What the Research Does and Does Not Say: Is Therapeutic Support for Unwanted Same-Sex Attractions Harmful?

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In recent years, national and international medical and mental health associations typically have emphasized the potential harmfulness of professional care for unwanted same-sex attraction and behavior . During 2012 and 2013, state legislatures in the U.S. and legislative bodies in other countries either have passed or are considering passing laws which would penalize professionals who provided professional care for unwanted SSA – to minors and/or adults – the loss of the license to practice. This paper was written as a response to the present situation in the United Kingdom. The paper reviews the universal ethics of all medical and mental health professionals to avoid harm and do good ; discusses the documented potential for harm when using every mental health treatment for every presenting problem; clarifies steps taken by the Alliance for Therapeutic Choice and Scientific Integrity and its international division, the International Federation for Therapeutic Choice , to promote ethical professional care for unwanted SSA; clarifies the injustice and presumed ideological biases of the medical and mental health associations’ warning about the potential for harm for psychotherapy only for unwanted SSA and not all approaches; and documents that the research purporting to show this harmfulness, in the research authors own words, does not do so. Recommendations to promote scientific integrity in the conduct and reporting of relevant research are offered.

About the Author
Philip M. Sutton, PhD
Philip Sutton earned a BA from the University of Notre Dame and both an M.S. and Ph.D. from Purdue University.
He is a licensed psychologist in the states of Michigan and Ohio, and a licensed marriage and family therapist and licensed clinical social worker in the state of Indiana. He is a member of the Michigan Psychological Association, and a clinical partner of the Alliance for Therapeutic Choice and Scientific Integrity. Dr Sutton serves as the Editor of the Alliance's Journal of Human Sexuality and as Director of the Alliance's International Federation for Therapeutic Choice .
He is also an associate member of the Catholic Medical Association, as well as a member of the Fellowship of Catholic Scholars and of the Society for Catholic Social Scientists.