Beliefs and
statements about homosexual orientation
Statements by professional associations.
Research data.
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Statements by professional associations
In 1973, the American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality from its Diagnostic
and Statistical Manual of Psychiatric Disorders. The American Psychological
Association declared that it was not a disorder in 1975.
Recent statements by professional organizations include:
The American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality from its list of
mental illnesses in 1973.
The American Law Institute continually updates its Model Penal Code,
which is a group of laws that they suggest be implemented at the state level.
During the 1970s, they
recommended to legislators: "that
private sexual behavior between consenting adults should be removed from the list of
crimes and thereby legalized."
The American Bar Association in 1974 expressed its approval of the
Model Penal Code, including its decriminalization of consensual adult homosexual acts.
The World Health Organization
removed homosexuality from its list of mental illnesses in 1981.
The American Psychological Association released a Statement on Homosexuality
in 1994-JUL. Their first two paragraphs state:
"The research on homosexuality is very clear. Homosexuality is neither mental illness
nor moral depravity. It is simply the way a minority of our population expresses human
love and sexuality. Study after study documents the mental health of gay men and lesbians.
Studies of judgment, stability, reliability, and social and vocational adaptiveness all
show that gay men and lesbians function every bit as well as heterosexuals."
"Nor is homosexuality a matter of individual choice. Research suggests that the
homosexual orientation is in place very early in the life cycle, possibly even before
birth. It is found in about ten percent of the population, a figure which is surprisingly
constant across cultures, irrespective of the different moral values and standards of a
particular culture. Contrary to what some imply, the incidence of homosexuality in a
population does not appear to change with new moral codes or social mores. Research
findings suggest that efforts to repair homosexuals are nothing more than social prejudice
garbed in psychological accouterments."
In 1994-AUGUST, The APA sent a proposal to one of its committees that would declare as
unethical:
Attempts by a psychologist to change a person's sexual orientation through therapy, or
Referral of a patient to a therapist or organization who attempts to change people's
sexual orientation
The APA publishes an undated brochure titled "Answers to Your Questions About
Sexual Orientation and Homosexuality." They state:
"...many scientists share the view that sexual orientation is shaped for most
people at an early age through complex interactions of biological, psychological and
social factors."
"...psychologists do not consider sexual orientation for most people to be a
conscious choice that can be voluntarily changed."
"...homosexuality is not an illness, mental disorder or emotional problem."
"There is no evidence indicating that homosexuals are more likely than
heterosexuals to molest children." 1
In 1997_AUG-14, the APA published a news release about a recently passed resolution
"on so-called reparative therapy." The resolution "raises
ethical concerns about attempts to change sexual orientation, reaffirms psychology's
opposition to homophobia and client's rights to unbiased treatment."
2
The American Medical Association (AMA) released a report in 1994-DEC which calls
for "nonjudgmental recognition of sexual orientation by physicians." They
suggest that psychotherapy be directed help homosexuals "become comfortable with
their sexual orientation."
The Academy of Pediatrics and the Council on Child and Adolescent Health
have also stated that homosexuality is not a choice and cannot be changed.
NARTH, the National Association for Research and
Therapy of Homosexuality is a professional organization for
psychiatrists, psychologists, other therapists, social workers, and
behavioral scientists. They, alone, among professional mental health
organizations,
promote reparative therapy for gays and lesbians. Their Statement of Policy and Right
to Treatment completely contradicts statements by all other professional mental health
organizations, and mirrors the beliefs of fundamentalist and other
religious conservatives . Their total membership is somewhat
over 1,000 which compares to the over 132,000
members of the American Psychological Association. Noon-therapists
can join as a "Friend of
NARTH;" many conservative Christian ministries have done this. NARTH
teaches that homosexuality is a sexual disorder -- a sexual deviancy --
which can be readily cured. More details.
In 1999, Just the Facts Coalition -- a group of 13 professional
associations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, American Counseling
Association, American Association of School Administrators, American
Federation of Teachers, American Psychological Association, American
School Health Association, Interfaith Alliance Foundation, National
Association of School Psychologists, National Association of Social
Workers and National Education Association jointly issued a
document titled: "Just the facts about sexual orientation." The document was updated in 2008.3They:
expressed concern about harassment of gay and lesbian youth.
condemned reparative therapy as
potentially harmful and of little or no effectiveness
describe transformational ministries
as representing only one part of Christianity -- those faith
groups which view homosexuality as outside God's will, and
incompatible with Christianity. They cite other denominations as
supporting equal rights, and protection against discrimination,
for gays and lesbians.
Research Data
An excellent resource which summarizes research into various areas of sexual
orientation can be seen at: http://psychology.ucdavis.edu/
It gives "Clear, accurate explanations of scientific research on homophobia and
hate crimes, HIV/AIDS stigma, and other concerns to lesbians and gay men."
Actually, the site is extremely valuable for all persons who are concerned about
discrimination and hatred.
"Answers to Your Questions About Sexual Orientation and Homosexuality,"
APA brochure. See: http://www.apa.org/
"APA Council of Representatives Passes Resolution on So-Called Reparative
Therapy," APA news release. See: http://psychology.ucdavis.edu/
"Just the facts about sexual orientation," can be
read at:
http://www.apa.org/ This
is an Acrobat PDF file. You can obtain a free software to read these files
from Adobe
Acrobat reader.