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APA Psychotherapy Training Videos are intended solely for educational purposes for mental health professionals. Viewers are expected to treat confidential material found herein according to strict professional guidelines. Unauthorized viewing is prohibited.
In Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Clients, Dr. Ruperto M. Perez demonstrates and discusses his approach to working with lesbian, gay, or bisexual individuals. Therapy and counseling with this population is similar in many ways to working with members of the heterosexual population, except that the therapist must keep in mind issues of homophobia, the coming out process, and the multiple social roles that lesbian, gay, or bisexual clients may play.
In this session, Dr. Perez illustrates his affirmative approach to therapy with a client named Denise, a woman who in the past year has divorced her husband of 26 years, come out to friends and family as a lesbian, and entered a new relationship with a woman. Dr. Perez works with Denise on the complications of having a fuller relationship with her partner while acknowledging the needs of her children as well as her fears of coming out at work and in the broader community.
Affirming therapy with gay, lesbian, and bisexual clients involves acknowledging where a client stands in his or her development and encouraging healthy growth. Affirming does not simply mean acceptance—challenging the client may be part of the therapy—but is rather a validation of the client's experiences and lesbian, gay, or bisexual identity.
Read more about the approach
is assistant director for clinical services and clinical assistant professor at the University of Florida Counseling Center. Dr. Perez received his PhD in counseling psychology from the University of Missouri—Columbia. He served as counseling services coordinator and internship training director at the University of Georgia from 1993–2002 as well as adjunct assistant professor.
Read more about Dr. Perez
- American Psychological Association (2000). Guidelines for psychotherapy with lesbian, gay,and bisexual clients. American Psychologist, 55, 1440–1151.
- Bieschke, K. J, Perez, R. M., & DeBord, K. A. (Eds.). (in press). Handbook of counseling and psychotherapy with lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender clients (2nd ed.). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
- Croteau, J. M., Bieschke, K. J., Phillips, J. C., & Lark, J. S. (1998). Moving beyond pioneering: Empirical and theoretical perspectives on lesbian, gay, and affirmative training. The Counseling Psychologist, 26, 707–711.
- Croteau, J. M., Lark, J. S., Lidderdale, M. A., & Chung. Y. B. (2005). Deconstructing heterosexism in the counseling professions: A narrative approach. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
- Fassinger, R. E. (2000). Gender and sexuality in human development: Implications for prevention and advocacy in counseling psychology. In S. D. Brown & R. W. Lent (Eds.), Handbook of counseling psychology (3rd ed., pp. 346–378). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.
- Firestein, B. A. (1996). Bisexuality: The psychology and politics of an invisible minority. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
- Garnets, L. D. (2002). Sexual orientations in perspective. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 8 (2), 115-129.
- Pachankis, J. E., & Goldfried, M. R. (2004). Clinical issues in working with lesbian, gay, and bisexual clients. Psychotherapy: Theory, Research, Practice, Training, 41, 227–246.
- Perez, R. M., DeBord, K. A., & Bieschke, K. J. (Eds.). (2000). Handbook of counseling and psychotherapy with lesbian, gay, and bisexual clients. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
- Handbook of Counseling and Psychotherapy with Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Clients, Second Edition
Edited by Kathleen J. Bieschke, Ruperto M. Perez, and Kurt A. Debord
- HIV+ Sex: The Psychological and Interpersonal Dynamics of HIV-Seropositive Gay and Bisexual Men's Relationships
Edited by Perry N. Halkitis, Cynthia A. Gomez, and Richard J. Wolitski
- Mom, Dad. I'm Gay. How Families Negotiate Coming Out
Ritch C. Savin-Williams
- Sexual Orientation and Mental Health: Examining Identity and Development in Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual People
Edited by Allen M. Omoto and Howard S. Kurtzman
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