Session 13 – Searching for Evidence of Harm: 79 Key Studies Do Not Demonstrate that SOCE is More Harmful Than Other Counselling [S13-22-23]

Wishlist Share

About Course

Critics of sexual orientation change efforts (SOCE) argue that they are harmful to clients. Peter Sprigg reviewed 79 studies purported to include “measures of harm” from SOCE, and reports the results.

Some studies contain no assertion of “harm” from SOCE. Others feature no study subjects. Most have significant methodological weaknesses. Sprigg demonstrates that while these 79 studies provide anecdotal evidence of SOCE harm, they do not prove that SOCE is more likely to be harmful than helpful.

Proposed Learning Objectives

  • Distinguish between results of SOCE that should be considered harmful and ones that should not be considered harmful.
  • - What are (at least two) possible results of SOCE that should be considered harms, and (at least two) that should not be considered harms?
  • Identify methodological weaknesses of existing SOCE harms literature with respect to sample size, sample type, and methods of measurement.
  • - How many of the 79 studies reviewed were prospective, longitudinal, and used standardized measures of distress?
  • Effectively rebut claims that SOCE has proven to be always or usually harmful.
  • - What are (at least two) other control groups to which "harms" experienced from SOCE should be compared?

Course Content

Content

  • Video Lesson
    41:00

Outline