A systematic review of research on counselling and psychotherapy for lesbian, gay, bisexual & transgender people (original) (raw)

Issues in therapy with lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender clients

2000

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Issues in therapy with lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender clients / edited by Charles Neal and Dominic Davies. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 0-335-20332-9 (hb)-ISBN 0-335-20331-0 (pbk.) 1. Gays-Mental health. 2. Bisexuals-Mental health. 3. Gays-Counseling of. 4. Bisexuals-Counseling of.

Effective Counseling With Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Clients

Journal of College Counseling, 2002

Professional organizations mandate that effective counseling be provided t o lesbian, gay male, and bisexual male and female (LGB) clients.This article presents the characteristics, challenges, and needs of sexual minorities. along with therapeutic strategies that practitioners may use in facilitating a positive self-image among the lesbians, gay men, and bisexual men and women whom they counsel. n society, variations in sexual identity are found in every nationality, race/ ethnicity, creed, and gender. This prevalence, coupled with the facts that I the college years are a key time in the formation of sexual identity and that lesbians, gay men, and bisexual men and women frequently seek the support of counseling professionals (Hancock, 1995), necessitates that college counselors achieve competence in providing services to lesbian, gay male, and bisexual male and female (LGB) clients. Professional codes of conduct for counselors (American Counseling Association, 1996), psychiatrists (American Psychiatric Association, 1998), psychologists (American Psychological Association, 1992), and social workers (National Association ofsocial Workers, 1999) acknowledge this necessity. Yet many counseling professionals receive inadequate training in this area (Phillips, 2000). In this article, we endeavor to contribute toward meeting our ethical and professional mandates, by informing trainees and professionals of the characteristics and needs of lesbians, gay men, and bisexual men and women and by demonstrating methods for helping individuals who may acknowledge an LGB identity or who may be questioning their sexual identity. (Reader's Note. We note that transgendered persons have experiences similar to LGB populations but also have social and psychological dimensions unique to their identity. Given these unique qualities and the marked absence of research with transgendered people, we do not examine concerns specific to that population. Rather, we believe that many of the therapeutic strategies outlined may be applied in providing effective counseling to a transgendered client.) Overview of Issues Faced bv LGB Clients Requisite to achieving competency in the care of LGB populations is gaining a relevant knowledge base. Counselors who work with LGB clients need to be informed about appropriate terms and about the experiences and conditions ofparticular relevance to the lives of LGB clients. For example, although homosexual has traditionally been used to connote an individual whose

Issues in psychotherapy with lesbians and gay men: A survey of psychologists

American Psychologist, 1991

In 1984, a task force of the American Psychological Association (APA) Committee on Lesbian and Gay Concerns was charged with investigating bias in psychotherapy with lesbians and gay men. The task force surveyed a large and diverse sample of psychologists to elicit information about specific instances of respondent-defined biased and sensitive psychotherapy practice. Open-ended responses were used to separately identify major themes of biased and sensitive practice and to illustrate each with concrete examples. Results suggest that psychologists vary widely in their adherence to a standard of unbiased practice with gay men and lesbians. To bring individual practice into accord with APA policy will require continued and expanded efforts to educate practitioners about sexual orientation.

Conceptual and ethical issues in therapy for the psychological problems of gay men, lesbians, and bisexuals

Journal of clinical psychology, 2001

Reviewed here are a number of conceptual and ethical issues surrounding the study and treatment of gay men, lesbians, and bisexuals (GLB), with particular emphasis on the frequently overlooked political and ethical dimensions of what therapists choose to treat, indeed, on the goals patients themselves want to work towards. Several issues are discussed, including the relevance and irrelevance of sexual orientation and the role of therapist biases in assessment and treatment planning, the need for better understanding of how the problems of GLB patients are construed and the associated dangers of stereotyping, the challenges of coming out and the ways therapists can help patients make the decision and how to implement it, the extra effort required to be a GLB person in terms of the formation of an unconventional social and sexual identity, the trust issues that can arise when one partner in a committed relationship requests protected sex, the challenges and rewards of parents "coming out" as family members of a gay son or daughter, the social invisibility of lesbians and the deleterious effects this can have on them, social support issues for GLB youth, and the need for professionals to take a broad, institutional community psychology perspective to their study and treatment of GLB individuals.

Guidelines for psychotherapy with lesbian, gay, and bisexual clients

American Psychologist, 2000

I n 1975, the American Psychological Association (APA) adopted a resolution stating that "homosexuality per se implies no impairment in judgment, stability, reliability, or general social or vocational capabilities" (Conger, 1975, p. 633). This resolution followed a rigorous discussion of the 1973 decision by the American Psychiatric Association to remove homosexuality from its list of mental disorders (American Psychiatric Association, 1974). More than 25 years later, the implications of this resolution have yet to be fully implemented in practice (

Introduction to LGBT Perspectives in Psychological and Psychotherapeutic Theory, Research and Practice in the UK

Journal of Gay & Lesbian Psychotherapy, 2007

We are delighted to welcome readers to this collection of papers showcasing current developments in lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) psychological and psychotherapeutic theory, research and practice in the United Kingdom. This is our second foray into the international arena, having published in Volume 7 of Journal of Gay & Lesbian Psychotherapy a special volume entitled “The Mental Health Professions and Homosexuality: International Perspectives (issued in monograph volume as Lingiardi and ...

Psychotherapy with lesbian and gay clients

PSYCHOLOGIST-LEICESTER-, 1998

Of those participants who stated their gender and sexual identity, 50 (53.2 per cent) were female and 44 (46.8 per cent) Psychotherapy with lesbian and gay clients

Homosexuality: how therapists can help?

Open Journal of Psychiatry & Allied Sciences, 2015

The American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality from its list of mental disorders in 1974. Before that, for more than a century, homosexuality and bisexuality were assumed to be mental illnesses. Studies have shown that there is no difference between homosexual and heterosexual individuals with regard to psychological functioning. However, an effect of stress related to stigmatisation was observed in the cases of homosexuality. Such kind of stress may increase the risk of suicide attempts, substance abuse, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), and emotional distress. Findings of researches have suggested that there is a need for better education and training of mental health practitioners in this area. Therefore, in the present paper, few cases of homosexuality are discussed in the context of effect of stigmatisation and aspects of intimate relationships in these individuals. Further, the role of psychologists/professionals as therapists in providing their help to homosexual clients has also been presented.