TY - JOUR
T1 - Therapist correlates of attitudes toward sexual minority individuals, affirmative counseling self-efficacy, and beliefs about affirmative practice
AU - Alessi, Edward J.
AU - Dillon, Frank R.
AU - Kim, Hillary Mi Sung
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2015 Society for Psychotherapy Research.
PY - 2016/7/3
Y1 - 2016/7/3
N2 - Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of training in sexual minority issues, professional identification, and gender on attitudes toward lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals, affirmative counseling self-efficacy, and beliefs about affirmative practice among mental health practitioners in the USA. Method: We used the Internet to recruit a nationwide sample of 443 heterosexual psychologists (n = 270), clinical social workers (n = 110), and marriage and family therapists (n = 63) residing in the USA. Results: When controlling for years of practice experience and age, results from structural equation modeling analysis showed that training was associated with more affirmative attitudes, higher levels of affirmative counseling self-efficacy, and more positive beliefs. Female therapists reported more affirmative attitudes and higher levels of affirmative counseling self-efficacy than male therapists. Professional identification did not predict any criterion variables, when controlling for years of practice experience and age. Conclusion: Findings suggest that it will be important for educational and training initiatives to consider the effect of gender role socialization on attitudes and affirmative counseling self-efficacy, especially among beginning male therapists.
AB - Objective: The purpose of this study was to examine the influence of training in sexual minority issues, professional identification, and gender on attitudes toward lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals, affirmative counseling self-efficacy, and beliefs about affirmative practice among mental health practitioners in the USA. Method: We used the Internet to recruit a nationwide sample of 443 heterosexual psychologists (n = 270), clinical social workers (n = 110), and marriage and family therapists (n = 63) residing in the USA. Results: When controlling for years of practice experience and age, results from structural equation modeling analysis showed that training was associated with more affirmative attitudes, higher levels of affirmative counseling self-efficacy, and more positive beliefs. Female therapists reported more affirmative attitudes and higher levels of affirmative counseling self-efficacy than male therapists. Professional identification did not predict any criterion variables, when controlling for years of practice experience and age. Conclusion: Findings suggest that it will be important for educational and training initiatives to consider the effect of gender role socialization on attitudes and affirmative counseling self-efficacy, especially among beginning male therapists.
KW - LGB-affirmative counseling self-efficacy
KW - LGB-affirmative psychotherapy
KW - attitudes toward LGB individuals
KW - lesbian, gay, and bisexual
KW - psychotherapy training
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U2 - 10.1080/10503307.2015.1026422
DO - 10.1080/10503307.2015.1026422
M3 - Article
C2 - 25869592
AN - SCOPUS:84927748650
SN - 1050-3307
VL - 26
SP - 446
EP - 458
JO - Psychotherapy Research
JF - Psychotherapy Research
IS - 4
ER -