Sexuality
- Darlene Edgar
Analytics
Collens, P., & Preez, E. du. (2023). Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, and queer concerns in professional psychology education. Waikato Journal of Education (2382-0373), 28(1), 141–154. https://research.ebsco.com/c/4ax45t/viewer/pdf/erlfvbe3en
Over the past few decades, there has been a shift in the perspective on LGBTQ+ individuals in professional psychology education towards recognizing gender, sex, and sexuality diversity as normal and healthy.
However, there are still systemic obstacles in providing culturally competent psychological care for the LGBTQ+ community, including a lack of mandatory coverage of LGBTQ+ content in psychologist training programs and inadequate research and guidance on curriculum development.
There is a need for an intersectional framework in the education of the psychological workforce to address the impacts of colonialism, race, and multiple social, cultural, and LGBTQ+ identities.
Research from New Zealand on LGBTQ+ concerns in professional psychology education is lacking, with a focus on US-centric studies, and there is a notable absence of research on the intersex population.
Four themes identified in the study include multicultural approach and cultural competencies, values-related conflicts such as religious beliefs and homophobia, perspectives on sexuality and gender diversity within positive psychology, and the disaggregation of the LGBTQ+ umbrella with a focus on transgender and gender diverse (TGD) curricular initiatives.
There is variability across courses in the coverage of LGBTQ+ content, with some courses focusing exclusively on race and ethnicity. Diversity courses may increase awareness of heterosexual privilege but do not necessarily improve LGBTQ+ competence.
Incorporating LGBTQ+ content across all courses or offering dedicated courses exclusively on LGBTQ+ content are debated approaches, with no definitive perspective emerging in the literature.
Struggles with reconciling religious freedom and human rights of LGBTQ+ individuals often arise in psychologist education programs affiliated with religion. Some programs have condemned homosexual conduct, which conflicts with ethical requirements to prevent discriminatory practices.
Revised frameworks of multicultural competencies that include demographic competency and dynamic worldview inclusivity are proposed to address values-related conflicts and ensure students are informed of program requirements before applying.
Positive psychology, resilience, and community strengths are emphasized as essential components in understanding the well-being and mental health of LGBTQ+ individuals. Engagement of LGBTQ+ students in psychology education and research is advocated.
There is a need to focus on the unique challenges of transgender and gender diverse communities, including terminology usage, minority stress, clinical evaluations, and practitioner reflexivity.
Collaboration between different healthcare disciplines and community organizations is essential for revising psychology curricula to include strengths-based approaches and address the diverse needs of LGBTQ+ populations.