"Ex-Gays? A Longitudinal Study of Religiously Mediated Change in Sexual Orientation"
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Sexual Orientation"
Westmont, IL -- In September, InterVarsity Press will publish the
results of a longitudinal study conducted by researchers Stanton L.
Jones (Wheaton College) and Mark A. Yarhouse (Regent University). Ex-
Gays? A Longitudinal Study of Religiously Mediated Change in Sexual
Orientation directly addresses two of the most contentious and
disputed questions of our day-Is change of sexual orientation
possible? and Is the attempt to change harmful?-and the findings of
the study appear to contradict the commonly expressed views of the
mental health establishment. InterVarsity Press will hold a press
conference at the American Association of Christian Counselors (AACC)
World Conference on September 13, 2007, in Nashville, Tennessee, to
announce the results of this study.
In a joint statement, Jones and Yarhouse explain the reasoning for
their research: "We are evangelical Christians committed to the truth-
seeking activity of science. In conducting and reporting this study,
we took seriously the words of one of our heroes, C. S. Lewis, who
said that science produced by Christian persons would have to be
'perfectly honest. Science twisted in the interests of apologetics
would be sin and folly.' "
Stanton Jones is provost and professor of psychology at Wheaton
College in Wheaton, Illinois. He is a member of the American
Psychological Association and served on the Council of
Representatives, the central governing body of the APA, representing
the Psychology of Religion division from 1999-2001. He has published
many other professional and popular articles and books, including
Modern Psychotherapies, coauthored with Richard E. Butman.
Mark Yarhouse is professor of psychology and director of the Institute
for the Study of Sexual Identity (www.sexualidentityinstitute.org) at
Regent University in Virginia Beach, Virginia, where he has taught
since 1998. He has written extensively for professional publications
and has authored several books, including Modern Psychopathologies,
coauthored with Richard E. Butman and Barrett W. McRay, and Sexual
Identity Synthesis, coauthored with Erica S. N. Tan.
The InterVarsity Press book, scheduled to be published in September
2007, is the most scientifically rigorous study of its kind to date,
and uses multiple measures regarded as "industry standards." Knowing
their results would generate controversy, Jones and Yarhouse have
thoroughly described the rationale for their procedures. George A.
Rekers, Professor of Neuropsychiatry and Behavioral Science Emeritus
at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine, states that
the study "meets the high research standards set by the American
Psychological Association that individuals be validly assessed,
followed and reported over time with a prospective, longitudinal
outcome research design." The study will set the standard for all
future work in this field and demands a serious reading from social
scientists. Publisher Bob Fryling comments, "In a highly politicized
environment, this book is another 'inconvenient truth' of scientific
research data countering prejudice and ignorance."
Founded in 1947 as an extension of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship/
USA, InterVarsity Press serves those in the university, the church and
the world by publishing thoughtful Christian books that equip and
encourage people to follow Jesus as Savior and Lord in all of life.