Explores the ethical and practical considerations of conversion therapy when counseling families and individuals within families with gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transsexual concerns. Emphasis is placed on the need for counselors to assess personal biases in the area of working with sexual minorities. Presents a reflective exercise and case study…

Notes that, despite declassification of homosexuality as mental illness, efforts to sexually reorient lesbians and gay men continue. Examines construct of sexual orientation. Reviews literature in psychotherapeutic and religious conversion therapies, finding no evidence that such treatments are effective in their intended purpose. Establishes need…

Reviews major methods, and their theoretical underpinnings, for the definition and measurement of sexual orientations, highlighting their limitations and pitfalls, both practical and conceptual. Cautions against increasing politicization of this area. Makes recommendations toward measurement concerns with adolescent populations. Details a specific…

Discusses the importance of creating safe school environments for gay and lesbian students. Anti-gay bias has been called the last acceptable form of discrimination in the United States, and many U.S. public schools are complicit in cultivating this intolerance. Describes one public and one private high school's efforts to make safe environments…

The author highlights information for career counselors to consider when addressing work-family interface with individuals who are members of same-sex, dual-earner couples or families. D. E. Super's (1990) life-span, life-space theory is the framework used to organize the literature review and discussion of current trends. Issues related to the…

This article questions the effects of forms of knowledge adults create that frame LGBT youth. The author focuses on dominant images of the LGBT youth at-risk and the adolescent who adopts a secure gay identity. She argues that gay identity development models and subcultural theories create a group with defined needs to which adults and school…

Sexuality is something that children experience from an early age. It may be a cause of individual concern and anxiety, but is seldom, if ever, deconstructed at any stage of a child's education. Institutionalized fear and misunderstandings of Section 28 (1988) have effectively removed discussion of sexuality, homosexual or otherwise, from the…

This article discusses racial-social-sexual categories as related to HIV prevention and traditional public health strategies, specifically, the Young Men's Study conducted during the 1990s. We critique the use of pan-ethnic categories such as Asian and Latino, and the often invisible position of Whiteness in race discussions. We also engage with…

Like all teens, sexual minority youths (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) face many challenges, including student-on-student sexual orientation harassment. The authors examine recent research into the relative frequency, the potential impact, and school district responsibility to protect sexual minority youths from ongoing…

Prior research on observer perceptions of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) patients has concluded that there is a strong tendency to assume that homosexuals are patients of AIDS while heterosexuals are patients of anything but AIDS. This study sought to determine if there was a greater tendency to diagnose AIDS among female homosexuals…

This article discusses homosexuality in the college years based on clinical observation, developmental theory, and findings from major studies. The changing sexual orientation in men and women and development of sexual preferences are described. Male and female concerns and patterns are seen as psychodynamically and socioculturally different…

This issue deals with the Supreme Court's recent decision in "Mitchell v. Helms" that is viewed by many as additional legal fire power for voucher proponents in the battle over the constitutionality of such programs. The discussion attempts to sort out how the High Court's decision may affect the future of voucher programs. Specifically, the Court…

Investigates the effects of a 10-week, educational experiential group intervention designed to address issues pertinent to adult lesbians, including lesbian identity development, homophobia and heterosexism, religious concerns, career concerns, family issues, sexism and racism, and assertiveness skills. The intervention yielded gains in ego…

Notes little empirical research exists on mental health issues of lesbians/gays. Contends that whether researchers choose to define sexual orientation by sexual behavior, self-definition, or membership in lesbian and gay community groups will impact results. Sees mental health research that includes lesbians, gays, and heterosexuals allowing…

Data from 38 gay men showed that decisions concerning disclosure and secrecy were related to variety of situational and relational factors that were largely distinct from gay identity development. Argues that new models of identity formation fail to recognize adequately social factors that shape how gay men manage information concerning their…