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NARTH Statement on Sexual Orientation Change Approved by the NARTH Board of Directors on January 25, 2012
Current discussions of sexual orientation change among homosexuals are unavoidably occurring within a sociopolitical climate that makes nonpartisan scientific inquiry of this subject very difficult. In light of this reality, a few considerations are crucial for accurately understanding the sometimes contradictory opinions regarding the possibility of sexual orientation change.
First and foremost, it is important to recognize that how change is conceptualized has vast implications for our thinking about change. Some of the more ardent proponents and opponents of sexual orientation change among homosexuals may view change in strictly categorical terms, where change is an all-or-nothing experience. Proponents and opponents of this view differ only in the direction of their desired outcome. Proponents of change understood in categorical terms may view homosexual sexual orientation as a lifestyle choice that merely needs to be renounced. Opponents who take this viewpoint, on the other hand, may conceive of sexual orientation as something that is hard-wired and simply not modifiable. NARTH does not support either of these perspectives.
NARTH believes that much of the expressed pessimism regarding sexual orientation change is a consequence of individuals intentionally...