ABA and adaptation of low income families

To be adapted by low-income patients, any BCBA therapist should remember that:

 1. Class IV and Class V clients are considered low- income patients, and mainly their socioeconomic position influences the way these people are treated, and that is why they require especially careful attention.

2. Socioeconomic status is an important token of the duration of individual psychotherapy but not of treatment outcome; such therapy can be quite successful with low-income patients, too. 

3. While arranging mental health treatment for low-income clients, doctors should follow already proven methods rather than surmised facts. As a rule, poor disease outcomes are seen from the very beginning for the low- income patients, so, the first steps of therapy should be followed especially carefully.

4.Therapists inform that most low- income patients are hostile, suspicious, and aggressive, and treat them as “untreatable.” To avoid this situation, a patient's confidence in his therapist and treatment is a critical point of successful outcome.

5. Low -income patients are not ready for long term treatment and do not allow already used and proven therapeutic procedures; they just look for symptomatic relief. Being aware of this fact, the therapist should provide these patients with useful information about the appropriateness and efficacy of therapy, and not to be afraid or ashamed of being treated for both physical and mental problems.

  6. Professional bias should be out of place while dealing with low-income families, such relation to these patients may come up with evident discrepancy between duration treatment time and its outcome

7. Negative stereotypes and biases on behalf of therapists negatively affect the result of treatment, especially when patients become aware of therapist’s biases.

8. To reach positive results in treating low-income patients, the doctor should perform some preparatory conversation with such patients which is known to increase the effectiveness of the treatment. To instigate a patient's expectation about the course and consequences of treatment, it is possible to change treatment procedures so that they will be more appropriate for the patient's expectations; family members’ involvement is also desirable.

9. It is known that low-income patients do not like to talk too much; they prefer concrete actions, so behavioral treatment approaches may be well received by low-income patients. Such patients feel disappointed if they are not given concrete advice or a definite guidance to solve their problems. In this case the attrition rates and treatment dissatisfaction will decrease in time.

10. Low-income patients prefer being treated by the doctors from their culture, but the main thing which is appreciated by these patients are their therapist’s sincerity and warm relationship contrary to those who are cold, distant, or passive.