Lesbian Clients Research Articles

Translating and validating the gay affirmative practice scale for nurses in mainland China.

The gay affirmative practice (GAP) scale is an effective tool for evaluating the beliefs and behaviors of health care professionals toward gay and lesbian clients. This study aimed to examine the reliability and validity of the GAP scale among Chinese nurses. A quantitative cross-sectional study was conducted to evaluate the Chinese version of the GAP (C-GAP) scale after translation and cross-cultural adaptation and to examine its psychometric characteristics. The reliability and validity of the C-GAP scale were determined by item analysis, factor analysis, internal consistency, test-retest reliability, and discriminant construct validity. The GAP scale was translated and adapted specifically for China. A total of 1440 participants completed the C-GAP scale, sociodemographic questionnaire, and Marlowe-Crowne social desirability scale. The C-GAP scale exhibited a Cronbach α of 0.95, with a high test-retest reliability coefficient of 0.92. Exploratory factor analysis identified 2 factors that accounted for 59.91% of the total variance. The results of the confirmatory factor analysis were as follows: χ2/df = 1.09, goodness-of-fit index = 0.98, adjusted goodness-of-fit index = 0.97, root mean square error of approximation = 0.01, Tucker-Lewis index = 1.00, comparative fit index = 1.00, incremental fit index = 1.00, parsimony goodness-of-fit index = 0.85, and parsimony normed fit index = 0.91. These findings confirm that all goodness-of-fit indices were satisfactory. The C-GAP scale can be an effective tool for health care professionals and managers and for education and research; it can also identify the beliefs and behaviors of health care professionals toward gay and lesbian clients, facilitating cultural competence development and enhancing care quality awareness and skills. The C-GAP scale demonstrates reliability and validity; however, because the sample consisted only of nurses, the findings may not be generalizable to other professional groups, such as counselors and therapists. Therefore, the occupational focus of the sample limited the broader applicability of the results. The C-GAP scale is a reliable and valid tool suitable for assessing the practice attitudes and behaviors of Chinese nurses toward gay and lesbian clients.

Power and Resistance: Re-exploring LGBT-friendly Counselling through Lesbian Clients’ Counseling Experiences

<p>即使臺灣於2019年成為亞洲第一個同性婚姻合法化的國家，社會偏見仍無所不在。過往同志多被視為一群體概括討論，而不同性別社會化過程有其特殊性。本研究透過後結構女性主義的觀點，以質性研究深度訪談的方式，從女同志案主主體經驗出發，嘗試了解女同志諮商歷程互動經驗與影響。研究發現，女同志通常透過親友、醫生引薦資源，並先確認機構對同志的態度。此外，心理師的性別或性傾向、對於女同志的態度與理解程度會影響諮商關係；在醫病的權力關係中，儘管心理師可能透過評估同志情慾真實性、將同性戀病理化、對同志議題採迴避態度、刻板印象與異性戀視框作為權力展現的方式與歷程，女同志的抗拒型態包含沈默不語、選擇結束關係，甚至反過來教育對方。另一角度而言，心理師若能表明同志友善、敏覺於社會氛圍及同志重大事件，是影響諮商關係的關鍵因素，而諮商室外的社會行動也帶來安全感，能增加女同志求助的機會。本研究透過主體性的敘說，呈現女同志案主在諮商歷程中經驗與感受之獨特樣貌，並提出與女同志工作之相關建議，供諮商實務工作者參考。</p> <p> </p><p>Even if Taiwan has legalized same-sex marriage since 2019, landmarking the first country in Asia, mainstream prejudices and discrimination against the LGBT communities can still be found in daily lives. In the past, the LGBT communities were regarded as a homogeneous group, regardless of their distinctiveness of sexual/gender nature as well as socialization processes. In this sense, this research departs from post-structural feminism, adopting qualitative research methods in order to map lesbian clients’ experiences in the process of counselling, thus exploring power and resistance within their experiences. This study firstly found that even though most lesbians assumed counselors tended to be more LGBT-friendly than the general public, they still consulted trustworthy friends, relatives, and psychiatrists for introducing counselling resources to confirm those institutions were to what extent friendly before stepping into the counselling space. Secondly, the biological sex and sexual orientation of the counselors had different meanings for lesbian clients. Thirdly, counselors’ attitudes and knowledge towards lesbians influenced their counselling relationships. In particular, there were unequal power relations between counselors and clients. For instance, counselors may demonstrate their power by estimating the authenticity of sex passion between the same-sex, pathologizing homosexuality, avoiding LGBT issues, or stereotyping clients through heterosexual sexual lenses. However, clients are not passive recipients. Instead, Lesbian clients may utilize strategies such as keeping silent, educating the counselors, or ending the counselling relationship to resist the counselors’ power. Apart from that, counselors’ engagement in gender issues of the society matter in maintaining counselling relationships; for instance, awareness of social atmosphere and major LGBT events, their social action outside counselling room, etc. In other words, counselors’ claims or signals of LGBT-support do encourage lesbians to seek for help when needed and releases their alert to anti-LGBT religious beliefs. In sum, this research contributes to demonstrating the unique picture of lesbian clients in the counseling process, providing suggestions for counseling practitioners on how to work with their lesbian clients more effectively.</p> <p> </p>

The Availability of Sexual and Gender Minority (SGM) Specific Substance Use Services

Background: In 2007, Cochran, Peavy, and Robohm conducted a study of treatment programs that indicated that they provided specialized services for gay and lesbian clients; however, phone calls to these agencies revealed that over 90% of these agencies actually did not provide services that were discernibly different from the agencies’ general services. Objectives: Given the progress and development since 2007 regarding awareness of SGM (sexual and gender minority) rights and an increased understanding of the impact of health disparities on SGM individuals, the current study aimed to gain a renewed understanding of the state of SGM-specific substance treatment using a similar methodology. Results: agencies reporting that they provide SGMTitle specific services since 2007, fewer than 1 in 5 agencies who indicated offering SGM-specific treatment on the National Survey of Substance Abuse Treatment Services (N-SSAT S) survey actually provided such services (17.4%) in 2021. Conclusions/Importance: The current study reinforces the already observed need for specialized substance treatment services for the SGM population. Despite having hundreds more SGM-specific substance treatment services in existence today compared to 2007, our findings point to a strong need to address the discrepancies between self-reported and existing availabilities of SGM-specific services in substance treatment. Actions that can potentially close this gap might be two-fold: standardizing the definition of and criteria for SGM-specific services and increasing funding and resources that could expand the availability of such services, particularly in rural regions.

Working With Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Clients: Occupational Therapy Practitioners' Knowledge, Skills, and Attitudes.

A lack of health care provider knowledge and training has been identified as one factor that contributes to health disparities for sexual and gender minority (SGM) populations. To explore occupational therapy practitioners' self-reported knowledge about, clinical preparedness for, and attitudes toward working with lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) clients. Online survey of occupational therapy practitioners. Respondents were recruited by means of snowball sampling through social media groups, state occupational therapy association websites, and emails. Surveys were posted to electronic occupational therapy social media sites. Knowledge, clinical preparedness, and attitudes were measured using the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Development of Clinical Skills Scale (LGBT-DOCSS). Information about demographic characteristics, education, and workplace was also collected. Five hundred eighty-nine occupational therapy practitioners responded to the survey. Degree level (master's vs. bachelor's or less), continuing education (minimum 1-2 hr of LGBT-specific training), practice setting (mental health), minority sexual orientation, and having a close friend or family member who identifies as SGM were associated with higher mean scores on the LGBT-DOCSS. Higher religiosity and frequency of religious practice were associated with lower scores on knowledge and attitudinal awareness. Occupational therapy practitioners often care for clients from backgrounds and cultures that differ from their own. Identifying gaps in education and opportunities for fostering LGBT-positive attitudes can facilitate the development of programs to improve practice with LGBT clients and help measure the effectiveness of such programs. What This Article Adds: This study provides evidence that a basic level of continuing education can improve occupational therapy practitioners' knowledge of and skills for working with LGBT populations and highlights the need to examine and change structural biases.

Sports Journalism and Women Athletes: Coverage of Coming Out Stories by William P. Cassidy

Reviewed by: Sports Journalism and Women Athletes: Coverage of Coming Out Stories by William P. Cassidy Michael Tsai (bio) Sports Journalism and Women Athletes: Coverage of Coming Out Stories William P. Cassidy Palgrave Macmillan, 2019, ix + 127 pp. ISBN 9783030305253, $59.99 hardcover. Building on his incisive study of how journalists reported the coming out of two American male professional athletes (Sports Journalism and Coming Out Stories: Jason Collins and Michael Sam), William P. Cassidy has turned his attention to how the media covered the coming-out stories of prominent female athletes Billy Jean King, Sheryl Swoopes, and Brittney Griner in his latest book Sports Journalism and Women Athletes: Coverage of Coming Out Stories. Cassidy's 2017 examination of how American print media reacted to the public announcements by NBA veteran Jason Collins and Michael Sam (a standout collegiate defensive end drafted by the NFL's Los Angeles Rams) offered fresh insight into the breadth and depth of reporting and analysis devoted to the events over their initial thirty-day coverage cycles. In content analysis of some 248 print stories, the author found that, contrary to the perception of sports sections as the "toy departments" of daily newspapers, sports journalists dug deeper than presenting facts, reached beyond official sourcing, and addressed social issues outside the traditional boundaries of sports coverage. In the new book, Cassidy acknowledges previous analysis of media coverage of LGBTQ athletes from a perspective of cultural hegemony—thereby accounting for the vast disparity between overall coverage devoted to men's and women's sports as well as perceptions about the comparative impact and newsworthiness of male and female athlete coming-out stories—and expands the conversation utilizing the same media sociology approach he applied to his analyses of the Collins and Sam examples. [End Page 113] Cassidy's book is meticulously researched and firmly grounded in established theory and practice. In the first of four chapters, the author lays out the justification for his examination, citing the traditional lack of coverage of women's sports, the unique challenges faced by women in professional sports, and evolving media coverage of lesbian athletes. In King, Swoopes, and Griner, Cassidy selected three very distinct subjects whose coming-out stories effectively span the history of out lesbians in professional athletics. The chapter devotes the most space to explaining the unprecedented circumstances surrounding King's public disclosure that she had engaged in a years-long affair with hairstylist Marilyn Barnett, a response to a lawsuit Barnett had filed against King that revealed their relationship. As Cassidy notes, "When King was outed in 1981, it marked perhaps the first time journalists were forced to directly discuss lesbian athletes in sports" (2). The extended history lesson on King, which documents the range of positive and negative reactions and representations in the press and the issues they raised, establishes a baseline for the examination of Swoopes's more contrived and significantly less controversial coming out (via a 2005 story cowritten with LZ Granderson for ESPN's website and magazine), which coincided with her newly signed endorsement deal with Olivia, a travel company marketed to lesbian clients. While Swoopes's announcement received generally positive coverage, Cassidy observes that much of the reporting and commentary either questioned the significance of the story (given the widely held assumption that many female athletes are gay) or reframed the story as a set-up for the question, "How much harder would it be for a male athlete to come out?" By the time Griner came out eight years later, the reaction from the media seemed to be a collective shrug of indifference. While it is true that King, a pioneering feminist icon whose fame and popularity transcended her involvement in sports, and Swoopes, who ranks among the most dominant WNBA players of the generation next to Cynthia Cooper and Lisa Leslie, had higher profiles when they came out, the physically imposing Griner was a Wilt Chamberlain-like presence in college basketball and one of the few female basketball players to regularly garner highlights on ESPN's SportsCenter before becoming the overall No. 1 pick in the 2013 WNBA draft. The muted reaction was largely attributed to Griner's own understated...

OT Practitioners' Knowledge, Clinical Preparedness, and Attitudes for Working With Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Clients

Abstract Date Presented Accepted for AOTA INSPIRE 2021 but unable to be presented due to online event limitations. Practitioners were surveyed about knowledge, preparedness, and attitudes toward treating LGBT clients. Multivariate analysis was used to compare LGBT–Development of Clinical Skills Scale scores and characteristics of respondents (N = 558). Type of degree, setting, experience, religiosity, and hours of education contributed to significant differences in knowledge and preparedness, but not attitudes. Findings suggest even minimal practitioner education has potential for improving equity and inclusion for LGBT population. Primary Author and Speaker: Deborah J. Bolding Additional Authors and Speakers: Angela Acosta, Brigitte Butler, April Chau, Brenna Craig, and Fiona Dunbar

Challenging identities; lesbians, gay men, and psychoanalysis

Many psychotherapists across a range of modalities remain unaware that, from the late nineteenth and twentieth century on, lesbians and gay men were pathologized in classical psychoanalytic theories. For decades lesbians and gay men had been deemed ‘unfit’ to train as psychoanalytic practitioners due to failures in their early sexual development. In this article I describe the history of the challenges for lesbian and gay clients, applicants to training, trainees, and qualified psychotherapists in the UK from 1986. As emphasised by the French philosophers, Ricoeur and Doss, the work of remembering is vital if we are to prevent the repetition of failures from the past. It is important to recognise history is never linear and points of achievement are never stable; in the past four years, for example, homophobic hate crimes have trebled in the UK. I describe how lesbian and gay psychoanalytic psychotherapists, along with establishing counselling and psychotherapy services accessible to lesbians and gay men, organised conferences, spoke publicly, published, and demonstrated. Our challenges to heteronormative psychoanalytic theorising included an engagement with other disciplines such as fiction, biography, and poetry written by lesbians and gay men, post-colonial theorising, queer theory, and philosophical texts. Challenging universalising interpretations of the ‘causes’ of ‘homosexuality’ we emphasised the critical importance of attending to differences in individuals’ experiences of their sexualities and identities. In 2015 the crucial Memorandum of Understanding which protects the public through a commitment to end the practice of ‘conversion therapy’ was signed by twenty organisations (amended in 2017 to include gender), including psychoanalytic training organisations, and released at the Department of Health. This was widely welcomed after nearly thirty years of fighting for recognition of the effects of the pathologizing of lesbian and gay sexualities on people’ lives, including those of people who identify as heterosexual.

Examining how lesbian, gay, and bisexual Christian clients' perceptions of therapists' cultural humility contribute to psychotherapy outcomes.

Understanding the intersection between sexual and religious identity has important implications for mental health. The lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) community is at high risk for a wide range of psychopathologies, and religious culture can further these risks when it creates homophobic environments (Sherry et al., 2010). The present study examined lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) Christian clients' religious commitment and perceptions of their therapists' cultural humility in relation to the working alliance and therapeutic outcomes. A sample of 158 LGB Christians who were currently or had been in psychotherapy within the last year participated in the study. Perceptions of their therapists' cultural humility positively predicted therapeutic outcomes, and the working alliance partially mediated the relation between cultural humility and therapeutic outcomes. Contrary to predictions, religious commitment did not moderate the relation between cultural humility and working alliance. Implications are discussed, namely, that the results of this study join existing literature to potentially suggest a systemic shift in psychotherapy training that includes cultural humility. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Emotional abuse among Lesbian Italian women: Relationship consequences, help-seeking and disclosure behaviors

Objective The study aims to provide a preliminary examination of the psychometric properties of the Italian version of Multidimensional Measure of Emotional Abuse (MMEA) and aims to investigate consequences of emotional abuse for the relationship, help-seeking and disclosure behaviors, among a sample of lesbian women. Methods and participants One hundred and sixty-five lesbian volunteers filled in a self-report questionnaire including a measure of emotional abuse (MMEA) investigating the consequences of the abuse for the relationship and their disclosure and help-seeking behaviors. Results Structural equation modeling (SEM) confirmed the four-factor structure of the MMEA among the sample, and indicated MMEA as a valid tool to measure the phenomenon among Italian lesbian women. As for the consequences of the emotional abuse, most of the participants continued their relationship after the abuse and chose not to talk about the episodes to anyone. When opening up about the abuse, participants mainly reported it to close friends and psychologists and/or psychotherapists. These results have important clinical and policy implications as they provide some indications to be taken into account by mental health professionals and policymakers working with abused lesbian clients.

The Psychometric Properties of the Competency Assessment Tool for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Clients

ABSTRACT This study introduces a new instrument designed to assess affirmative clinical practices with sexual and gender minority (SGM) clients, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Competency Assessment Tool (LGBT-CAT). The LGBT-CAT has two unique qualities: Its design enables adaptation to measure practice competencies with gay, lesbian, bisexual and/or transgender clients, the latter of which has no existing measures regarding practice competencies, and it uses a qualitative collection method. Participants respond to 12 open-ended prompts; responses are then quantified by one or more raters based on a scoring rubric. In this cross-sectional study, practicing social workers (N = 357) were surveyed using the LGBT-CAT as well as measures of affirmative practices with SGM clients, knowledge, beliefs, self-efficacy skills, attitudes, and behaviors. The LGBT-CAT demonstrated good reliability, poor criterion validity, and adequate construct validity. These results support the potential integration of the LGBT-CAT into research on practice with SGM clients.

동성애자 내담자의 상담경험에 대한 질적 연구: 여성 동성애자를 중심으로

본 연구는 동성애자 내담자가 상담 장면에서 어떤 경험을 하는지를 심층적으로 이해하고자 하였다. 이를 위해 2회기 이상 기간 상담을 받은 동성애자 7명을 대상으로 비구조화된 심층 면접을 실시하였고, 그 자료를 Van Kaam의 현상학적 질적 분석 방법으로 분석하였다. 연구 결과, 동성애자에 대한 상담자의 태도를 인식함, 동성애자로서의 정체성 드러내기, 내담자로서 경험한 상담과정 및 결과, 동성애자 내담자에 대한 상담자의 전문성과 태도를 예측하고 확인하기의 4개 범주와 11개 주제, 25개 부주제가 도출되었다. 참여자는 자신의 성적 지향성이 자신의 정체성의 한 부분이라고 여기며, 상담 장면에서 있는 그대로의 자신을 보여주기 위해 상담자에게 ‘커밍아웃’ 하는 것이 필수적이라고 인식하고 있었다. 참여자들은 상담을 고려할 때, 상담자가 자신의 성적 지향성에 대해 수용적인 태도를 갖고, 자신의 고유한 경험을 이해해 주기를 기대하였다. 연구 결과를 토대로, 동성애자와의 상담 장면에서 효과적인 상담을 제공하기 위한 상담자 태도, 요인, 전문성 등을 탐색하고 시사점을 논의하였다.

Christian Pastors’ Perspectives and Insights on the Practice of Family Therapists Referring LGB Clients: Exploring the Role of Religion

This qualitative study explored Christian pastors’ perceptions and insights for family therapists who refuse to work with lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) clients by consistently referring them. Twenty-one pastors from diverse Christian traditions were interviewed. Thematic analysis identified the following themes related to the pastors’ perceptions of the practice of referring LGB clients: (1) Best Interest of the Client and Therapist, (2) Discriminatory Practice, and (3) No Referrals will be Provided. The following themes represent pastors’ advice for family therapists: (1) Develop a Well-Thought-Out Referral Plan; (2) Be Accountable for Your Own Beliefs; and (3) Engage in Conversations.

Examining mental health practitioners' perceptions of clients based on social class and sexual orientation.

There is negligible research exploring mental health clinicians' perceptions of clients based upon client social class and sexual orientation (McGarrity, 2014; Whitcomb & Walinsky, 2013). The purpose of this study was to examine how licensed mental health clinicians' perceptions of clients were influenced by a hypothetical client's social class and sexual orientation using a 2 (lower social class vs. higher social class) × 2 (lesbian vs. straight) quasi-experimental vignette-based design. Results from 257 practitioners demonstrated that the hypothetical client portrayed in the video was rated differently on levels of depression, anxiety, and flourishing, as well as job satisfaction and meaningful work. Participants who viewed the client portrayed as having a lower social class rated her as having more symptoms of depression and anxiety, as being less satisfied at work, as having lower levels of meaningful work, and as having lower levels of flourishing as compared with the participants who viewed the client portrayed as having a higher social class. Participants did not rate the hypothetical clients differently on symptoms of depression, anxiety, meaningful work, or job satisfaction based upon client sexual orientation. The lesbian client was rated as being significantly more attractive to work with and as having significantly higher levels of flourishing as compared to the straight clients. No interaction effects were demonstrated. Implications of these findings and directions for future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Supplemental Material for The Therapeutic Relationship Mediates the Association Between Affirmative Practice and Psychological Well-Being Among Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Queer Clients

Supplemental Material for The Therapeutic Relationship Mediates the Association Between Affirmative Practice and Psychological Well-Being Among Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Queer Clients

The Catalyst Factors of Counselor’s Competencies in Handling Gay and Lesbian Clients

The Catalyst Factors of Counselor’s Competencies in Handling Gay and Lesbian Clients

Should a Dramatherapist Disclose their Sexual Orientation to their Clients? Perhaps they should be Prepared To

This article discusses the proposition that a therapist should be prepared to ‘come out’ and disclose their sexual orientation to a client, irrespective of how they identify. This enquiry has been shaped by the author's experience as a newly qualified dramatherapist, as a lesbian and as a new author. In the absence of existing dramatherapy literature on the topic of Therapist Self-Disclosure (TSD) and Therapist Self-Disclosure of Sexual Orientation (TSDSO), research has been drawn from publications across psychological literature. The article particularly focuses on the use of verbal and, to a lesser extent, non-verbal TSDSO with lesbian, gay or bisexual (LGB) therapists and/or clients. ‘Analytical snapshots’ from the author's clinical experience, as a final-year dramatherapy trainee, and from the author's personal experience will be presented and considered to further the discussion around preparedness for self-disclosure. The article supports the view that a dramatherapist should be prepared to disclose their sexual orientation to a client if required; and that becoming prepared would require the use of personal therapy, training, clinical supervision and awareness of the therapeutic relationship, as well as awareness of supporting literature.

Exploring the relationships among practitioners’ consultation skills, competence to counsel lesbian, gay, and bisexual clients, and attitudes toward transgender people

Consultation is an intervention that can diffuse expertise in lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) issues throughout systems of care. Practitioners (N = 145) were surveyed on their lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) counseling competence, attitudes toward transgender people, and consultation skills. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis identified that consultation competence significantly influenced (p ≤ .01) LGB counseling skills over and above LGB knowledge and awareness, attitudes toward transgender people, and participant demographic characteristics. The domains of LGB competence and attitudes toward transgender people were also significantly correlated within the participant sample. Implications for practice, training, and future research are discussed.

Obstacles and Challenges in Counselling Gays and Lesbians in Malaysia

Counselling service is regarded as a fundamental service essential for the human beings to achieve their goals. As professionals, counsellors may face difficulties in addressing professional issues and ethical dilemmas in their professional practice to handle sexuality cases. This study is conducted to achieve the main objective of addressing counsellor’s obstacles and challenges in counselling gay and lesbian clients in Malaysia. In order to obtain the information, this study used in-depth interview method through a purposive sampling technique. The study involved eight study participants consisting registered counsellors that have conducted counselling sessions with gay and lesbian clients. The data were analysed by studying the transcription of recording interview and identifying the themes emerged based on the objective of the study. The findings demonstrated five emerging themes pertaining to the obstacles and challenges of counsellors in counselling gay and lesbian clients: (i) expertise limitation (ii) transparency issue, (iii) client’s referred issues, (iv) counsellor’s value and (v) the absence of reference model. The results of this study are expected to provide knowledge and understanding to all parties on gay and lesbian issues in Malaysia, thus helping counsellors to understand, be more prepared and improve counselling services in a better and competent way. In conclusion, such studies were further elaborated in detail on the specific way of handling and guiding gay and lesbian counselling to be a source of reference to other counsellors.

Perception of Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Clients on Determinants of Participation in Counseling

Perception of Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Clients on Determinants of Participation in Counseling

Mental Health Clinicians' Perceived Competence for Affirmative Practice with Bisexual Clients in Comparison to Lesbian and Gay Clients

ABSTRACTThere is limited research on working affirmatively with bisexual clients in psychotherapy. The present study contrasted mental health clinicians' perceived affirmative counseling competence with bisexual clients to lesbian and gay (LG) clients. A sample of 312 heterosexual-identified mental health clinicians was recruited via an Internet-based survey. Participants were randomly assigned to either receive measures that referred to LG clients only or bisexual clients only. Path modeling was used to test whether LG group participants would report greater affirmative counseling knowledge, skills, and attitudes competencies compared to those in the bisexual group. Participants assigned to the bisexual client condition group reported less perceived affirmative counseling skills and knowledge but not attitudes compared to participants assigned to the LG client group. Implications, including the need for greater representation of bisexuality in psychotherapy education, training, and research, are discussed.