But I’ll go out on a limb here and simply state that it is not ideal if most substance abuse counselors are women (76%) when most substance abusers are men (67%), or that most special education teachers are women (84%) when most students being referred to special education are male (64%).25 I’m not saying we need to aim for perfect gender parity in these occupations. But it is reasonable to aim for a closer match between clients and providers.
