The Use of Applied Behavior Analysis - Case Study Example

Name: Tutor: Course: Date: Ethical Issues related to the Care of People with Autism Bioethical analysis of the topic 1. The use of ABA as an intervention for autistic children Applied behaviour analysis (ABA) is the method of systematically using interventions founded on principles of learning theory to enhance socially significant behaviours to a level that is meaningful. ABA teaches motor, social and verbal behaviours together with reasoning skills. This process has been used by parents, certified behaviour analyst ad counsellor to assist children with autism to pick up behaviours as other normal children. The ABA process tries to fill the gap through provision of teaching tools that emphasize on instructional steps as well as consistent reinforcementi. The use of ABA for treatment of children with autism raises an ethical question that has to be discussed deeply. It has been argued that ABA is discriminatory towards people with autism. If autistic people deserve the same respect as other people in the society then ABA presents a big challenge. ABA can be successfully applied if there is a belief that autism is something or deficit that has to be eliminated. In reality autism is a very complex neurological difference that cannot be eradicated completely. Maybe there will be no real cure for autism. Autism from a neurologist perspective is a web of neural pathways that branches off as well as fusing resulting into new neural pathways random and complex making it impossible to identify one pathway permitting a simple removal in order to get a non-autistic personii. It is important to assist autistic people to cope with challenges that they counter in their daily life but the manner in which it is done is very important to avoid aggravating discrimination. Sticking to the narrative that the non-autistic way of communicating is the only way of communicating is unhelpful and limiting to those individuals who cannot express themselves through speakingiii. Seeing autism as one deficit that can only be corrected using a series of discrete trials does not the autistic person less autistic. The method of teaching autistic people how to blend in the non-autistic society does not work. The methodology of ABA looks at those it targets to treat as inferior and deficient. The objective of using ABA to manage autism has to be thoroughly be interrogatediv. There are many adults with autism who are articulate and vocal but did not go through the ABA process. Some of the adults with autism who were recipients of ABA therapy term it as harmful and is founded on a cruel premise that forces autistic people to be normal. Some people argue that ABA has predatory approach to parents. The specialists in ABA just want to make money out of parents desperate to make their children fit in society. ABA compels children to hide their true nature for the purpose of fitting in. Some earlier recipients of ABA call it institutionalized child abuse or ableism. There a blurred line between abuse and intervention in the application of ABA. 2. Discrimination People with autistic spectrum disorders encounter high degrees of stigmatization in societies across the world. Stigma is often a mark that makes someone to be rejected or discredited by society. Autistic people and parents having autistic children are often stigmatized. Manifestations of health-related stigmas are determined culturally particularly in countries that are developing. The discrimination of against autistic people is further heightened by low public awareness of the condition. Negative interactions with others can include confrontations like bullying or less obvious forms such as discrimination. Such situations happen at any time in the course of the person’s lifetime. Such words like retarded, insane and crazy have been used often by ignorant people in the social to refer to autistic people. Ableism is the assumption that people with psychiatric, developmental or physical disabilities are less that those people without. Ableism as well as ableist language is a big problem in public health communities prone to language concerning eliminating specific disabilities being prominentv. Whereas the intention of the practitioners in public health fraternity is improving the well-being of the community, it does not consider the impact that the language has on autistic people. Stigma is one difficult challenge of public encounters experienced by families who have an autistic child. Such families regard public reaction to them as negative and stereotypical. Stigma towards people with autism exists and the society has bought into it. Majority of non-autistic people do not realize that they are treating someone negatively owing to their autism label. Neurotypical people are at the risk of using the autism label to justify treating other individuals differently. Autistic people do not have to feel ashamed of being autistic. Autism should not be applied in discriminating against people. It is important to deal with stigma sine it result into real-world discrimination. Parents of autistic children have been on the receiving end whenever they have gone to somewhere public with their children. Parents also feel the stigma that society has attached to autism. Many people across the world see autism as being a source of shame, annoyance, disappointment or worse. Studies have shown that stigma can keep families from looking for a diagnosis or services for their children. To a large extent, stigma impacts public health sector. Stigma comes from culture hence it may appear in various forms depending on whether someone is coming from Canada, South Korea, the United States or Japanvi. There is a sense of isolation surrounding people with autism spectrum disorders that has to be broken down by families and everyone else in the society. The isolation and shame experienced by autistic people as well as their families can be compared to that faced by other people whose differences isolate them. However, autism exhibit unique features that have resulted in a perfect stage for rejection and shame. In many serious kinds, autism usually entails very antisocial behaviour that raises attentions and causes unnecessary stares. Some autistic children can violet personal space resulting in discomfort and fear. Autistic people just look like everyone else hence making their behaviour suspicious to those who are uninformed. It is this duality seemingly physical normality and pervasive disability that makes the stigma that is experienced by families having autistic children a very unique quality. Autistic people often do not exhibit obvious facial characteristics like the case of Down syndrome, nor do they have visible devices like canes or wheelchairs to make others be aware of their disability. Consequently, their unusual behaviour can be misinterpreted for bad parenting, mental illness or serious lack of self-control. This escalates the burden of stigma. A study carried out in Israel demonstrated that caregivers of autistic people agreed to feeling more stigmatized as compared to caregivers in charge of people with intellectual or physical disabilities. In a survey almost all of the Canadian and American scientists and parents surveyed said they believed that autistic people face stigmavii. Prior to autism being well known in the society, some parents with autistic children opted to put them in institutions. Studies have shown that stigma can keep away parents from seeking treatment and diagnosis. Some Koreans considered autism to be a stigmatizing heredity disorder. Consequently autism is usually untreated or misdiagnosed to be attachment disorder or not recorded at all. Attachment disorder describes a social interaction problem as a result of neglect during early life. Majority of Korean mothers would love to have attachment disorder diagnosis regardless of the fact that it places blame for the condition of their child squarely on themviii. These parents do this since they have a belief that attachment disorder can be easily treatable as compared to autism as well as it does not stigmatize the whole family. Autism is not a disease. Majority of autistic people prefer for instance, “I am autistic”, rather than, “I am a person with autism”. Hatred towards people with autism is very worrying. In some circumstances it has been horrific to learn about a mother who has drugged her child, and when it did not die fast enough, she slit his wrists to make the child lose a lot of blood and die. People will refer to her as a monster and mourn the innocent poor child. But the moment they learn that the child was autistic, everyone redirects his sympathy to the mother and comments on how she was the victimix. This is as if to justify killing of autistic children. Stigma towards the autistic community is alive in the society today and it is an ethical issue that continues to trigger social debate in many countries. 3. Autistic Human rights Coming up with models of rights that comprise of wide range of humanity as well as recognise the unique needs of individuals cognitive and bodily states is a challenging task. An appropriate model has to achieve this while at the same time enhancing life quality of all community members. Putting away autistic people in institutions is a violation of the fundamental basic rights. Autism is not a disease. The establishment of a fully supportive welfare state for individuals with developmental challenges calls for pointing out of minimum standards and structures to make sure the standards are always met. There are many organizations that purport to speak for autistic people but do not channel any benefit to the autistic community despite receiving funding from charitable organizations and the governmentx. The role of these organizations has to be interrogated to make sure the autistic community is not taken advantage of. Developing a model of human rights founded on the construct of autism and those people associated with the condition can provide answers to these issues. Autistic people are often violated by their families and the larger society. Autistic Human rights have to look at issues affecting the autistic community and cover them extensively. My Ethical stance I believe discrimination against autistic people in the society is unfair and unethical. People who have not directly encountered autistic children consider them to be abnormal. The evidence put forward by various authors is a true reflection of what is happening in various societies concerning discrimination of autistic people across the world. There is a correspondence between the evidence put forward and what is happening in reality. Autism spectrum describes the variety of ways that the condition can manifest in a person that varies greatly from one individual to another and in the course of their life. Some people can have very sophisticated difficulties while others will posses complex needs that call for intensive support. Challenges and behaviours linked to autism are usually due to differences in the thinking as well as information processing. It calls for comprehensive interpretation of the influences of these various thinking styles that one is able to come up with approaches as well as strategies that give autistic individuals an opportunity to comprehend better as well as take part in activities in the environment around them. It is important for thorough public awareness to be carried out to make sure the public is fully aware of autism and how autistic people behave. I have encountered children and adults with autism and hence I was appalled by cases of discrimination against autistic people. Autistic people deserve better. Parents of autistic children should not under psychological trauma for having an autistic child in a society that discriminates against autism. Bullying and other forms of violation against autistic people are uncalled for. Most people who have given their views or written about discrimination of autistic people are parents of autistic children, autistic adults, doctors, and caregivers. There are many voices that condemn discrimination and stigmatization of autistic people and I fully concur with their views. Parents bare the full weight of stigma and have personal encounter with discrimination from social places where they go with their autistic children. Public awareness remains an important step towards ensuring that a sensitive and responsible society that does not shun people with developmental challenges. Public Policy Issues Public policy issue in Canada regards access to universal healthcare for all citizens despite their conditions as requirement for funding from the federal government. The public policy is based on the principle of justice in that anyone has to access healthcare services and no discrimination has to occur towards any group like autistic community. The autism policy in Canada has been controversial with most parents turning to litigation in securing services for their affected children in some provinces. Policy makers always struggle to balance the needs of autistic children. There is need for all inclusive services throughout the spectrum as well as in the course of the lifespan and the possibility of ensuring enhanced support for children. Public discussions concerning policy on autism have not unfolded in a very clear manner in Canada. There are Intense conflicts regarding the fact that Canadian federalism puts in charge provinces the responsibility of providing health and social services such as education as well as other support aid for children with developmental difficulties and mental health. Funds to cater for the costs are obtained by provincial taxes and services provided using various models at the discretion of the provinces. In Canada, the Canada Health Act still offers oversight mechanismxi. The Act states sets out guidelines that provinces have to adhere to if they have to get federal healthcare funds’ transfers including making sure that universal access to medical services for every Canadians. The USA has also covered discrimination through public policy that ensures access to healthcare for all people. Endnotes Read More

ABA compels children to hide their true nature for the purpose of fitting in. Some earlier recipients of ABA call it institutionalized child abuse or ableism. There a blurred line between abuse and intervention in the application of ABA. 2. Discrimination People with autistic spectrum disorders encounter high degrees of stigmatization in societies across the world. Stigma is often a mark that makes someone to be rejected or discredited by society. Autistic people and parents having autistic children are often stigmatized.

Manifestations of health-related stigmas are determined culturally particularly in countries that are developing. The discrimination of against autistic people is further heightened by low public awareness of the condition. Negative interactions with others can include confrontations like bullying or less obvious forms such as discrimination. Such situations happen at any time in the course of the person’s lifetime. Such words like retarded, insane and crazy have been used often by ignorant people in the social to refer to autistic people.

Ableism is the assumption that people with psychiatric, developmental or physical disabilities are less that those people without. Ableism as well as ableist language is a big problem in public health communities prone to language concerning eliminating specific disabilities being prominentv. Whereas the intention of the practitioners in public health fraternity is improving the well-being of the community, it does not consider the impact that the language has on autistic people. Stigma is one difficult challenge of public encounters experienced by families who have an autistic child.

Such families regard public reaction to them as negative and stereotypical. Stigma towards people with autism exists and the society has bought into it. Majority of non-autistic people do not realize that they are treating someone negatively owing to their autism label. Neurotypical people are at the risk of using the autism label to justify treating other individuals differently. Autistic people do not have to feel ashamed of being autistic. Autism should not be applied in discriminating against people.

It is important to deal with stigma sine it result into real-world discrimination. Parents of autistic children have been on the receiving end whenever they have gone to somewhere public with their children. Parents also feel the stigma that society has attached to autism. Many people across the world see autism as being a source of shame, annoyance, disappointment or worse. Studies have shown that stigma can keep families from looking for a diagnosis or services for their children. To a large extent, stigma impacts public health sector.

Stigma comes from culture hence it may appear in various forms depending on whether someone is coming from Canada, South Korea, the United States or Japanvi. There is a sense of isolation surrounding people with autism spectrum disorders that has to be broken down by families and everyone else in the society. The isolation and shame experienced by autistic people as well as their families can be compared to that faced by other people whose differences isolate them. However, autism exhibit unique features that have resulted in a perfect stage for rejection and shame.

In many serious kinds, autism usually entails very antisocial behaviour that raises attentions and causes unnecessary stares. Some autistic children can violet personal space resulting in discomfort and fear. Autistic people just look like everyone else hence making their behaviour suspicious to those who are uninformed. It is this duality seemingly physical normality and pervasive disability that makes the stigma that is experienced by families having autistic children a very unique quality.

Autistic people often do not exhibit obvious facial characteristics like the case of Down syndrome, nor do they have visible devices like canes or wheelchairs to make others be aware of their disability. Consequently, their unusual behaviour can be misinterpreted for bad parenting, mental illness or serious lack of self-control.

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