Alignment Surgery
Please no plagiarism and make sure you are able to access all resources on your own before you bid. Main references come from Murray, C., Pope, A., & Willis, B. (2017) and/or American Psychological Association (2014). Assignments should adhere to graduate-level writing and be free from writing errors. Please follow the instructions to get full credit. I need this completed by 04/11/2020 at 6pm.
Assignment – Week 7
Alignment Surgery
For this week’s Assignment, you are to consider the needs of clients who are transitioning. Specifically, you are to focus on what affirmative counseling might look like considering three potential phases of transitioning: Social transition, HRT, and Gender Alignment Surgery. To prepare for this Assignment, consider potential challenges a client might face. Then consider counseling strategies that could be used to address these challenges.
The Assignment (2- to 3-page paper):
For each of the three potential phases of transitioning:
• Explain two challenges a client might face.
• Explain two strategies a counselor might use to address each challenge.
Support your Assignment with specific references to all resources used in its preparation. You are to provide a reference list for all resources, including those in the Learning Resources for this course.
Required Resources
• Course Text: Murray, C., Pope, A., & Willis, B. (2017). Sexuality counseling: Theory, research, and practice. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage
• Chapter 7, “Gender Identity and Affectional Sexual Orientation”
• Article: ALGBTIC (2018). ALGBTIC Competencies for counseling LGBQQIA Clients and ALGBTIC Competencies for counseling Transgender Clients. Retrieved from http://www.algbtic.org/competencies.html
• Article: Baiocco, R., Fontanesi, L., Santamaria, F., Ioverno, S., Marasco, B., Baumgartner, E., Willoughby, B. L., and Laghi, F. (2015). Negative Parental Responses to Coming Out and Family Functioning in a Sample of Lesbian and Gay Young Adults. Journal of Child and family studies 24(5), 1490–1500. Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.
• Article: Collazo, A., Austin, A., &Craig, S.L. (2013). Facilitating Transition Among Transgender Clients: Components of Effective Clinical Practice. Clinical Social Work Journal, 41: 228-237.
• Article: D’amico, E., Julien, D., Tremblay, N., & Chartrand, E. (2015). Gay, lesbian, and bisexual youths coming out to their parents: Parental reactions and youths’ outcomes. Journal of GLBT Family Studies, 11(5), 411–437. Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.
• Article: Ehrensaft, D. (2014). Found in Transition: Our Littlest Transgender People. Contemporary Psychoanalysis, (50)4: 571-592.
• Article: Goldfried, M. R., & Goldfried, A. P. (2001). The importance of parental support in the lives of gay, lesbian, and bisexual individuals. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 57(5), 681–693. Retrieved from the Walden Library using the Academic Search Complete database.
• Article: Russell, S. T., & Fish, J. N. (2016). Mental Health in Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Youth. ANNUAL REVIEW OF CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY, VOL 12, 12, 465–487. Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.
• Article: Sherer I. Social Transition: Supporting Our Youngest Transgender Children. Pediatrics. 2016;137(3):e20154358
• Article: Snapp, S. D., Watson, R. J., Russell, S. T., Diaz, R. M., & Ryan, C. (2015). Social Support Networks for LGBT Young Adults: Low-Cost Strategies for Positive Adjustment. Family Relations, (3), 420. Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.
Media
• Video: Laureate Education, Inc. (2011). Coming out stories. Baltimore, MD: Author.
Note: The approximate length of this media piece is 43 minutes.
Accessible player
ORIGINAL PAPER
Negative Parental Responses to Coming Out and Family Functioning in a Sample of Lesbian and Gay Young Adults
Roberto Baiocco • Lilybeth Fontanesi • Federica Santamaria • Salvatore Ioverno •
Barbara Marasco • Emma Baumgartner • Brian L. B. Willoughby •
Fiorenzo Laghi
Published online: 27 March 2014
� Springer Science+Business Media New York 2014
Abstract Parental responses to youths’ coming out (CO)
are crucial to the subsequent adjustment of children and
family. The present study investigated the negative
parental reaction to the disclosure of same-sex attraction
and the differences between maternal and paternal
responses, as reported by their homosexual daughters and
sons. Participants’ perceptions of their parents’ reactions
(evaluated through the Perceived Parental Reactions Scale,
PPRS), age at CO, gender, parental political orientation,
and religiosity involvement, the family functioning
(assessed through the Family Adaptability and Cohesion
Evaluation Scales), were assessed in 164 Italian gay and
lesbian young adults. Pearson correlation coefficients were
calculated to assess the relation between family functioning
and parental reaction to CO. The paired sample t test was
used to compare mothers and fathers’ scores on the PPRS.
Hierarchical multiple regression was conducted to analyze
the relevance of each variable. No differences were found
between mothers and fathers in their reaction to the dis-
closure. The analysis showed that a negative reaction to
CO was predicted by parents’ right-wing political conser-
vatism, strong religious beliefs, and higher scores in the
scales Rigid and Enmeshed. Findings confirm that a neg-
ative parental reaction is the result of poor family resources
to face a stressful situation and a strong belief in traditional
values. These results have important implications in both
clinical and social fields.
Keywords Coming out � Disclosure � Lesbian and gay young adults � Parental reactions � Family functioning
Introduction
The coming-out (CO) process, defined as the sharing of
one’s sexual orientation with others, has been described as
an essential component in lesbian and gay (LG) identity
formation and integration (Cass 1979; Legate et al. 2012).
Identity integration includes acceptance of one’s gay, les-
bian, or bisexual identity, and sharing this aspect of the self
with other individuals. Previous researches have indicated
that CO process may have positive effects on relationships
with others (e.g., improving authenticity of a friendship),
the construction of self-identity, and mental health (e.g.,
decreased hypervigilance/anxiety) (Baiocco et al. 2012;
Shilo and Savaya 2011; Vaughan and Waehler 2010).
Erikson’s model of sexual identity development (1959,
1982) posits that certain stages and ‘‘tasks’’ must be nav-
igated successfully to form a healthy personality. These
eight steps go through the implementation of tasks con-
cerning trust, differentiation, autonomy and the manage-
ment of doubts, fear and conflict, inside the family and the
society (Erikson 1982). According to this point of view,
CO can be assimilated into a developmental task. For LG
adolescents, this process may be growth-enhancing event
and is highly important to developing an integrated identity
and for strengthening self-esteem (Henry 2013). Such
R. Baiocco (&) � L. Fontanesi � S. Ioverno � B. Marasco � E. Baumgartner � F. Laghi Department of Developmental and Social Psychology, Faculty of
Medicine and Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome,
Italy
e-mail: roberto.baiocco@uniroma1.it
F. Santamaria
Department of Psychology, Faculty of Education, University of
Messina, Messina, Italy
B. L. B. Willoughby
Department of Psychology, University of Miami, Coral Gables,
FL, USA
123
J Child Fam Stud (2015) 24:1490–1500
DOI 10.1007/s10826-014-9954-z
experiences of growth may provide sexual minorities with
important strengths that can be used to effectively manage
stress related to their minority status (Lingiardi et al. 2012;
Meyer 1995, 2003). However, despite the potential benefits
of CO, there are also associated stressors, which can have a
deleterious impact on physical and psychological health
(Frost et al. 2013). These stressors can include family
rejection, bullying, discrimination and prejudices (Frost
et al. 2013; Guzzo et al. 2014). The CO process may also
place significant strain on family relationships, cause inter-
parental conflict, and exacerbate parent mental health
issues (e.g., Willoughby et al. 2008). Given this, a strong
and cohesive family, displaying adequate resources to
manage stressful situations, may provide a supportive
environment for the LG adolescent who decides to come
out. The majority of LG young people often do not have
access to positive models (i.e., parents often do not share
the same sexual orientation) and their families may reject
their sexual orientation (Bos et al. 2004). In the American
context, research indicate that as many as 52 % of parents
may initially react negatively to their child’s disclosure of
same sex attractions (D’augelli et al. 2008). The negative
consequences of rejecting reactions from parents range
from depression (Legate et al. 2012), negative LG identity
(Willoughby et al. 2010), and substance abuse (Baiocco
et al. 2010) to, in some extreme cases, suicide (Ryan et al.
2009). On the other hand, a supportive and positive family
environment is associated with positive young adult health
outcomes, such as low level of internalized sexual stigma,
depression and suicidal idealization, and high level of
social support and self-esteem (Baiocco et al. 2012;
D’Augelli and Grossman 2001; Hoffman et al. 2009; Lo
Cascio et al. 2013; Pace et al. 2012; Resnick et al. 1997;
Russell 2003; Ryan et al. 2010).
Italy, where the present study was conducted, is a
family-oriented society in which adolescents and young
adults are more extensively involved with their extended
families than members of other Western societies (Baiocco
et al. 2013; Pallini and Laghi 2012). LG men in Italy fre-
quently confront a roster of biases and prejudices and a
greater level of gender segregation in their daily lives
(Lingiardi et al. 2012). Previous studies in Italy, in…
