective role modeling by panelists, and ensure more effective training efforts. NIDRR will provide training to all panelists to optimize their effectiveness in reviewing proposals.

Monitoring

As is depicted in the NIDRR Logic Model (Appendix 2), NIDRR will evaluate the outcomes of its grantee research efforts; measures of success will vary by goal and topic. NIDRR will use the results of outcomes research to judge projects for productivity gains, economic value, practitioner satisfaction, and end user satisfaction. Product indicators will measure how a new or improved tool contributes to better rehabilitation technologies. Citations and bibliometrics on a grantee's research efforts will be applied to identify widespread use of a new or improved theory, measure, or method.

Historical tracing—examining research to outcome, or backward from outcome to contributing research—will be employed to identify key times when a theory, measure, or method advanced the state of a particular field.

NIDRR is developing a systematic tracking of instruments developed by grantees (Tools List), which, along with patent counts, will serve to verify outcomes of research methods and products. Systematic reviews or meta-analyses will be used to evaluate aggregated research outcomes. NIDRR will employ survey techniques to indicate widespread or specialized use of a tool or measure. Qualitative studies of social and behavioral dimensions of research activities indicate the benefit gained from improved tools. NIDRR also works with professional groups to identify increased use of new measures in research and practice guides. The Federal government requires that interventions research adhere to standards for Human Subjects Protection, privacy, and data safety monitoring; such standards are monitored in conjunction with appropriate Department officials.

Research Cooperation

As a leading Federal agency involved in disability and rehabilitation research, NIDRR works closely with numerous other Federal agencies. These working relations are fostered through memoranda of understanding and other interagency agreements that facilitate joint projects. These agreements have resulted in research jointly sponsored with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health, and other components of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). NIDRR also conducts employment research jointly with the U.S. Department of Labor and conducts NFI-related activities with the Office on Disability of HHS, through memoranda of understanding.

Another avenue for interagency cooperation is participation in groups such as the Washington Research Evaluation Network (WREN), a partnership of Federal agencies that serves as a forum for the R&D evaluation community in exploring new approaches that will improve the management of science and technology organizations. These efforts will assist NIDRR as it examines and implements performance measures to assess the quality, effectiveness, and utility of its R&D investment.

Interagency collaborations can facilitate addressing mutual and individual concerns in research areas. A major mechanism for fostering such collaboration is the ICDR.

Interagency Committee on Disability Research

The ICDR, authorized by the Act, will continue to promote coordination and cooperation among Federal departments and agencies that conduct disability and rehabilitation research programs. NIDRR is the administrative home of the ICDR, and the Director of NIDRR chairs this committee. Representatives of more than 35 Federal entities regularly participate in the ICDR. In addition to the full committee, five subcommittees address specific issues: Disability Statistics, Medical Rehabilitation, Technology (including Technology Transfer), Employment, and the NFI).

The goals of the ICDR and its subcommittees are to increase public input to ensure that research efforts lead to solutions for identified needs, to improve the visibility of Federal disability research in general, and to increase collaboration among agencies. The ICDR meets quarterly, and subcommittees meet either quarterly or more frequently. As required by the Act, the ICDR submits an annual report of its work to the President and Congress. Under the NFI, funds are allocated to support the ICDR in coordinating Federal disability research programs relative to technology. The Plan proposes to support the continued work and accomplishments of the ICDR; information on the ICDR can be accessed on the Internet at: http://www.icdr.us/.

International Research Program

The magnitude of the overall Federal R&D effort directed to disability and rehabilitation research is relatively small, compared to R&D efforts in other areas. Thus, international cooperation and exchange has been viewed as an important mechanism by which the critical mass of disability and rehabilitation research can be increased. Section 204(b)(6) of the Act states that the Director of NIDRR is authorized to: "* * * conduct a program for international rehabilitation research, demonstration, and training * * *" and many nations look to the U.S. as a model for disability and rehabilitation research in technology.

NIDRR has funded the international exchange of information and experts. NIDRR projects have demonstrated the value of international collaboration in developing technology for individuals with disabilities in prosthetics development—for example, a sand casting system that greatly facilitates prosthetic socket fabrication. Additionally, addressing the issues concerning Web accessibility continues to be mutually beneficial to NIDRR's constituents and its international partners.

NIDRR also has funded research in the multicultural aspects of disability and rehabilitation research and in understanding how cultural perspectives affect the development and implementation of intervention strategies and the interpretation and analysis of disabilities.

Thus, there is a compelling reason for NIDRR to continue its work on projects with an international scope, including issues of concern for individuals with disabilities in the Middle East, Asia/Pacific, Africa, Europe/North America, Latin America, and Caribbean regions. There is a possibility for creating further collaborations through the Department and the United States-Mexico Binational Commission. NIDRR supports the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Flagship activities to ensure the inclusion of children with disabilities in UNESCO's Education for All (EFA) plans. NIDRR is interested in developing closer relationships with funding agencies in other nations. A potential avenue for this would be the United States-European Union (US-EU) Science and Technology Agreement signed in 1997. NIDRR could operate under this agreement to expand cooperation with a comparable governmental agency in the European Commission (EC). The possibility of coordinated calls for research on both sides of the Atlantic could greatly increase the critical mass of research and development of technology, further improving the lives of people with disabilities in the United States and other nations.


Return to: Table of Contents

Part C: Addressing Outcomes Through Research and Development, Capacity Building, and Knowledge Translation

Preface

NIDRR has built its program of funded activities around the three arenas of R&D, C-B, and KT. For each of these arenas, there are strategic goals and objectives. This part of the Plan presents NIDRR's Strategic Goals and Objectives, and then presents more detailed chapters on R&D, C-B, and KT.

Strategic Goals and Objectives

Strategic goals are broad statements of a program's aims, whereas strategic objectives specify the means by which the goals will be carried out. These strategic goals and objectives are intended to communicate NIDRR's main themes and directions, and not to serve as measurable operational objectives. NIDRR has developed the following set of comprehensive strategic goals and objectives that reflect the program's mission and align with both the targeted outcome arenas depicted on the Logic Model (see Appendix 2) and the Institute's GPRA performance measures.

Advance Knowledge Through Research and Related Activities

Generate scientific knowledge, technologies, and applications to inform policy, change practice, and improve outcomes.

Goal 2: Advance Knowledge Through Capacity-Building

Increase capacity to conduct and use high quality and relevant disability and rehabilitation research and related activities designed to guide decision-making, change practice, and improve the lives of individuals with disabilities.

Goal 3: Advance Knowledge Translation

Promote the effective use of science-based knowledge, technologies, and applications to inform disability and rehabilitation policy, improve practice, and enhance the lives of individuals with disabilities.

These strategic goals and objectives are addressed in the following three chapters: I. Research and Development, II. Capacity Building, and III. Knowledge Translation.

I. Research and Development

At the heart of NIDRR's mission is supporting research to improve the lives of people with disabilities. The associated strategic goal for this is to generate science-based knowledge, technologies, and applications to inform policy, change practice, and thereby improve overall conditions for people with disabilities. This section focuses attention on the major domains as seen in the Logic Model, beginning with employment of people with disabilities, which is a major concern of the Department and of NIDRR. Similarly, NIDRR is interested in maximizing choices for persons with disabilities as they select their dwellings, transportation, and life activities. Health and function are essential components of such life choices. A focus on technology that supports these choices is of central importance to NIDRR.

As NIDRR establishes goals and priorities for effective resource allocation, the Institute is interested in improving knowledge about people with disabilities, including the nature and duration of disability, where they live, and what kinds of jobs they have.

The future research agenda for NIDRR rests on the strategic goals and objectives defined above and on the long-term outcomes depicted in the Logic Model, which call for eliminating disparities in employment, participation and community living, and healthcare between people with disabilities and the general population. However, because achieving this desired end-result requires changes in the overall condition of people with disabilities that go beyond the reach of the Institute's mission, it is necessary to articulate an additional set of more operational performance goals. Unlike long-term outcomes, performance goals, which may be output or outcome-oriented, lie within a program's span of accountability and consist of tangible, measurable objectives, against which actual accomplishments and achievements can be compared.

Within the NIDRR research agenda, performance goals are formulated separately for each of the major domains of the Institute's mission. However, it is important to note that because of differences in the needs of consumers and levels of knowledge and methodological development across domains, the number of articulated performance goals may differ among the domains. NIDRR will publish specific implementation strategies in the form of proposed priorities and, following public comment, final priorities annually, on a combined basis.

A. Employment
Overview

For many people with disabilities, employment that is challenging, fulfilling, and fairly and adequately compensated is the ultimate rehabilitation outcome. For those individuals interested in workforce participation, employment shapes the lives of individuals with disabilities at all stages of life. Successful workforce participation requires supports and partnerships of employers, service providers, workers, and often a network of family, friends, and community entities. At the individual and systems level success is often measured in terms of acquisition, improvement, and enhancement of skills, productivity, earnings, job retention and advancement, and benefits. NIDRR advances employment-related innovations that contribute to success at work and subsequent improvements in quality of life in education, home, and community.

Research can be used to strengthen the scientific basis of disability-related employment policy and practice. Studies provide validated information that improve understanding of employment policy and practice as it affects the workforce and society. Moreover, research findings related to career planning, job entry, advancement, and retention can assist individuals with disabilities, particularly those with significant disabilities, in moving from dependency on public benefits to self-sufficiency, or from underemployment into work that is consistent with the individual's strengths, abilities, and interests. Examples include workplace assistance, methods, and techniques developed from productivity studies, and accommodations improve on-the-job outcomes.

Employment research supported by NIDRR for people with disabilities strives to identify proven job enhancements and career building blocks to sustain them in the workforce. NIDRR supports studies to improve knowledge of societal, environmental, individual, and behavioral factors that serve as barriers or facilitators for employment.

The Context for Research on Employment

The employment policy environment has changed dramatically in recent years. Laws such as the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act (TWWIIA) and other initiatives were designed to erase some of the disincentives to work that current public policy and programs present for beneficiaries. Sound research at the systems and individual levels is necessary to evaluate the impact of long-standing policies and programs, and to assess new developments as they are considered for national implementation, modification, or elimination.

Both individuals and employers are intended beneficiaries of NIDRR employment research. For individuals, employment research can develop and improve interventions for and measures of individual function and task performance at all stages of life. NIDRR's employment research may be general across disabilities or specific to certain target populations. Many employment issues, particularly those related to economic and social policies, have similar impacts on people with different disabilities. However, some aspects of employment research, such as accommodations at the work site or applications of technology, may be specific to persons with physical, communication, cognitive, or psychiatric disabilities and NIDRR will address their specific needs as appropriate.

Employers are important targets for NIDRR research. Research addresses methods to integrate unique needs of employers and disability populations to improve employment outcomes across the life span. NIDRR research can lead to more accessible work environments. R&D activities seek to address employer concerns about costs of accommodations and generate innovat