It is impossible to grow up in a culture in which heterosexist, homophobic, and transphobic messages are prevalent and not be impacted by such messages. Therefore, it is no wonder that most parents experience some degree of shame, fear, and loss upon learning that their own child is same-sex oriented or gender non-conforming. While most parents become more accepting, or at least more tolerant, over time, others remain partially or fully rejecting even years after learning of their child's identity. Ongoing parental criticism, invalidation, and rejection of one's sexual or gender identity can take a profound psychological toll and could lead to internalized homophobia, expectations for future gay-related rejection by others, depression, and other negative impacts. In contrast, parental acceptance is associated with lower rates of suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts, higher self-esteem, higher levels of perceived social support, lower levels of psychological symptoms, and better general health. This book describes the process of conducting attachment-based family therapy for sexual and gender minority young adults and their non-accepting parents. ABFT-SGM is designed to help reduce parental rejection, facilitate parental acceptance, and ultimately, promote safe, mutually respectful, closer, validating, loving, and meaningful relationships between LGBT+ young adults and their parents.
Gary Diamond, PhD, is a professor and chair of the Department of Psychology at Ben-Gurion University. He is a licensed clinical psychologist and family therapist, and one of the primary developers of Attachment-Based Family Therapy. Dr. Diamond's research examines change mechanisms in family-based treatments, including the role of emotional processing, the therapeutic alliance, and changes in parental behaviors. His primary focus today is on developing family-based treatments for sexual minority individuals and their non-accepting parents. He conducts trainings around the world on ABFT. Dr. Diamond is a certified trainer for all levels of training and a certified supervisor. Rotem Boruchovitz-Zamir, MA, is a clinical psychology intern and PhD candidate in the Ben-Gurion University Psychotherapy Research Lab. She holds a BA in psychology from the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya and an MA in clinical psychology from Ben-Gurion University. She has clinical experience working with children and their parents and also with adults of various ages. During the past 3 years, she has served as a therapist in a clinical-research project involving the treatment of LGBT young adults and their parents. Her PhD examines parents' in-session processes and their effect on their relationships with their young adult and their young adult's welfare.
Chapter 1: Introduction Chapter 2: Empirical Base of ABFT-SGM Chapter 3: Establishing relationship-building as the shared goal of therapy Chapter 4: Alliance building with the young adult Chapter 5: Alliance building with parents Chapter 6: The Attachment Task Chapter 7: Consolidating gains and planning for the future Chapter 8: Special clinical issues
