An Exploration of Family Therapists' Beliefs about the Ethics of Conversion Therapy: The Influence of Negative Beliefs and Clinical Competence With Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Clients

Abstract

The majority of the literature on conversion therapy has focused on clients' experiences and rationales for seeking such therapy. This study sought to explore differences in the beliefs and clinical competence of therapists who practice and believe in the ethics of conversion therapy and those who do not. The sample for this study included 762 family therapists who were members of the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy. Data were collected using electronic surveys that assessed participants' negative beliefs about and perceived clinical competence with lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals. Results indicate that those who believe in the ethics of and/or practice conversion therapy report statistically higher levels of negative beliefs about LGB individuals and lower levels of clinical competence working with LGB clients. Implications for clinical practice and organizational policy are discussed.

Hegemonic Heteronormativity: Toward a New Era of Queer Family Theory

“…Six articles and two book chapters (11% of works reviewed) utilized Oswald et al's () model in the context of practice or pedagogy (Few‐Demo, Humble, Curran, & Lloyd, ; Hudak & Giammattei, ; McGeorge & Carlson, ; McGeorge, Carlson, & Toomey, , ; Carlson, McGeorge, & Toomey, ; Nova, McGeorge, & Stone Carlson, ; Oswald, Kuvalanka, Blume, & Berkowitz, ). Most of these authors have argued that the field of marriage and family (MFT) largely helps uphold heteronormativity, and they suggest ways to make MFT more inclusive and affirmative for all.…”

Are we there yet? Faculty Members’ Beliefs and Teaching Practices Related to the Ethical Treatment of Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Clients

“…In recent years, there has been increased attention paid in the literature to ethical issues related to competent therapy practices with lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals, couples, and families (Corey, Corey, Corey, & Callanan, ; Edwards, Robertson, Smith, & O'Brien, ; Kaplan, ; McGeorge & Carlson, ; McGeorge, Carlson, & Farrell, ; McGeorge, Carlson, & Toomey, ; Serovich et al., ; Shiles, ). Two prominent ethical issues related to working with LGB clients that are at the forefront of social, political, and professional discourses are the practice of reparative therapy and the referral of LGB clients based solely on their sexual orientation (Kaplan, ; Caldwell, , ; McGeorge et al., , ; Serovich et al., ). Reparative therapy, also referred to as conversion or reorientation therapy, is a practice that seeks to alter a person's sexual orientation from LGB to a heterosexual orientation and is based on the belief that an LGB sexual orientation is pathological and/or sinful (Haldeman, ; McGeorge et al., ; Serovich et al., ).…”

“…While there appears to be clarity about the ethicality and best practices in the existing literature related to these two issues (Kaplan, ; Caldwell, ; Caldwell, ; McGeorge et al., , ; Serovich et al., ), research suggests that there appears to be some ambiguity among family therapists related to the ethics of the practice of reparative therapy and the referral of LGB clients (McGeorge et al., , ). Given that faculty members are responsible for educating the next generation of family therapists, it seems important to gain insight into how they are addressing these emerging ethical issues related to the competent treatment of LGB clients within their training programs.…”

On Maps, Shapeshifting, and My Syllabus: Family Therapies Today

“…Feminist family therapies, for example, have evolved to more overtly include, beyond gender and power, the intersectionality of race, culture, class, and sexual orientation (e.g., Williams, Galick, Knudson‐Martin, & Huenergardt, ; George & Stith, ; Knudson‐Martin et al., ; Seedall, Holtrop, & Parra‐Cardona, ). Family therapy scholarship on diversity and oppression has expanded to include nationalism (Platt & Laszloffy, ) and to more directly address lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) issues (LaSala, ; McGeorge, Carlson, & Toomey, , ). Also, those writing about cultural competence have expanded their clinical practices (e.g., McGoldrick, ; Bischoff et al., ), educational methods (Winston & Piercy, ), and research (Cole, Piercy, Wolfe, and West ().…”

“…Contemporary family therapies also now transcend the usual theoretical silos to include common factors (Fife, Whiting, Bradford, & Davis, ; Fraser, Karam, Blow, Sprenkle, & Davis, ), mindfulness practices (Gambrel & Piercy, , ), the planful use of client feedback (Duncan & Miller, ; Sparks, ), and innovative supervision methods (Falke, Lawson, Pandit, & Patrick, ). Meanwhile, the effectiveness of relationship education with diverse and distressed groups expands our definition of and respect for psychoeducation in couple and family interventions (e.g., Barton, Futris, & Bradley, 2014; Quirk, Strokoff, Owen, France, & Bergen, ).…”