So I’m considering getting certified in ABA at the bachelors level, it’s only 13 additional credit hours or close to 13, but I’m curious as to if it is unethical or not. I know some say it does great work and has evolved over the years, while others say it has left them with PTSD.
I’d like to get opinions of those who have worked in ABA or who know something about it, because it seems as though there is a lot of grey area, and that while some may be unethical others are very helpful.
I did ABA for about 8 years. The people who say it is unethical basically have no clue. Yes, doing ABA on someone who had no unsafe behaviors would be unethical. But that’s not what happens. My clients were actively harming themselves and others. In some cases, their behaviors were life threatening. With ABA, they were able to learn better ways of communicating their needs so that everyone stayed safe.
The only thing I would caution you on is that it’s a very dangerous job. I have had my finger and nose broken, I used to get monthly black eyes, there is a chunk of my ankle missing from a particularly nasty bite, and several crescent shaped scars in various places on my body, and finally, I got a head injury so bad I spent a year in rehab services relearning how to read and walk.
I was hoping youd comment, but I didnt want to call you out in case you didnt feel like sharing.
Thanks for your perspective! I’m sorry about your injuries.
Did I make a thread like this before? I had a serious case of deja vu while reading your response. Sorry if this is a repeat thread.
I believe you or maybe someone else asked about it before. But I’m always happy to talk about it. I loved that job and would continue doing it if it didn’t nearly kill me. Any specific questions you want to ask?
What’s Aba therapy?
I have a few questions, but I can’t remember them at this moment, my brain is foggy lol.
I really do appreciate your input!
I have children on the Autism spectrum who receive ABA. We like the company we are using. We had a bad experience with a different agency who kept pushing my son to tantrum so they could work on that behavior. My son is still working through that behavior. As a parent, it is tough to see your child frustrated but ABA has worked wonders for my children, increasing their verbal and social skills. Overall it’s a big help which we are grateful for.
It’s very controversial with people on the spectrum having mixed opinions about it(some for and some against) .
In my experience, a lot of the people against it also either have very mild symptoms and don’t understand how bad things are for others, or else they think the world should work around their dangerous behaviors and just let them have destructive meltdowns.
ABA is just a way of teaching communication and coping skills to people who haven’t understood any other coping skills. And yeah, the ABA of 20 years ago isn’t the ABA of today. That’s true for all mental health fields. Things have gotten much more advanced and less invasive.
Behavior analysis can work where other therapies fail. It’s not unethical, just very different from how we’re used to thinking about treatments.
I don’t disagree with that. There is a very strong anti cure element in the autism community. It is ,as you say, found especially in people on the milder end of the spectrum. Such people can often see it as a gift , and some go as far as talking about ‘aspie supremacy’ .
The mothers with children with severe autism can be given a rough ride by some people on the spectrum for wanting a cure for their children.
Yeah. I mean, I can see where it comes from. Some people honestly just work a bit differently than others. But some can have serious and dangerous behaviors, and the self-advocacy community tends to ignore them and try to distance themselves from them. I guess it’s similar to the way we distance ourselves from the people with mental illness who commit violent crimes.
I’ve experienced that, but gave back as good as I got. My daughter is not extreme, she is lower end.
In terms of being on the spectrum alone I’m nearer the mild than severe end . I don’t see it as a ‘gift’ though . Throw in things like schizoaffective(albeit in remission?) ,dyspraxia(probable though not dxed) and learning difficulty(probable though not dxed) and the ‘mild’ is a fair bit less ‘mild’ than just basing it on autism symptoms alone.
Thanks for the replies everyone! I may apply to be a tech to decide if I want to take the ABA courses. I’m going for psychology for my bachelors anyways, it’s just a matter of taking electives or the ABA courses.
Thanks @Ninjastar, @anon97859349, @firemonkey, @anon4362788, @anon9798425!
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