Homophobia and Clinical Competency: An Exploration of Couple and Family Therapists’ Beliefs

Abstract

This study measured couple and family therapists’ levels of homophobia and examined whether levels of homophobia would predict their self-reported competency in treating lesbian and gay (LG) clients. The sample consisted of 741 clinical members of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. Participants completed the Modern Homophobia Scale and the Sexual Orientation Counselor Competency Scale which measured self-reported competency in the areas of knowledge and skills related to treating LG clients. The findings of this study suggest that, on average, these clinical members report low levels of homophobia and participants’ levels of homophobia predict self-reported clinical competency.