SUPPORTING AUTISTIC PEOPLE MEANS OPPOSING ABA THERAPY [A Thread]
TW: aba, ableism, eugenics, abuse
TW: aba, ableism, eugenics, abuse
WHAT IS ABA THERAPY?
ABA stands for "applied behavioral analytics". it uses the theory of operant conditioning. the goal of ABA is to change behaviors with rewards/punishments. the purpose of these forced behavior changes is allegedly to help autistics fit into society.
ABA stands for "applied behavioral analytics". it uses the theory of operant conditioning. the goal of ABA is to change behaviors with rewards/punishments. the purpose of these forced behavior changes is allegedly to help autistics fit into society.
WHY ISN'T THAT A GOOD THING?
you might be thinking, why wouldn't autistic people want to fit in? there are multiple issues here. society as it exists right now is not made for neurodivergents. to "fit in", we must conform, we must mask. this isn't a solution for us.
you might be thinking, why wouldn't autistic people want to fit in? there are multiple issues here. society as it exists right now is not made for neurodivergents. to "fit in", we must conform, we must mask. this isn't a solution for us.
WHY IS ABA HARMFUL?
regardless of any macro discussions about society, ABA is literally torture to the individuals subjected to it. autistic people are trained to appear not autistic. this leads to long-term trauma, pain, and harm to one's sense of self.
regardless of any macro discussions about society, ABA is literally torture to the individuals subjected to it. autistic people are trained to appear not autistic. this leads to long-term trauma, pain, and harm to one's sense of self.
WHO CREATED ABA?
this is an important question that rarely gets asked. ivar lovaas created ABA at the same time he created "gay conversion therapy". a lot of methods overlap between the two. training an autistic person to act non-autistic, training a gay person to act straight.
this is an important question that rarely gets asked. ivar lovaas created ABA at the same time he created "gay conversion therapy". a lot of methods overlap between the two. training an autistic person to act non-autistic, training a gay person to act straight.
let's take a look at two quotes from this man that reveals his views of the autistic people he works with.
(1) "you start pretty much from scratch when you work with an autistic child. you have a person in the physical sense - they have hair, a nose, a mouth -
(1) "you start pretty much from scratch when you work with an autistic child. you have a person in the physical sense - they have hair, a nose, a mouth -
but they are not people in the psychological sense. one way to look at the job of helping autistic kids is to see it as a matter of constructing a person. you have the raw materials, but you have to build the person." - founder of ABA
(2) "throughout, there was an emphasis on making the child look as normal as possible, rewarding him for normal behavior and punishing his psychotic behavior, teaching him to please his parents and us,
to be grateful for what we would do for him, to be afraid of us when we were angry, and pleased when we were happy. adults were in control." - founder of ABA
as you can tell, he believed we were subhuman. that we needed to be molded and created. a disgusting belief.
as you can tell, he believed we were subhuman. that we needed to be molded and created. a disgusting belief.
HOW IS ABA TORTURE?
some people don't realize they were traumatized until they are older, due to the nature of ABA.
for this section I will share the stories of ABA survivors, all of whom I appreciate greatly for sharing their trauma. please read with kindness and empathy.
some people don't realize they were traumatized until they are older, due to the nature of ABA.
for this section I will share the stories of ABA survivors, all of whom I appreciate greatly for sharing their trauma. please read with kindness and empathy.
here you can also see that autistic people exposed to ABA are significantly more likely to develop PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) than those not exposed to ABA.
emerald.com/insight/conten…
emerald.com/insight/conten…
during ABA the autistic child is NOT ALLOWED TO SAY "NO". this completely overrides what a child should be taught about consent and subsequently harms their perception of bodily autonomy all the way into adulthood.
stopabasupportautistics.home.blog/2019/07/23/aba…
stopabasupportautistics.home.blog/2019/07/23/aba…
you might recall from earlier in the thread how ABA uses rewards/punishments for training. ABA favors punishments which they call "aversives". to deter an autistic kid from expressing themself, they will hurt the child, with methods ranging from verbal abuse to slapping to shock.
TW: state violence, racism
IMPORTANT NOTE that the children who suffer the most under these ideologies are autistic Black and Indigenous kids. they are subject to compounding violence like school expulsion, jail, psych hospital, group home, youth facilities, foster care, etc.
IMPORTANT NOTE that the children who suffer the most under these ideologies are autistic Black and Indigenous kids. they are subject to compounding violence like school expulsion, jail, psych hospital, group home, youth facilities, foster care, etc.
MY CHILD IS AUTISTIC AND I THINK ABA COULD HELP THEM?
I would be doing this thread a disservice if I didn't mention this trend. allistic parents of autistic children tend to center themselves over the child, and that's what this question does.
I would be doing this thread a disservice if I didn't mention this trend. allistic parents of autistic children tend to center themselves over the child, and that's what this question does.
if you've read this far, and still want to try ABA on your child, there's more issues at play. you're either prioritizing your wants over your child's needs, and/or you believe your child would be better if they acted like they weren't autistic. please listen to survivors.
more for allistic parents of autistic children:
unstrangemind.com/aba/
unstrangemind.com/aba/
https://twitter.com/AnnMemmott/status/1477203337321799680?t=GrtJZFI3sO1AayoTniJAhw&s=19
thank you for reading ♾️ MORE RESOURCES:
#ActuallyAutistic
#AutismAcceptance
stopabasupportautistics.home.blog/2019/08/11/the…
#ActuallyAutistic
#AutismAcceptance
stopabasupportautistics.home.blog/2019/08/11/the…
(TW: graphic abuse)
https://twitter.com/mykola/status/1473061069425983494?t=NKQYg5tf7iCq2Cv3liUBTQ&s=19
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