A recent study done by Redbook Magazine said that 27% of their readers, would hire a male, as a nanny or babysitter. Would you hire a male to watch your children?
Interesting fact: Only 1 in 20 child care workers in the U.S. are male.
no. statistics point to males in child abuse are overwhelmingly pointing for more males abusing so am i nuts to play with the odds?! though i would leave my children with a male i knew trusted but statistics also point towards that being the population most likely to abuse..
I have no such problems. If someone is responsible, had worked with children in the past, and I know them well enough to have them watch my kids, I don't care if they are male or female. I have worked with excellent male preschool teachers, including someone that was my own preschool teacher. Maybe people think males will abuse their kids where females won't, but it's a gross generalization. A woman can abuse as readily as a male. If you only accept women as caregivers, then women will never break out of that caregiving role. Sexism goes both ways.
sure I would...i'd hire whomever the best candidate was..I had male babysitters when I was a kid...my brother babysat..my 16 year old nephew does it all the time....I don't care what sex they are..I care about how well they'll take care of my kids.
You cannot use the above statistic as proof that people do not choose males for child care. You would have it backwards. Males do not go into the field of childcare because it's a relatively low-paying job. Women who work in day care centers, even if they have a degree, make less money than a beginning construction worker. Waaay less. My kids are grown, and I had both male and female teenagers babysit. Again, not too many boys are interested. They can cut grass and make more money in less time. Such is life.
Some of our best babysitters were young adults, like 16-18 years old, but always kids of our best friends... folks we knew for years. I would have trouble having a guy babysit my daughters if I didn't know them or their parents very well.
typically no i would not, but then i am really picky about who i leave my children with anyways. there has only been a couple of occasions where my children have ever been left with anyone but family.
If it was someone that I knew WELL, then I would consider hiring a male. I'm a bit hypersensitive to the issue of child abuse due to things happening to children I have known. Male abusers gravitate toward jobs where there are children. I know a highly respected church youth minister who was arrested for child abuse and child pornography. I have a friend whose son was molested by a college aged "big-brother". I know another boy who was molested by a scout leader. Do women molest? Certainly. But child care has typically been a female job, since women have traditionally been considered the nurturers. So this would make me question the reasons why a man would be entering the field of child care. I know it sounds prejudiced, but I had rather err on the side of the child in this case....and be safe rather than sorry.
Even you know you don't find many male sitters these days I would not have a problem with it. If he was qualified like anyone else then why not. Just like with any babysitter Girl or Boy if they have been threw training and I fell are good enought to watch my children I would. I dont like to put a lable on anyone due to statics
I used to baby-sit once and a while when I was in the Air Force for a few extra dollars. If the kids would let me, ha ha, I could get some peace and quiet and do homework etc. (night school) I got razzed about it a little, but so what. The word was out in the shop that if their primary baby sitter was unavailable to check with me, I'd do it if no school that night. It was kind of fun actually.
Males are the molesters most frequently caught, but that does not mean they are the only molesters. I attended a seminar of the subject put on by the Ok. State University for therapists like myself on the subject of teen babysitter molesters. Someone asked about girl babysitters and the presenters said that although they could not prove it, some data indicated that it was not unusual for teen girl babysitter to engage in sexual activities with boys in the 9 to 12 year age group. They claimed the reason that we don't hear about it is that boys don't tell because they considered it "cool"
In reality molesters come in all ages and genders and usually have some connection with the family, such as a relative or friend.
Not for my daughters..I could see the benefit for boys though. Baby sitter becomes mentor, friend and could emulate what the Big Brother program was meant to do in a lot of ways.
I would hire a boy to baby...just because statistics show that males abuse more than females doesn't mean the person you hire is an abuser, have them checked out..let them sit with your child while you are there, children are very good judges of character, they sense things..if your child does not like the person you are thinking of hiring go with that feeling..male or female.
Now about the statistics... Statistically yes, men do tend to abuse more, however, I have seen MANY men in my lifetime that are great with children. Women you trust your husbands with your children (boys or girls) so why not a male babysitter?? Like I said before...check them out..it's not that difficult.
My brother takes care of my daughter for 4 hours till my mom gets home while I work. But other than that I'm slightly ashamed to say no.. I don't want a male baby sitter. I am paranoid about child molesters and whatnot. I guess if it was a male I'd known for a very long time like over 10 years or something but not a random even if they had good references.
We had a male babysitter for a few months. He was fine but then his school schedule and work schedule (he had 2 jobs besides babysitting) got too much and we could never find a time where we needed him and he was able to work, so we parted ways.
Nope. Not unless I knew him very very very well. First of all, I have girls and I don't think a male babysitter has any business being alone with my very young children who may need help with clothes, bathroom issues, etc. Secondly, I just think it leaves you open to much more potential for wrong doing. And, lastly, my girls wouldn't feel comfortable with a male sitter unless it was something they knew very well.
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Comments: 31
though i would leave my children with a male i knew trusted but statistics also point towards that being the population most likely to abuse..
I have worked with excellent male preschool teachers, including someone that was my own preschool teacher.
Maybe people think males will abuse their kids where females won't, but it's a gross generalization. A woman can abuse as readily as a male. If you only accept women as caregivers, then women will never break out of that caregiving role. Sexism goes both ways.
My kids are grown, and I had both male and female teenagers babysit. Again, not too many boys are interested. They can cut grass and make more money in less time.
Such is life.
Some of the best babysitters I had as a kid were men.
I got razzed about it a little, but so what. The word was out in the shop that if their primary baby sitter was unavailable to check with me, I'd do it if no school that night. It was kind of fun actually.
In reality molesters come in all ages and genders and usually have some connection with the family, such as a relative or friend.
Now about the statistics... Statistically yes, men do tend to abuse more, however, I have seen MANY men in my lifetime that are great with children. Women you trust your husbands with your children (boys or girls) so why not a male babysitter?? Like I said before...check them out..it's not that difficult.