A JOBSEEKER SEGMENTATION AND INTERVENTION PROGRAM

To what extent does a psychosocial intervention (PSI) improve return-to-work rates for welfare-receiving jobseekers who differ in ethnicity, length of unemployment, physical location, gender, and readiness for change? Two large-scale studies (Study 1: 2,459 jobseekers, Study 2: 20,057 jobseekers) across a diverse Australian sample sought to assess factors that moderated the efficacy on return-to-work outcomes of a PSI program (comprising 31 evidence-based exercises that are purported to build psychological states such as self-efficacy, resilience, and well-being) when compared to a government-funded treatment as usual (TAU) re-employment service. Study 1 showed that the PSI was much more effective than TAU (20.4% increase in job placements), but only for jobseekers who were not already proactively engaged in seeking a job. Study 2 added a one-to-one intervention to the original group PSI workshop, informed by the transtheoretical (or stage of change) model and was shown to improve job placement rates regardless of stage of jobseeking readiness, gender, age and ethnicity (41.9% increase in job placements overall). However, the intervention was not effective for those living in remote areas. The results have implications for employment services aiming to deliver better return-to-work outcomes by segmenting and personalizing support for unemployed citizens.