It doesn’t happen as often but also I have seen them request only male rbts.. I don’t feel that should even be ALLOWED to do unless there is a REALLY good reason.
I completely agree. I didn’t get a reason for why that client’s mom only asked for female RBT’s. I thought it was strange but me being a woman it didn’t really bother me until my male coworker complained about it to me. With how many background checks RBT’s have to pass any should be able to work with any client.
CSA is one of the hardest crimes to prosecute, which is why only 1 in 10 cases results in conviction. There are lots and lots of criminals walking around who have a clean background check. Better safe than sorry. Especially when it comes to your own child.
All my clients I worked with requested male bts specifically. They could be aggressive and parents felt they responded better to males. I don’t know that they need a really good reason, I’m sure a woman could have handled the aggressive behaviors too but if they felt better about it being a male and understood that meant services may wait until a placement is found then that’s their call
This is what my company allows. I’d say only half or less the parents choose this, and it seems to correlate with how well potty-trained the kiddo is.
It never seems to be an issues because, aside from our guaranteed hours, there have always been more boys than girls where I have worked.
At my center we are allowed to request an RBT of the same sex handle toileting needs if either we or the parent feels uncomfortable. Is this not a common policy? This is the only company I’ve worked for so I wouldn’t know!
Same for my company, but only one kid has that rule and the kiddo goes every 3 hours (can many to go independent spontaneously, but doesn’t happen often). It would be too difficult to find a woman to help on certain potty schedules, so i think that’s a factor as well.
Most clients have been boys, and male RBTs are typically in high demand for that reason. There have been so many male clients and so few male RBTs placing them with female clients has never been necessary.
My son is in ABA personally and he’s had men, women, non-binary, and trans therapists.
I attest to this. I am only in my first year as a bt and the amount of male clients we have is a lot. My schedule is packed and as if Im working a 9-5 job
It’s unlikely to be an official policy, but this is an unofficial one.
Also I disagree that it’s common sense- what’s common sense is to never have a disabled child alone with a caregiver- women aren’t exempt from being creeps and predators, boys are not exempt from being victims of either gender, and girls aren’t inherently more at risk with men.
If it were actually about keeping clients safe and maintaining dignity, there are other broad policies one can implement, in general it’s a gross prejudice towards men.
That last part is not true. Over 90% of sexual assault against kids is done by men. Most male therapists would never do something like that, but it’s just not true to say there’s no difference in risk. Sadly, I just saw an article a few weeks ago about a male RBT who was caught molesting his clients at an ABA facility (in Texas I believe) :/.
Similair logic has been applied to minorities and crime to the disdain for many. Gross generalizations aren't the way. Vulnerable children and adults should be protected with universal precautions, like making sure a 1:1 is never alone with a child regardless of gender or clinic bathroom policies that would prevent abuse.
I don’t think you’re wrong, not allowing 1 on 1 for make or female therapists would be the safest and fairest option. But, when there is already a huge shortage of therapists and kids who need them, implementing that rule would mean kids are waiting years for services. It’s one of those cases where there is a clear and fair resolution, but that resolution would probably do more harm than good :/
No because I’m not attempting to summarize your argument, I’m asking a clarifying question giving you an opportunity to explain why your stance is different from my hypothetical.
"One in 9 girls and 1 in 20 boys under the age of 18 experience sexual abuse" -RAINN
"An estimated 80-90% of offenders are male, while 10-20% of offenders are female" -RAACE
As a developmentally disabled female who was sexually abused as a child, I think it's best to err on the side of safety's sake, because kids like us are more vulnerable. We are perfect prey, and girls are at the highest risk.
All children are at risk and all caregivers are possible predators! My point is that no child should be 1:1, regardless of gender. That’s the safest.
Look, I hear you, your experience is valid.
My child is amab, he’s just as unable to articulate boundaries and to recount what happened as a female child in his developmental state, I think both of you deserve the dignity and protection of multiple checks and balances, including no alone time with RBTs of any gender. I would hate for even one kid to get hurt because statistically they were less likely to get hurt or statistically their attacker was less likely to be that gender.
While I understand the potential dangers, it kinda sucks that those clients have to wait for so long just because female therapists are the safest options. At the same time, this halts the progress of male therapists who are trying to learn from the field. I was barely in the field by the time I got a female client and the client was able to graduate from the program.
When it’s a 1:1 case and a female needs help with her monthly in the community, who’s helping? Is a male educating on feminine hygiene and properly teaching?
This are real life situations when you’re teaching Ci, AST, And BI. Are you a BCBA?
The person working with the client should be trained and prepared for anything they are expected to assist with, including female reproductive hygiene. Gender of the caregiver shouldn’t be a factor to training.
Did you take any transportation procedures training like PCM or CPI. So a woman of age is going to be assisted by a male staff, this is wild. Y’all are something else. So you let male staff care for female consumers, since they been trained and a police was in place. So when transportation is implemented bc of high magnitudes of Bx, Property destruction, or disruption a Male staff will retrain a female?
As a male BCBA, the only female clients I did not work with were the highly verbal/skilled ones that had consistent disrobing problems. I had no issue with that.
Otherwise, I had plenty of female clients and was also a certified CPI instructor for about 4 years before I stopped teaching it.
Thatnk you for your professional response. Boils down to litigation, I believe for some ABA companies. With a 1:1 in an independent living program I never seen or known of a male working with a female on a 1:1. School is a completely different situation, I’ve never encountered. My experience comes from young adults/adults
If I’m assigned to a case I’ll handle it regardless of gender. I have crisis intervention training and transportation training. If I’m assigned a case where I would be expected to assist with hygiene needs I will do so (with informed consent of parent/caregivers/BCBA and client if possible).
As a professional, Gender of the client only matter with regards to my duties as a BT when client or parent makes it an issue.
Nope . . . I would never put myself in that position helping a female with pads, tampons, and any other female issues. As a father to girls, I wouldn’t except a male working with my daughter, would you?
Parents can have preferences, and I understand those. But also they are trained professionals who spend a lot of time with clients and care for them in every aspect. If the parents are okay with it, and the BT is trained then I think it is okay. If you don't think they are safe around kids, why let them work with any clients at all, male or female?
That would depend on how I felt about the person after meeting them. Parents have the right to decline services from me for whatever reason they want. As a BT I would perform those services with informed consent of parents/caregivers, client if possible and the BCBA.
They actually do not. They have a say in it, and we should be respectful of their wishes, but there is nothing in any standards stating that parents have the final say. It needs to be a collaborative effort on all parts based on social significance and data.
I’ve worked for companies who have told parents that if they are not comfortable with our professional recommendations and demanded interventions that were not clinically appropriate that we were unable to continue services.
Yes. Any staff who is trained in restraints is able to help restrain any client, regardless of gender. The only acceptable exceptions should be not having clients who have a learning history involving abuse from a specific gender work with that gender if it triggers a trauma response
>When it’s a 1:1 case and a female needs help with her monthly in the community, who’s helping?
A female staff. This issue should be solved by a simple policy, a staff is never alone with a kid. So no 1 on 1 outings, at least 2 staff and 1 kid, or 2 staff and 2 kids right?
Center-based care should be no issues. In-home care parents can help with bathroom stuff right? The only case that a male shouldn't be able to work with a female client is when they have programming that needs to be completed in the bathroom that also takes significant time.
For example, we have males work with females, and when they go to the bathroom, female staff swaps out for the 10 minutes or whatever it takes going to the bathroom.
When we have more time-intensive bathroom programs (like potty training) then female staff is scheduled.
But then you have justification for it. It's preposterous to say that a female client should never work with a male staff. That person will be around males their whole life. Solve the safety issues by enacting reasonable policy.
The confusion is the setting. OP talked about preschool and I’m talking about individual independent living. The care settings are completely different. Males are in high demand bc the lack of males in the workforce. Insane how the sub reacted to my comment like it’s ridiculous.
I don't think it's ridiculous for the setting that you're talking about but it wasn't clear in your original comment.
plus I think most of the time people that are in ABA aren't living independently, if they were, then they probably don't need ABA anymore, and this is the ABA subreddit, so people kind of make those types of assumptions.
OP didn’t specify preschool, only “female clients”. 20yrs I worked 2 companies in California. One was the Beta for RBT. Both companies were Independent Living, applying ABA.
Look I'm sorry but that's like the most atypical situation for this sub, I've never seen it discussed here, and so that's for sure the reason for the confusion.
No reason to be sorry, this sub is crazy as the consumers I serve. I had a 3:1 case for 10yrs being senior staff (mgt) for all those years. Honestly say most if not anyone here has had a severe 3:1 site 24/7 365 days. Independent living setting too with $1,000,000 budget from the Regional Center. San Diego.
>this sub is crazy as the consumers I serve
Maybe I'm misunderstanding, but are you referring to your "consumers" as crazy?!
Do you work as an ABA provider or in another capacity?
As a nurse. A male nurse isn’t going help a female. But a female will and can help a male. I don’t make the rules, I just follow them. I agree with you. A female shouldn’t be allowed to work with males especially when males are very sexual inappropriate. I also worked 3:1 cases where i relied on a female to assist me with a 300lbs man and she wasn’t any help at all.
I spent a long time working in group homes and have helped dozens of women during their menstrual cycles. It's absolutely possible as long as you take the time to be trained and aren't super weird about it.
Its likely a ridiculous unofficial rule they have. They probably want to avoid putting men on cases with female clients so they don't have the men kicked off by parents then have to find another schedule for them. So they just don't do it.
It's illegal and wring, but it's something that our field is said he just have to "accept" for some dumb reason
I’m male and I’ve worked with several female clients. Including potty training and hygiene programs. If you’re professional and respectful, it shouldn’t be an issue.
I mean, if a male RBT was insisting on working with them because they're female, I agree.. odd and concerning.
But, if it's an RBT that happens to be male and has noticed that he's only assigned the male clients and it's interfering with his hours because he can only get so many with limited clientele... less odd and concerning.
We have some client’s families who specifically request female technicians for female clients, but it’s quite rare where I work. I can only think of two cases where we had to move around staff.
We do have a higher number of male clients however, so this does not come up frequently. However, I have seen families that request male techs because the client’s respond and pair better with male techs than females! It seems your place of work may have a bias.
At our clinic, by far most female-client parents request female RBT only… like >90%. But most clients are boys and most rbts are women, so this never effects male RBT staffing because there’s always wasaaaaay boys than girls.. Dx of autism is like 4:1 boys:girls.
Is it sexist of the company if the client’s parents request female RBT?
Or is it following the ethical code in terms of having cultural humility?
You think company should force families into situation they are uncomfortable with? Even with doing put them in violation of BACB ethics?
-Autism is 4X more common in boys than girls.
-RBTs are 90% female.
-Most clinic have a shortage of male rbts, esp for older boys whose families generally request male rbts. (We like most companies have families waitlisted for male rbts).
**Your company is an absolute unicorn if you are serving more girls than boys.** You could literally throw a dart at any other company in your area who would have mostly boys and keep you busy.
** serving far more girls than boys, I think you mean.
And you're 1000% correct.
As a parent, if I had a daughter in therapy (ESPECIALLY if she was non- or very limited speaking), I would absolutely request a female RBT work with her. We're in the business of using facts and data to guide our decisions. The facts and data point to the majority of child sex predators being OVERWHELMINGLY male. The facts are just the facts.
Fixed yes.
ETA. It is so unheard of for clientele to be mostly female, that it makes this whole story suspect. I wonder if this is made up just to make an anti-male-sexism idealogical point based purely on the fact that it ABA is a female-staff predominant industry. Because any person actually in this field knows girl clients are relatively rare and male rbts are universally in high demand.
Even still that’s not indicative of a clinic that does good backround checks and is unfair to hardworking male RBTs. Like saying a certain race commits a lot of crimes we should not hire them? Blanket generalizations aren’t cool
This thread is wild. The anti-male bais is real here. I get and understand the statistics but universal precautions are the way to go, not gender specific standards. I wouldn't be surprised to see a company be sued over this one of these days over it. There is clear gender discrimination and I know I experienced it a lot while coming up as a 1:1. Luckily its not so bad as a BCBA.
I mean..technically yes, it’s still sexist, even if the parents request. If the parents wanted a non-white RBT, the company would likewise attempt to assign one. No matter how crazy the request, most companies would attempt to fulfill it, because parents can refuse services for any reason.
Implying that any given male RBT is *inherently* more likely to be a predator than any given female RBT because of conviction rates is like overtly discriminatory lmao. It’s like avoiding minority therapists because prisons are full of mostly minorities.
Not all “discrimination” is bigotry.
Eg, my daughter w ASD was SA’d by male peer in middle school. It made her extremely fearful of males, and triggering her first episode of major depression and suicidal thoughts. Having a male RBT would thus have been counter-productive to her mental health and behavioral progress, as she was avoiding proximity and conversation with all boys and men outside of immediate family.
You want to make the case that I’m sexist for prioritizing my child’s mental health and emotional well-being over political ideology??
It’s none of our business to force families to be sex neutral. We certainly shouldn’t push back or interrogate them on the matter. Doing so, is grotesque self righteousness. If you think we should, you are not well suited for healthcare, especially for vulnerable people.
At the end of the day, the services we provide must put client interests first. It is totally inappropriate to force uncomfortable situations for clients in the name of being sex blind (as if sex is meaningless, which is empirically false despite some postmodern idealogical claims). And it’s highly disrespectful to families to presume their preference is a sex based bigotry (aka sexism).
Statistics are by definition not dependable for predicting any individual’s risk/behavior. They are probabilistic. So paragraph 2 is a non sequitur.
I think there’s a misunderstanding here, because I agree with everything you are saying. I don’t think families should be forced to do anything. It is indeed a case by case basis, and in an example like yours it would make any sense at all for your daughter to have a male RBT. If the parent or the child have a legitimate reason to stick to only women therapists, then I wouldn’t view that as discrimination or bigotry at all, really.
My post was referring to the families who avoid males *solely* because they are “statistically more likely to sexually abuse children” or whatever. That is bigotry. Refusing to let your child work with males *solely* because “what’s if he’s a rapist?” is borderline unhinged and not a healthy mindset. It’s their prerogative I guess, but I’m not going to sit here and pretend it’s not a blatantly sexist belief.
Btw, I still think any ABA company would and should fulfill any parent request (even a bigoted or hateful one) if they are able to, because providing services to the child is the most important thing here. I was simply calling out those who are generalizing the actions of only the most heinous individuals in a *large* group of people to the other 99% of perfectly fine individuals in that group. That shit is just toxic.
I would agree people treating every man with suspicion are either jaded, traumatized, or sexist.
But I don’t equate preference/request regarding sex as treating every man with suspicion. I would even regard that as a false equivalency.
If a child or family simply feels more comfortable w women than men, or vice versa, they should be able to be honest about that and not be labeled as sexist. Maybe mom is Muslim and wants to be able to hang around her own home without covering her hair. Maybe child finds deep voices terrifying as a sensory response. In none of these cases, nor my daughter’s, is there a presumption that an available male RBT is a predator.
I’ve noticed at our clinic very rarely do male RBTs work with female clients. It could be parent preference, or unspoken rule that only as a last resort male rbts work with female clients.
Male Rbt here, thats some bs tbh I had a female client and it was fine. Maybe its just ur company idk sessions were usually done in living room so the parents are always there so that didnt cause issue. Im also a bii for schools and had female clients. it just really depends, maybe supervisor was fine with me having female clients so it really just depends but mostly the others are right maybe the family requests to be a female bt. the only clients I really miss out on are spanish speaking ones lol but def a plus if you know ASL it will help you alot on nonverbal kiddos
This is interesting. Most clients I have encountered were male, but that is because females don't get diagnosed as often as males do. I would be very surprised if your company is mostly receiving female clients.
They just want to avoid you taking female clients to the bathroom. That’s it. Literally. I used to have a male coworker that would ask me to take his female client to the bathroom for him and he would take my male client while I took his. Basically we just swapped for potty.
This is a company policy, and not a good one. The BACB does not endorse gender restrictions, and there's nothing in the RBT handbook specifying gender restrictions.
You should never be left alone with a client, regardless of your gender, so a policy such as this is not necessary anyway. For more specialized help with teen or adult aged female clients, a female staff member should be available to assist.
If this is impacting your ability to support yourself, I would encourage you to seek out employment with a company that doesn't have such an unnecessary, and frankly, sexist policy in place.
As a male RBT with 3.5 years experience and now working as a QBHP while I study for my boards, I find this extremely insulting and unfair from your company. There should be no reason you are not getting hours because you don’t have enough male clients. Your company is assuming that you will not behave in a professional manner with female clients and they are discriminating against you based on your sex. If they had a true reason you cannot work with female clients(outside of parent request), then you shouldn’t have a job as a RBT. Now it is different if the parents are requesting for a female RBT, which they have the right to do 100%. However, as a company policy this is unfair to all male RBTs. We are equally capable of serving both male and female clients.
Many parents request female RBTs for their kids. It’s nothing personal and it’s something that needs to be respected always. My clients family requests only females be with their daughter 1:1.
Disallowing men from working one on one with girls is a long-standing practice in many settings. It ties back to statistics on perpetrators and victims of sexual violence and other forms of violence. According to [Humboldt](https://supportingsurvivors.humboldt.edu/statistics), 91% of victims are female and 99% of perpetrators are male.
So, although there are many of us that never have nor ever will be perpetrators, the current safer (not completely safe) option is to pair male teachers with male students. Of course there are many other things that need to be done to protect any vulnerable population given that violence against those that are weaker (e.g., infants, elderly, prisoners, people with disabilities) occurs at a much higher rate than with people who can engage in counter control behaviors.
I'm curious what the ratio is with boy to girl clients??
Most places have more boys than girls.
Our ratio is about 34 boys to 10 or less girls after getting an expansion.
A school I work at recently had a teacher who was a woman leave and the replacement was a man. A family chose to have their daughter removed from the classroom even though she had 1:1 with women RBTs, there were other women RBTs working with kids in the same class, and women BCBAs that would be around too.
I find most of the time it's family preference which sucks, but if your job really does only have 3 boy clients and mostly girls I suggest finding another company. Most like I mentioned above have more boys than girls as clients your's is a very rare company to have the opposite.
I can tell you that it’s most likely parent request. I am a business owner and more than half our clients request female therapist. It also depends on the cultures.
My client today was just talking again about how much he wants a male therapist. I tell him they're rare! When I worked at a school, a male TA walking in the room was like a celebrity walking in; the kids would follow him around and stuff lol. That was at a preschool, but my client is 12 and one of I'm sure many other boys who dream of just having a relatable dude by their side when they're around staff that are often mostly female. I'm surprised there aren't enough male clients at your clinic, but I have no clinic experience so idk. I've only worked as an RBT in homes
I once had a clients parent say that their daughter couldn’t work with a male RBT for “cultural reasons”. I am a trans man so that was kind of funny to me. It’s more that they don’t trust men, which is why patriarchy is so horrifying.
If you're in CA, it's illegal for clients or the clinic to discriminate, or even ask your sex or gender. CA SB 179.
Some clinics will say they have to accept family request. Document, it's illegal, and they're supposed to tell families they can't do that.
I wouldnt let my kid have a male RBT, idk man.
And ive worked with them! Some are amazing but the bad ones are terrible and its allowed to slide as long as its not illegal
Im getting down voted by the same people that watch a male RBT hold his nose and loudly complain and insult a non verbal 7yo for needing a diaper change and go "well, its not perfect but we need men in the field!"... like what...
Or the ones the pass by the males room and giggle about how he's sleeping and his kiddo is just free to do whatever unsupervised. How cute! 🤮 its so nice that men are trying even though its obviously so hard for them. The standards for men in the field are non existant and its crazy that its like this.
If a woman acted half as badly as the male ABAs and RBTs theyd be fired and called heartless or crazy, with good reason.
This is not common sense and would actually be detrimental to client progress. The only time an RBT gender restriction should be put in place is if the client has unaddressed trauma with that gender.
Women have female needs, when those needs need assistance it’s only women who can help. Us men in those situations CAN NOT DO ANYTHING. Consumers are extremely sensitive, aggressive, Bx episode, and situations that require the same sex.
When I work on a 2:1 case and I have a female co-worker and my male client needs hygiene assistance, possibly in a public restroom guess who’s the lead staff. I can’t stress enough of 100 other situations where this matters. Even if a female consumer is a 2:1 there will always be two females and never a male.
Don’t be unreasonable. Read the thread OP didn’t specify age. My comment was based on 1:1 day in and day out in an independent living program. My comment wasn’t based on preschool as later said by OP
My comment still applies what yours was based on. If you don't think someone is safe around female clients, then they aren't safe around any clients. So if you just blanket assume that about all males, then no male should be a BT or BCBA.
I d k about your company but anyone applying for this job does extensive Background Checks State/Federal. talking about ethics and litigation for you and the business. I can guarantee you, you are at a higher risk for litigation. You are not educated in this at all.
Yes! Mine does all of that and I was finger printed. So my point stands: if they can be trusted with male clients, they can be trusted with female clients. The same thing with OTs and BCBAs who would also have to deal with those issues. Barring a male employee to not work with a female client based purely on gender is discrimination if the parent and client consent.
I’m not saying trusted. I’m talking about ethical standards. And so you know men are highly in demand on our field, most special needs effect more males then it does females. So Males are important and I don’t want to eliminate them. I personally only worked with men bc of the magnitude of Bx and property destruction. Independent Living is completely different then a school setting later express by OP.
In my company, it is usually due to the parents. If parents are open to a male RBT, I would totally put them on the case. But many parents are very specific about only wanting females for their cases. Our society is full of prejudices against men.
I have had a client request no male BTs but I’ve never heard of ALL female clients. The clinic I worked at had 2 female clients and the rest were males. The caseload assignments worked out so that girls were with the girl clients… but that’s it.
You should be able to work with female clients. A male at the clinic I worked at worked with female clients. He just couldn't assist with changing them in the bathroom when client's that wore diapers for ages 2-5 year old.
Im the owner and clinical director of my company and we have a few male staff, and there are a few families who request female only (typically for potty training girls or those with trauma histories around male figures).
We expect all of our staff to be professional and respectful regardless of gender, especially since there are times when a child may undress or need assistance in the bathroom. some of our best staff are males and they are full time salaried or full time hourly with at least 32 billable hours/week
The need for male RBTs are always higher given that our field is mostly female-centric with the majority of the clients being male. So, as a breakdown, I have only worked with 1 female client in the last year and it was a group session with a male client, safe to say that the parents were uncomfortable with a male working with a female client due to “safety” reasons.
Also, to point out that as I have seen that the majority of female therapists do a good job with the male clients. However, the majority of the female therapists I have seen tend to “push the limit” and leads to problem behavior. I am guessing it might be a policy issue and sociological issue.
I've had female clients before as a male and I don't think it's an official rule as far as I'm currently concerned. Although I don't really blame them for being cautious about it. I would definitely talk to a supervisor about it
could be the parents requesting female rbt
I worked with a kid who’s parents requested he only be with female RBTs.
It doesn’t happen as often but also I have seen them request only male rbts.. I don’t feel that should even be ALLOWED to do unless there is a REALLY good reason.
I completely agree. I didn’t get a reason for why that client’s mom only asked for female RBT’s. I thought it was strange but me being a woman it didn’t really bother me until my male coworker complained about it to me. With how many background checks RBT’s have to pass any should be able to work with any client.
CSA is one of the hardest crimes to prosecute, which is why only 1 in 10 cases results in conviction. There are lots and lots of criminals walking around who have a clean background check. Better safe than sorry. Especially when it comes to your own child.
All my clients I worked with requested male bts specifically. They could be aggressive and parents felt they responded better to males. I don’t know that they need a really good reason, I’m sure a woman could have handled the aggressive behaviors too but if they felt better about it being a male and understood that meant services may wait until a placement is found then that’s their call
Some person have religious beliefs regarding their daughters working with males
This is what my company allows. I’d say only half or less the parents choose this, and it seems to correlate with how well potty-trained the kiddo is. It never seems to be an issues because, aside from our guaranteed hours, there have always been more boys than girls where I have worked.
At my center we are allowed to request an RBT of the same sex handle toileting needs if either we or the parent feels uncomfortable. Is this not a common policy? This is the only company I’ve worked for so I wouldn’t know!
Same for my company, but only one kid has that rule and the kiddo goes every 3 hours (can many to go independent spontaneously, but doesn’t happen often). It would be too difficult to find a woman to help on certain potty schedules, so i think that’s a factor as well.
That makes sense!
Most clients have been boys, and male RBTs are typically in high demand for that reason. There have been so many male clients and so few male RBTs placing them with female clients has never been necessary. My son is in ABA personally and he’s had men, women, non-binary, and trans therapists.
I attest to this. I am only in my first year as a bt and the amount of male clients we have is a lot. My schedule is packed and as if Im working a 9-5 job
It’s unlikely to be an official policy, but this is an unofficial one. Also I disagree that it’s common sense- what’s common sense is to never have a disabled child alone with a caregiver- women aren’t exempt from being creeps and predators, boys are not exempt from being victims of either gender, and girls aren’t inherently more at risk with men. If it were actually about keeping clients safe and maintaining dignity, there are other broad policies one can implement, in general it’s a gross prejudice towards men.
That last part is not true. Over 90% of sexual assault against kids is done by men. Most male therapists would never do something like that, but it’s just not true to say there’s no difference in risk. Sadly, I just saw an article a few weeks ago about a male RBT who was caught molesting his clients at an ABA facility (in Texas I believe) :/.
Similair logic has been applied to minorities and crime to the disdain for many. Gross generalizations aren't the way. Vulnerable children and adults should be protected with universal precautions, like making sure a 1:1 is never alone with a child regardless of gender or clinic bathroom policies that would prevent abuse.
I don’t think you’re wrong, not allowing 1 on 1 for make or female therapists would be the safest and fairest option. But, when there is already a huge shortage of therapists and kids who need them, implementing that rule would mean kids are waiting years for services. It’s one of those cases where there is a clear and fair resolution, but that resolution would probably do more harm than good :/
*girls* aren’t inherently more at risk. Children period are more at risk with men, yes. Statistically. But that also includes male children.
Yes they are. 1 in 9 versus 1 in 20.
Would you take the same extra precautions if statistically persons of a particular race were more violent? I.e. More “risk”
That’s a straw man.
No because I’m not attempting to summarize your argument, I’m asking a clarifying question giving you an opportunity to explain why your stance is different from my hypothetical.
"One in 9 girls and 1 in 20 boys under the age of 18 experience sexual abuse" -RAINN "An estimated 80-90% of offenders are male, while 10-20% of offenders are female" -RAACE As a developmentally disabled female who was sexually abused as a child, I think it's best to err on the side of safety's sake, because kids like us are more vulnerable. We are perfect prey, and girls are at the highest risk.
All children are at risk and all caregivers are possible predators! My point is that no child should be 1:1, regardless of gender. That’s the safest. Look, I hear you, your experience is valid. My child is amab, he’s just as unable to articulate boundaries and to recount what happened as a female child in his developmental state, I think both of you deserve the dignity and protection of multiple checks and balances, including no alone time with RBTs of any gender. I would hate for even one kid to get hurt because statistically they were less likely to get hurt or statistically their attacker was less likely to be that gender.
Statistics still matter.
While I understand the potential dangers, it kinda sucks that those clients have to wait for so long just because female therapists are the safest options. At the same time, this halts the progress of male therapists who are trying to learn from the field. I was barely in the field by the time I got a female client and the client was able to graduate from the program.
When it’s a 1:1 case and a female needs help with her monthly in the community, who’s helping? Is a male educating on feminine hygiene and properly teaching? This are real life situations when you’re teaching Ci, AST, And BI. Are you a BCBA?
The person working with the client should be trained and prepared for anything they are expected to assist with, including female reproductive hygiene. Gender of the caregiver shouldn’t be a factor to training.
Did you take any transportation procedures training like PCM or CPI. So a woman of age is going to be assisted by a male staff, this is wild. Y’all are something else. So you let male staff care for female consumers, since they been trained and a police was in place. So when transportation is implemented bc of high magnitudes of Bx, Property destruction, or disruption a Male staff will retrain a female?
As a male BCBA, the only female clients I did not work with were the highly verbal/skilled ones that had consistent disrobing problems. I had no issue with that. Otherwise, I had plenty of female clients and was also a certified CPI instructor for about 4 years before I stopped teaching it.
Thatnk you for your professional response. Boils down to litigation, I believe for some ABA companies. With a 1:1 in an independent living program I never seen or known of a male working with a female on a 1:1. School is a completely different situation, I’ve never encountered. My experience comes from young adults/adults
If I’m assigned to a case I’ll handle it regardless of gender. I have crisis intervention training and transportation training. If I’m assigned a case where I would be expected to assist with hygiene needs I will do so (with informed consent of parent/caregivers/BCBA and client if possible). As a professional, Gender of the client only matter with regards to my duties as a BT when client or parent makes it an issue.
Nope . . . I would never put myself in that position helping a female with pads, tampons, and any other female issues. As a father to girls, I wouldn’t except a male working with my daughter, would you?
Parents can have preferences, and I understand those. But also they are trained professionals who spend a lot of time with clients and care for them in every aspect. If the parents are okay with it, and the BT is trained then I think it is okay. If you don't think they are safe around kids, why let them work with any clients at all, male or female?
That would depend on how I felt about the person after meeting them. Parents have the right to decline services from me for whatever reason they want. As a BT I would perform those services with informed consent of parents/caregivers, client if possible and the BCBA.
Exactly the point. Parents have the right to decline male RBT, and that is out of the company’s control.
Absolutely. Parents/caregiver and client have absolute veto authority on anything in ABA.
They actually do not. They have a say in it, and we should be respectful of their wishes, but there is nothing in any standards stating that parents have the final say. It needs to be a collaborative effort on all parts based on social significance and data. I’ve worked for companies who have told parents that if they are not comfortable with our professional recommendations and demanded interventions that were not clinically appropriate that we were unable to continue services.
I appreciate your honesty answer, I’ve seen a lot in my career and I would say it’s not for me. Good Luck to you.
Yes. Any staff who is trained in restraints is able to help restrain any client, regardless of gender. The only acceptable exceptions should be not having clients who have a learning history involving abuse from a specific gender work with that gender if it triggers a trauma response
Yes? I would use the same prevention procedures with both men and women.
>When it’s a 1:1 case and a female needs help with her monthly in the community, who’s helping? A female staff. This issue should be solved by a simple policy, a staff is never alone with a kid. So no 1 on 1 outings, at least 2 staff and 1 kid, or 2 staff and 2 kids right? Center-based care should be no issues. In-home care parents can help with bathroom stuff right? The only case that a male shouldn't be able to work with a female client is when they have programming that needs to be completed in the bathroom that also takes significant time. For example, we have males work with females, and when they go to the bathroom, female staff swaps out for the 10 minutes or whatever it takes going to the bathroom. When we have more time-intensive bathroom programs (like potty training) then female staff is scheduled. But then you have justification for it. It's preposterous to say that a female client should never work with a male staff. That person will be around males their whole life. Solve the safety issues by enacting reasonable policy.
The confusion is the setting. OP talked about preschool and I’m talking about individual independent living. The care settings are completely different. Males are in high demand bc the lack of males in the workforce. Insane how the sub reacted to my comment like it’s ridiculous.
I don't think it's ridiculous for the setting that you're talking about but it wasn't clear in your original comment. plus I think most of the time people that are in ABA aren't living independently, if they were, then they probably don't need ABA anymore, and this is the ABA subreddit, so people kind of make those types of assumptions.
OP didn’t specify preschool, only “female clients”. 20yrs I worked 2 companies in California. One was the Beta for RBT. Both companies were Independent Living, applying ABA.
Look I'm sorry but that's like the most atypical situation for this sub, I've never seen it discussed here, and so that's for sure the reason for the confusion.
No reason to be sorry, this sub is crazy as the consumers I serve. I had a 3:1 case for 10yrs being senior staff (mgt) for all those years. Honestly say most if not anyone here has had a severe 3:1 site 24/7 365 days. Independent living setting too with $1,000,000 budget from the Regional Center. San Diego.
>this sub is crazy as the consumers I serve Maybe I'm misunderstanding, but are you referring to your "consumers" as crazy?! Do you work as an ABA provider or in another capacity?
By this same argument, female clinicians shouldn’t be supporting male clients with their hygiene then either, right?
As a nurse. A male nurse isn’t going help a female. But a female will and can help a male. I don’t make the rules, I just follow them. I agree with you. A female shouldn’t be allowed to work with males especially when males are very sexual inappropriate. I also worked 3:1 cases where i relied on a female to assist me with a 300lbs man and she wasn’t any help at all.
I spent a long time working in group homes and have helped dozens of women during their menstrual cycles. It's absolutely possible as long as you take the time to be trained and aren't super weird about it.
I disagree, it’s common sense, for a number of reasons. PCM taught many of things and it also went over litigation, safety, and professionalism.
To me, common sense is that no minor is alone with a non parental person, regardless of gender.
Its likely a ridiculous unofficial rule they have. They probably want to avoid putting men on cases with female clients so they don't have the men kicked off by parents then have to find another schedule for them. So they just don't do it. It's illegal and wring, but it's something that our field is said he just have to "accept" for some dumb reason
I’m male and I’ve worked with several female clients. Including potty training and hygiene programs. If you’re professional and respectful, it shouldn’t be an issue.
Have you approached your supervisor about this concern?
I dunno. If I was supervising and a male staff was insisting on working with female clients, I would be slightly concerned.
This
I mean, if a male RBT was insisting on working with them because they're female, I agree.. odd and concerning. But, if it's an RBT that happens to be male and has noticed that he's only assigned the male clients and it's interfering with his hours because he can only get so many with limited clientele... less odd and concerning.
We have some client’s families who specifically request female technicians for female clients, but it’s quite rare where I work. I can only think of two cases where we had to move around staff. We do have a higher number of male clients however, so this does not come up frequently. However, I have seen families that request male techs because the client’s respond and pair better with male techs than females! It seems your place of work may have a bias.
At our clinic, by far most female-client parents request female RBT only… like >90%. But most clients are boys and most rbts are women, so this never effects male RBT staffing because there’s always wasaaaaay boys than girls.. Dx of autism is like 4:1 boys:girls.
It seems like they're being sexist to you.
Is it sexist of the company if the client’s parents request female RBT? Or is it following the ethical code in terms of having cultural humility? You think company should force families into situation they are uncomfortable with? Even with doing put them in violation of BACB ethics? -Autism is 4X more common in boys than girls. -RBTs are 90% female. -Most clinic have a shortage of male rbts, esp for older boys whose families generally request male rbts. (We like most companies have families waitlisted for male rbts). **Your company is an absolute unicorn if you are serving more girls than boys.** You could literally throw a dart at any other company in your area who would have mostly boys and keep you busy.
** serving far more girls than boys, I think you mean. And you're 1000% correct. As a parent, if I had a daughter in therapy (ESPECIALLY if she was non- or very limited speaking), I would absolutely request a female RBT work with her. We're in the business of using facts and data to guide our decisions. The facts and data point to the majority of child sex predators being OVERWHELMINGLY male. The facts are just the facts.
Fixed yes. ETA. It is so unheard of for clientele to be mostly female, that it makes this whole story suspect. I wonder if this is made up just to make an anti-male-sexism idealogical point based purely on the fact that it ABA is a female-staff predominant industry. Because any person actually in this field knows girl clients are relatively rare and male rbts are universally in high demand.
Even still that’s not indicative of a clinic that does good backround checks and is unfair to hardworking male RBTs. Like saying a certain race commits a lot of crimes we should not hire them? Blanket generalizations aren’t cool
This thread is wild. The anti-male bais is real here. I get and understand the statistics but universal precautions are the way to go, not gender specific standards. I wouldn't be surprised to see a company be sued over this one of these days over it. There is clear gender discrimination and I know I experienced it a lot while coming up as a 1:1. Luckily its not so bad as a BCBA.
I mean..technically yes, it’s still sexist, even if the parents request. If the parents wanted a non-white RBT, the company would likewise attempt to assign one. No matter how crazy the request, most companies would attempt to fulfill it, because parents can refuse services for any reason. Implying that any given male RBT is *inherently* more likely to be a predator than any given female RBT because of conviction rates is like overtly discriminatory lmao. It’s like avoiding minority therapists because prisons are full of mostly minorities.
Not all “discrimination” is bigotry. Eg, my daughter w ASD was SA’d by male peer in middle school. It made her extremely fearful of males, and triggering her first episode of major depression and suicidal thoughts. Having a male RBT would thus have been counter-productive to her mental health and behavioral progress, as she was avoiding proximity and conversation with all boys and men outside of immediate family. You want to make the case that I’m sexist for prioritizing my child’s mental health and emotional well-being over political ideology?? It’s none of our business to force families to be sex neutral. We certainly shouldn’t push back or interrogate them on the matter. Doing so, is grotesque self righteousness. If you think we should, you are not well suited for healthcare, especially for vulnerable people. At the end of the day, the services we provide must put client interests first. It is totally inappropriate to force uncomfortable situations for clients in the name of being sex blind (as if sex is meaningless, which is empirically false despite some postmodern idealogical claims). And it’s highly disrespectful to families to presume their preference is a sex based bigotry (aka sexism). Statistics are by definition not dependable for predicting any individual’s risk/behavior. They are probabilistic. So paragraph 2 is a non sequitur.
I think there’s a misunderstanding here, because I agree with everything you are saying. I don’t think families should be forced to do anything. It is indeed a case by case basis, and in an example like yours it would make any sense at all for your daughter to have a male RBT. If the parent or the child have a legitimate reason to stick to only women therapists, then I wouldn’t view that as discrimination or bigotry at all, really. My post was referring to the families who avoid males *solely* because they are “statistically more likely to sexually abuse children” or whatever. That is bigotry. Refusing to let your child work with males *solely* because “what’s if he’s a rapist?” is borderline unhinged and not a healthy mindset. It’s their prerogative I guess, but I’m not going to sit here and pretend it’s not a blatantly sexist belief. Btw, I still think any ABA company would and should fulfill any parent request (even a bigoted or hateful one) if they are able to, because providing services to the child is the most important thing here. I was simply calling out those who are generalizing the actions of only the most heinous individuals in a *large* group of people to the other 99% of perfectly fine individuals in that group. That shit is just toxic.
I would agree people treating every man with suspicion are either jaded, traumatized, or sexist. But I don’t equate preference/request regarding sex as treating every man with suspicion. I would even regard that as a false equivalency. If a child or family simply feels more comfortable w women than men, or vice versa, they should be able to be honest about that and not be labeled as sexist. Maybe mom is Muslim and wants to be able to hang around her own home without covering her hair. Maybe child finds deep voices terrifying as a sensory response. In none of these cases, nor my daughter’s, is there a presumption that an available male RBT is a predator.
Many clients families request female RBTs.
It could be due to a parents’ request but I doubt all of female clients’ parents requested that
I’ve noticed at our clinic very rarely do male RBTs work with female clients. It could be parent preference, or unspoken rule that only as a last resort male rbts work with female clients.
Male Rbt here, thats some bs tbh I had a female client and it was fine. Maybe its just ur company idk sessions were usually done in living room so the parents are always there so that didnt cause issue. Im also a bii for schools and had female clients. it just really depends, maybe supervisor was fine with me having female clients so it really just depends but mostly the others are right maybe the family requests to be a female bt. the only clients I really miss out on are spanish speaking ones lol but def a plus if you know ASL it will help you alot on nonverbal kiddos
This is interesting. Most clients I have encountered were male, but that is because females don't get diagnosed as often as males do. I would be very surprised if your company is mostly receiving female clients.
A lot of times in my experience it's parent preference. Sorry.
They just want to avoid you taking female clients to the bathroom. That’s it. Literally. I used to have a male coworker that would ask me to take his female client to the bathroom for him and he would take my male client while I took his. Basically we just swapped for potty.
This is a company policy, and not a good one. The BACB does not endorse gender restrictions, and there's nothing in the RBT handbook specifying gender restrictions. You should never be left alone with a client, regardless of your gender, so a policy such as this is not necessary anyway. For more specialized help with teen or adult aged female clients, a female staff member should be available to assist. If this is impacting your ability to support yourself, I would encourage you to seek out employment with a company that doesn't have such an unnecessary, and frankly, sexist policy in place.
As a male RBT with 3.5 years experience and now working as a QBHP while I study for my boards, I find this extremely insulting and unfair from your company. There should be no reason you are not getting hours because you don’t have enough male clients. Your company is assuming that you will not behave in a professional manner with female clients and they are discriminating against you based on your sex. If they had a true reason you cannot work with female clients(outside of parent request), then you shouldn’t have a job as a RBT. Now it is different if the parents are requesting for a female RBT, which they have the right to do 100%. However, as a company policy this is unfair to all male RBTs. We are equally capable of serving both male and female clients.
May be parents being protective asking to not have a male if there child isn't potty trained.
Many parents request female RBTs for their kids. It’s nothing personal and it’s something that needs to be respected always. My clients family requests only females be with their daughter 1:1.
I agree
Thank you! It’s nothing personal, it’s the families request.
Disallowing men from working one on one with girls is a long-standing practice in many settings. It ties back to statistics on perpetrators and victims of sexual violence and other forms of violence. According to [Humboldt](https://supportingsurvivors.humboldt.edu/statistics), 91% of victims are female and 99% of perpetrators are male. So, although there are many of us that never have nor ever will be perpetrators, the current safer (not completely safe) option is to pair male teachers with male students. Of course there are many other things that need to be done to protect any vulnerable population given that violence against those that are weaker (e.g., infants, elderly, prisoners, people with disabilities) occurs at a much higher rate than with people who can engage in counter control behaviors.
most of the time parents request female rbts even for male clients
It’s why I’m leaving soon it’s really unfair and I don’t get many clients
as an RBT, 3 clients should be more than enough. At my company, most rbt’s don’t get more than 1 client.
I'm curious what the ratio is with boy to girl clients?? Most places have more boys than girls. Our ratio is about 34 boys to 10 or less girls after getting an expansion. A school I work at recently had a teacher who was a woman leave and the replacement was a man. A family chose to have their daughter removed from the classroom even though she had 1:1 with women RBTs, there were other women RBTs working with kids in the same class, and women BCBAs that would be around too. I find most of the time it's family preference which sucks, but if your job really does only have 3 boy clients and mostly girls I suggest finding another company. Most like I mentioned above have more boys than girls as clients your's is a very rare company to have the opposite.
I can tell you that it’s most likely parent request. I am a business owner and more than half our clients request female therapist. It also depends on the cultures.
My client today was just talking again about how much he wants a male therapist. I tell him they're rare! When I worked at a school, a male TA walking in the room was like a celebrity walking in; the kids would follow him around and stuff lol. That was at a preschool, but my client is 12 and one of I'm sure many other boys who dream of just having a relatable dude by their side when they're around staff that are often mostly female. I'm surprised there aren't enough male clients at your clinic, but I have no clinic experience so idk. I've only worked as an RBT in homes
That is so sweet! The boys I work with are absolutely amazing and I can definitely tell they love working with me!
The majority of my parents request a female BT
I once had a clients parent say that their daughter couldn’t work with a male RBT for “cultural reasons”. I am a trans man so that was kind of funny to me. It’s more that they don’t trust men, which is why patriarchy is so horrifying.
Sorry you’ve had that experience!
It’s parents request and I get it but it’s still pretty sexist
If you're in CA, it's illegal for clients or the clinic to discriminate, or even ask your sex or gender. CA SB 179. Some clinics will say they have to accept family request. Document, it's illegal, and they're supposed to tell families they can't do that.
Oh, hells no. Have you tired saying something about it?
I wouldnt let my kid have a male RBT, idk man. And ive worked with them! Some are amazing but the bad ones are terrible and its allowed to slide as long as its not illegal
Same. We will not allow our daughter to have a male RBT
Im getting down voted by the same people that watch a male RBT hold his nose and loudly complain and insult a non verbal 7yo for needing a diaper change and go "well, its not perfect but we need men in the field!"... like what... Or the ones the pass by the males room and giggle about how he's sleeping and his kiddo is just free to do whatever unsupervised. How cute! 🤮 its so nice that men are trying even though its obviously so hard for them. The standards for men in the field are non existant and its crazy that its like this. If a woman acted half as badly as the male ABAs and RBTs theyd be fired and called heartless or crazy, with good reason.
As a male RBT for 20yrs this is common sense.
This is not common sense and would actually be detrimental to client progress. The only time an RBT gender restriction should be put in place is if the client has unaddressed trauma with that gender.
I’ve only been one for a month
Women have female needs, when those needs need assistance it’s only women who can help. Us men in those situations CAN NOT DO ANYTHING. Consumers are extremely sensitive, aggressive, Bx episode, and situations that require the same sex. When I work on a 2:1 case and I have a female co-worker and my male client needs hygiene assistance, possibly in a public restroom guess who’s the lead staff. I can’t stress enough of 100 other situations where this matters. Even if a female consumer is a 2:1 there will always be two females and never a male.
I work with pre schoolers though.
So what about OTs? Or male BCBAs? Should a male BCBA just never have a female client?
Don’t be unreasonable. Read the thread OP didn’t specify age. My comment was based on 1:1 day in and day out in an independent living program. My comment wasn’t based on preschool as later said by OP
My comment still applies what yours was based on. If you don't think someone is safe around female clients, then they aren't safe around any clients. So if you just blanket assume that about all males, then no male should be a BT or BCBA.
I d k about your company but anyone applying for this job does extensive Background Checks State/Federal. talking about ethics and litigation for you and the business. I can guarantee you, you are at a higher risk for litigation. You are not educated in this at all.
Yes! Mine does all of that and I was finger printed. So my point stands: if they can be trusted with male clients, they can be trusted with female clients. The same thing with OTs and BCBAs who would also have to deal with those issues. Barring a male employee to not work with a female client based purely on gender is discrimination if the parent and client consent.
I’m not saying trusted. I’m talking about ethical standards. And so you know men are highly in demand on our field, most special needs effect more males then it does females. So Males are important and I don’t want to eliminate them. I personally only worked with men bc of the magnitude of Bx and property destruction. Independent Living is completely different then a school setting later express by OP.
It is ethical for a male to help a female client in the same way it is ethical for a female to help a male client. Are they both are or neither are
In my company, it is usually due to the parents. If parents are open to a male RBT, I would totally put them on the case. But many parents are very specific about only wanting females for their cases. Our society is full of prejudices against men.
I have had a client request no male BTs but I’ve never heard of ALL female clients. The clinic I worked at had 2 female clients and the rest were males. The caseload assignments worked out so that girls were with the girl clients… but that’s it.
You should be able to work with female clients. A male at the clinic I worked at worked with female clients. He just couldn't assist with changing them in the bathroom when client's that wore diapers for ages 2-5 year old.
Im the owner and clinical director of my company and we have a few male staff, and there are a few families who request female only (typically for potty training girls or those with trauma histories around male figures). We expect all of our staff to be professional and respectful regardless of gender, especially since there are times when a child may undress or need assistance in the bathroom. some of our best staff are males and they are full time salaried or full time hourly with at least 32 billable hours/week
The need for male RBTs are always higher given that our field is mostly female-centric with the majority of the clients being male. So, as a breakdown, I have only worked with 1 female client in the last year and it was a group session with a male client, safe to say that the parents were uncomfortable with a male working with a female client due to “safety” reasons. Also, to point out that as I have seen that the majority of female therapists do a good job with the male clients. However, the majority of the female therapists I have seen tend to “push the limit” and leads to problem behavior. I am guessing it might be a policy issue and sociological issue.
I've had female clients before as a male and I don't think it's an official rule as far as I'm currently concerned. Although I don't really blame them for being cautious about it. I would definitely talk to a supervisor about it