Study: Sexual Orientation Change Effort, aka ‘Conversion Therapy,’ Reduces Suicidal Behavior

And other dispatches from the front lines of the Sexual Revolution

By The Ruth Institute Published on February 16, 2022

Legislation is pending to ban so-called “conversion therapy” in the United Kingdom. A study by Fr. Paul Sullins, Ph.D., Senior Research Associate at the Ruth Institute, shows that Sexual Orientation Change Effort (SOCE) therapy does no harm, contrary to what is widely claimed. SOCE is consistently misnamed “conversion therapy” by its opponents. 

Fr. Sullins explained: “The journal Frontiers in Psychology published my latest study, which compares LGB persons who have undergone SOCE with those who haven’t and finds no difference between the two groups for multiple measures of behavioral harm, including suicidal morbidity, psychological distress, self-harm, and substance abuse.”

“The conclusion of my study contradicts a large number of studies that report substantial harm following SOCE, particularly increased suicidal behavior. But only four such studies used a representative (or random) sample, and all four failed to distinguish suicidal behavior before SOCE from that following it.”

“I found that suicidal behavior is much higher before SOCE (perhaps prompting the recourse to therapy) but not afterward. In fact, suicide attempts are significantly reduced following SOCE. This is the opposite of what is widely claimed.”

“For at least two of the four representative sample studies, the failure to account for pre-existing distress is not inadvertent, but intentional, by scholars who maintain that even prior distress invalidates SOCE. This backwards logic may bring about the very harm such scholars and advocates say they want to prevent.”

“It would be a perverse policy indeed, for example, for heart surgery to be discouraged or even banned because those undergoing it experienced higher rates of cardiac dysfunction than the general population before the surgery.”

Sullins concluded: “Concerns to restrict or ban SOCE due to elevated harm are unfounded.”

“Moreover,” Dr. Jennifer Roback Morse, President of The Ruth Institute, added, “such a law would limit patients’ freedom to get the therapy they consider best suited to their needs.”

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“The ‘scientific consensus’ on SOCE is that talk therapy attempting to reorder patterns of sexual desire is intrinsically harmful and should be banned to protect the public. Fr. Sullins’ study is an important corrective to this narrative. In fact, his work strongly suggests that some of the material other scholars have published can be safely dismissed as ‘junk science.’”

“This is how the Sexual Revolutionaries have routinely operated: commission advocacy research to make a point, spread that work far and wide, marginalize any scholar who provides contrary evidence, and then declare that there’s a ‘scientific consensus.’ We are not going to let this latest episode pass unchallenged,” Morse said.

Other notable findings from Fr. Sullins’ study include:

The SOCE participants experienced higher minority stress, negative childhood conditions, and lower socioeconomic status, all of which predict higher harm or lower well-being; yet, following SOCE, their level of harm was no higher than their peers who had not experienced these conditions. Thus, undergoing SOCE may very well alleviate or protect against harm from other causes.

Previous studies have reported lower suicidality following SOCE for those who also reported reduced same-sex attraction or behavior, i.e. they “converted” at least somewhat, but higher suicidality for those who did not. This is the first study to find no harm for persons who underwent SOCE yet remained strongly LGB in identity, behavior and attraction.   

Fr. Sullins’ study, “Absence of Behavioral Harm Following Non-efficacious Sexual Orientation Change Efforts: A Retrospective Study of United States Sexual Minority Adults, 2016–2018” is available to read or download.

Deceptive Drag Queen Gets Dept. of Energy Job

“That’s quite a valentine the Biden administration is sending America,” said Ruth Institute President Dr. Jennifer Roback Morse, Ph.D., of the appointment of Sam Brinton to Deputy Assistant Secretary of Spent Fuel and Waste Disposition in the Department of Energy’s Office for Nuclear Energy.

Brinton, an LGBTQ activist heavily into “sexual role playing,” and an outspoken opponent of what’s called “conversion therapy,” has already been found to be highly deceptive.

Brinton has testified around the world that he was tortured during “conversion therapy,” yet his stories show numerous inconsistencies.

Susan Constantine, a body language expert and founder of the Human Behavior Lab, testifies regularly at trials on whether a witness shows signs of deception based on speech patterns and other body language clues. At the Ruth Institute’s 2021 Summit for Survivors of the Sexual Revolution, Constantine explained how she and her team analyzed Brinton’s speeches using a three-pronged test: statement analysis, voice stress analysis, and behavioral analysis. They concluded that Brinton showed numerous signs of being “highly deceptive.”

This analysis casts serious doubt on his story of torture with needles, shock therapy, blocks of ice, and heated coils. Yet, his testimony has been used as the basis for banning talk therapy for Sexual Orientation Change Efforts, which is the correct name for what LGBTQ activists call “conversion therapy.”

In her behavioral analysis, (starting around 6 minutes) Constantine notes Brinton’s “duping delight,” which is when a person takes pleasure in successfully deceiving someone.

Morse said, “In my opinion, Mr. Brinton should not be entrusted with matters relating to nuclear waste disposal, or any other serious issue.”

Brinton is also a member of the intentionally offensive Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, using the name “Sister Ray Dee O’Active.” He also indulges in “puppy play,” in which he’s the “handler” for grown men dressed as dogs.

“Sam Brinton is an appointee who is involved in bizarre sexual role playing with men who pretend to be animals, and who, as an advocate for a controversial cause, has very likely engaged in numerous acts of deception,” Morse said. “Can you imagine what it would be like for the staff forced to work for him? The Biden administration is literally going to the dogs.”

“I suggest President Biden reconsider this wildly inappropriate addition to his administration.”

“Black Lives Matter Doesn’t Care about Black People”

The Ruth Institute’s Annual Awards Dinner and Summit for Survivors of the Sexual Revolution featured Rev. Walter and Lori Hoye. Learn why Walter, an African American pastor, was arrested for sidewalk counseling in Oakland, California. He wasn’t breaking the law, until the clinic’s leaders pressured the city to pass a new law to get Rev. Hoye thrown in jail. Thanks to a corrupt legal system, they succeeded.

Hear Lori explain why Black Lives Matter is not an organization that cares about black people. “They care about the 19 black men who were killed by white officers, so they can sue the city and line their pockets,” Lori says, plus much more.

Listen as Rev. Hoye explains the No. 1 reason black pastors won’t speak against abortion from the pulpit. And if you’re interested in counseling the post-abortive, you’ll find out how to do so effectively from the Hoyes’ personal experience.

Plus, if you’re a basketball fan, you’ll want to hear why the Hoyes are friends with many members of the NBA!

The Deterioration of the Black Family

In our continuing celebration of Black History Month, the latest Dr. J Show features Rev. Arnold Culbreath, founder of Protecting Black Life, and a member of the Douglass Leadership Institute, whose main missions are to: strengthen the black family, support criminal justice reform and secure educational and economic opportunities for African Americans.

Learn about the “Truth Booths” he staffs at health fairs to alert people to the reality of Planned Parenthood’s ongoing “Negro Project” — Margaret Sanger’s eugenics policy to exterminate blacks. Nearly 80% of abortion clinics are in minority communities, Culbreath reports. “We’re working hard at Douglass Leadership Institute to reverse the curse of Margaret Sanger.”

Watch to learn more about PP’s insidious tactics against the black family, as well as Rev. Culbreath’s advice to the white community as to how best to help African Americans. 

 

The Ruth Institute is a global non-profit organization, leading an international interfaith coalition to defend the family and build a civilization of love. The Ruth Institute’s Founder and President, Dr. Jennifer Roback Morse, is the author of The Sexual State: How Elite Ideologies Are Destroying Lives and Love and Economics: It Takes a Family to Raise a Village. Subscribe to our newsletter and YouTube channel to get all our latest news.

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