In the contexts where people with intellectual disability work, there are factors that determine their job satisfaction. The objective of this study was to test the adequacy of the central assumptions of the Job Demands-Resources (JD-R) theory in workers with intellectual disability employed in different work alternatives. Data from 362 workers in sheltered workshops and 192 workers in supported employment were utilized. The model was contrasted using a structural equation model and a multi-group analysis. The results supported the suitability of the model and confirmed that job demands and job resources evoke two relatively independent processes such as health impairment and motivational process. The multi-group analysis confirmed the invariance of the model between the two work alternatives. Thus, the JD-R model offers a useful framework to explain the job satisfaction of workers with intellectual disability. Implications for the improvement of personal and job results are discussed.
Keywords: Job Demands–Resources theory; assessment; exhaustion; intellectual disabilities; job satisfaction; work engagement; work-related factors.