You are here

Deconstructing Heterosexism in the Counseling Professions
Share

Deconstructing Heterosexism in the Counseling Professions
A Narrative Approach



August 2004 | 288 pages | SAGE Publications, Inc

Until recently, the lives and issues of Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual (LGB) people have been rendered largely invisible in the larger society and in the counseling professions. LGB-affirmative counseling professionals are no longer without voice; however, the stories of navigating sexual orientation as counseling professionals have not be told or explored in any systematic way.  Deconstructing Heterosexism in the Counseling Professions uses the personal narratives of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and heterosexual counseling psychologists and counselor educators to deconstruct the heterosexist discourse in the counseling professions, envision a discourse of sexual orientation equity, and make practical suggestions for addressing sexual orientation in professional life. The narrative approach encompasses a diversity of stories and experiences including an emphasis on racial and cultural contexts. These narratives and their analyses serve as a means for the individual and collective self examination that is needed to move LGB affirmative practice, training, and scholarship from the margins to the center of what it means to be a counseling professional.

Key Features:

• Rather than a focus on "how to", the focus is on stimulating collective and individual self examination and providing empowerment and guidance to counseling professions in navigating sexual orientation in one's professional life.

• This book exposes and challenges the heterosexist discourse in the counseling professions AND examines how to build the strength and complexity of the current LGB affirmative counter discourse in the counseling professions.

 • The chapters in the second section of the book provide unique treatments of difficult issues for counseling professionals concerning sexual orientation:  tensions between race and sexual orientation, and issues around openness versus other ways to manage a minority sexual identity.

• The book is authored by over 30 counseling professionals and contains narratives about the experiences of over 20 professionals, many of whom are well-known in the LGB affirmative counseling and in the larger fields of counseling psychology and counselor education. 

Deconstructing Heterosexism in the Counseling Professions will be essential reading for graduate students, practitioners, and faculty who are interested in issues of sexual orientation and are in counseling psychology and/or the many sub-specialties of counseling. It will also be of interest to counseling professionals whose primary interest may lie in other issues of diversity, particularly the multicultural and feminist professional communities.


Paul B. Pedersen
Foreword
 
Preface
 
Acknowledgments
James M. Croteau, Julianne S. Lark, Teresa S. Lance
1. Our Stories Will Be Told: Deconstructing the Heterosexist Discourse in the Counseling Professions
 
Section 1: Narrative Voices
Eve M. Adams
2. Moving From Random Acts of Inclusion Toward LGB-Affirmative Institutions
Alan D. Berkowitz
3. Coming Out to My Homophobia and Heterosexism: Lessons Learned in the Journey of an Ally
Sharon L. Bowman
4. Over the Rainbow: My Experiences as an Ally
Maria D. Carrubba
5. Invisibility, Alienation, and Misperceptions: The Experience of Being Bisexual
Kin-Ming Chan
6. Transforming Heterosexism: Starting From Myself
Stuart F. Chen-Hayes
7. Challenging Multiple Oppressions in Counselor Education
Louise A. Douce
8. Coming Out on the Wave of Feminism, Coming to Age on the Ocean of Multiculturalism
Sari H. Dworkin
9. Jewish, Bisexual, Feminist in a Christian Heterosexual World: Oy Vey!
Susanna M. Gallor
10. Becoming Visible: A Balance of Challenge and Support
Jane Goodman
11. From Naïf to Activist: Personal Reflections of an Ally
Phillip D. Johnson
12. We Are All Men and We Need Each Other Too
Michael Mobley, Stacey M. Pearson
13. Blessed Be the Ties That Bind
John M. O'Brien
14. Sexual Orientation, Shame, and Silence: Reflections on Graduate Training
Theresa M. O'Halloran
15. The Evolution of Responsibility: Developing as an Ally
Ruperto M. Perez
16. Through Racism and Homophobia: An Ally's Journey
Julia C. Phillips
17. Being Bisexual in the Counseling Professions: Deconstructing Heterosexism
Mark Pope
18. Crashing Through the "Lavender Ceiling" in the Leadership of the Counseling Professions
Jennipher Wiebold
19. Fluidity in the Disclosure and Salience of My Identities
 
Section II: Narrative Perspectives on Special Issues
Mary A. Fukuyama, Marie L. Miville, Jamie R. Funderburk
20. Untold Stories: Voices From the "Closet" of Counseling Professionals
James M. Croteau, Madonna G. Constantine
21. Race and Sexual Orientation in Multicultural Counseling: Navigating Rough Waters
 
Section III: Deconstructing, Envisioning, and Making Practical Suggestions
Kathleen J. Bieschke, James M. Croteau, Julianne S. Lark, Beverly J. Vandiver
22. Toward a Discourse of Sexual Orientation Equity in the Counseling Professions
Y. Barry Chung, Catherine J. Brack
23. Those Who Care, Teach: Toward Sexual Orientation Equity in Academic and Clinical Training
Melissa A. Lidderdale, Julianne S. Lark, Joy S. Whitman
24. Drawing From the Collective Wisdom of LGB-Affirmative Counseling Professionals: Reflections on Affect, Relationships, and Power
 
Index
 
About the Editors
 
About the Contributors
Key features
  • This book is not a "how to" book about counseling or therapy on sexual orientation issues.  There are other such books, this one is unique.
  • Rather than a focus on "how to", the focus is on stimulating collective and individual self -examination and providing empowerment and guidance to counseling professions in navigating sexual orientation in one's professional life.
  • This book uniquely exposes and challenges the current heterosexist discourse in the counseling professions AND examines how to build the strength and complexity of the current LGB affirmative counter discourse in the counseling professions.
  • Until recently, LGB lives and issues have been rendered invisible in the larger society and in the counseling professions. LGB-affirmative counseling professionals are no longer without voice in professional circles, however, the stories of navigating sexual orientation as counseling professionals have not be told or explored in any systematic way before this book.  We believe that by experiencing the lived stories and their analyses in the book, this narrative approach will provide counseling professionals with a deeper emotional appreciation, and a clearer understanding, of the quality and extent of both heterosexism and LGB affirmation in the counseling professions.
  • The chapters in the second section of the book provide unique treatments of difficult issues for counseling professionals concerning sexual orientation:  tensions between race and sexual orientation, and issues around openness versus other ways to manage a minority sexual identity. On a practical level, the book is authored by over 30 counseling professional and contains narratives about the experiences of over 20 professionals, many of whom are fairly well-know in the LGB affirmative counseling and in the larger fields of counseling psychology and counselor education. We think that a major appeal of the book may be that counseling professionals will want to know the stories of these leaders about how they have experienced sexual orientation issues in their professional lives.  

For instructors

Select a Purchasing Option


Rent or Buy eBook
ISBN: 9781452236513

Hardcover
ISBN: 9780761929819
$179.00

Paperback
ISBN: 9780761929826
$129.00

This title is also available on SAGE Knowledge, the ultimate social sciences online library. If your library doesn’t have access, ask your librarian to start a trial.