Relate to Others with Confidence: A Guidebook for LGBTQIA+ People and Those with a Different Label or No Label (Diverse Sexualities, Genders, and Relationships)

This guidebook is designed to increase readers’ social resilience, assertiveness, and competence in responding to minority stress. Readers will understand how to embody a compassionate power in relationships when confronted by discrimination, rejection, and conflicts. We hope these ideas and skills help readers empower themselves and others to live more authentically and positively with differences. We highlight the need for community building and a safe, collaborative, and peaceful coexistence with our diverse pluralistic cultures.

The LGBTQIA+ Peacemaking Book Project offers two guidebooks, Feel Secure in Yourself and Relate to Others with Confidence, published by Rowman & Littlefield, and twelve e-resources self-published by each set of chapter coauthors. Each chapter has 4-15 coauthors, with differing and sometimes politically opposing viewpoints, who contributed their ideas and skills regarding the chapter topic. Over 120 scholars, clinicians, and/or community leaders contributed to this project. Their reason for this collaboration was to find common ground, reduce prejudice, and improve LGBTQIA+ health and self-development for a wide range of readers.

These resources are written for the general public and can be used by academics, clinicians, researchers, religious leaders, parents, and other providers. They are for conservatives and progressives who want to learn updated and integrated ideas and skills about sexuality, gender, race/ethnicity, faith/purpose of life, emotional health, resilience, and relationships.

Overall, this book project is a social experiment of bridge-building and hope to empower readers with identity development and skill development and reduce the side-taking that impairs growth. We hope readers can resolve more conflicts personally and socially and experience more peace. Especially in these divisive times, this book project may serve as an inspiration for other projects.

About the Editors

A. Lee Beckstead (he/him), PhD, is white-Peruvian, gay, cisgender, currently nondisabled, and spiritual; was excommunicated from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; and has been in a primary relationship with a man since 1997. He has been a psychologist in private practice since 2003 in Salt Lake City, Utah. He conducted a qualitative study from 1998-2001 on 50 individuals who tried to change their sexual orientation through psychotherapy. Half reported benefits, half reported harms, and many reported mixed results. Since 2005, he has provided weekend retreats for male survivors of sexual abuse (MenHealing.org). He served on the 2009 American Psychological Association task force making recommendations for those seeking therapy to change their sexual orientation. In 2012, he initiated the LGBTQ-affirmative Psychotherapist Guild of Utah to file ethical complaints against Utah clinicians providing sexual orientation change efforts (SOCE). In 2013, he shifted focus and organized a workshop to foster dialogue and understanding with these individuals. Since then, he's been meeting twice/month with therapists/educators holding differing views on sexual orientation, gender, and religion (ReconciliationAndGrowth.org). He testified as an expert witness in a 2015 New Jersey legal case against a Jewish organization accused of consumer fraud due to offering SOCE. From 2016, he's been part of a diverse research team studying the health and satisfaction of individuals who are single and celibate or noncelibate or in a same-gender/queer or mixed-orientation relationship. He is also the lead coeditor of this LGBTQIA+ Peacemaking Book Project.

Jacks Cheng, PhD, EdM, [tā [他], he, they] is a queer migrant of Taiwanese heritage to Canada and the U.S. Tā works as Supervising Psychologist at NYC Health + Hospitals/Jacobi and Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Tā is also the 2023 Chair of the Committee on Early Career Psychologists of the American Psychological Association. Tā received a doctorate in counselling psychology from Indiana University and is passionate about cultural affirmative and anti-colonialist approaches in research and practice with a particular interest in empowering sexual and gender diverse, migrant, and people of color communities in oppressive spaces.

Sulaimon Giwa (he/him/his) is an associate professor and interim dean of social work at Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador in Canada. Sulaimon is a scholar-activist who self-identifies as Black, Muslim, and gay. His intersectional identity adds depth to his contributions in the field of LGBTQ+ studies, demonstrating his unwavering commitment to fostering inclusive discourse from diverse perspectives. Through his academic and community pursuits, Sulaimon demonstrates his astute understanding of the intricacies surrounding identity and representation within the LGBTQ+ community, promoting crucial conversations on equity and social justice. He authored the 2022 book, Racism and Gay Men of Color: Living and Coping with Discrimination.

Mark A. Yarhouse, PsyD, is a clinical psychologist who specializes in conflicts tied to religious identity and sexual and gender identity. He assists people who are navigating the complex relationship between their sexual or gender identity and Christian faith. He is the Dr. Arthur P. and Mrs. Jean May Rech Chair in Psychology at Wheaton College, where he runs the Sexual and Gender Identity (SGI) Institute. He is an award-winning teacher and researcher and is the past recipient of the Gary Collins Award for Excellence in Christian Counseling. He was a past participant with the Ethics and Public Policy Center think tank in Washington, DC, and he was named Senior Fellow with the Council of Christian Colleges and Universities to conduct a study of students navigating sexual identity concerns at Christian colleges and universities. He has been a consultant to the National Institute of Corrections to address issues facing sexual minorities in corrections, and he was part of a consensus panel from the American Psychological Association on sexual orientation and gender identity change efforts that convened to provide input to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) in Washington, DC. He is currently the Chair of the task force on LGBT issues for Division 36 (Psychology of Religion and Spirituality) of the American Psychological Association. He was also invited to write the featured white paper on sexual identity for the Christ on Campus Initiative edited by Don A. Carson for The Gospel Coalition. He has published over 80 peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters and is author or co-author of several books, including Understanding Sexual Identity: A Resource for Youth Ministers and Understanding Gender Dysphoria: Navigating Transgender Issues in a Changing Culture. His most recent books are Sexual Identity & Faith and Costly Obedience: Listening to and Learning from Celibate Gay Christians.

Iva Žegura graduated and specialized in clinical psychology at Department of Psychology, Faculty of Philosophy in Zagreb and is currently attending doctoral studies. She is a licensed clinical psychologist and is educated in gestalt integrative therapy, cybernetic of psychotherapy and sexual therapy. She introduced the concept of affirmative and sensitive LGBTAIQ+ mental health practice in Croatia and the Balkans. Also, she initiated and established the Section for psychology of sexuality and psychology of gender by Croatian Psychological Association. In 2015, she helped in implementation of legalisation and healthcare of trans people based on SOC WPATH within Croatian health care system. She works at the Vrapče Psychiatry Clinic and collaborates with several national universities and departments of psychology. She is a member of the National lists of experts for transgender healthcare at the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Croatia. She is the president of the Section for Clinical Psychology, president of the Section for psychology and Human Rights, and Vice-president of the Section for Psychology of sexuality and psychology of gender. From 2021, she was elected to be a member of the Board of Directors of the European Professional Association for Transgender Health- EPATH and now she is president-elect. She collaborates with the Global Education Institute of WPATH. She participated in starting the association. She was a member of the Executive Board of TransAid Croatia, now KolekTIRV, helping the non-government organization (NGO) to be established. She was also a co-founder of the association TansParent Croatia. She regularly collaborates with several Croatian and regional LGBTAIQ+ and human rights NGOs. She is the winner of several professional awards and authored several books, chapters, and scientific papers. She is a member of several national, European, and international professional associations.

Contributors

Christine Aramburu Alegría, Frances Aranda, A. Lee Beckstead, Eric Boromisa, Don Braegger, João Carvalho, Jeannie DiClementi, Stefano Eleuteri, Alison Feit, Darren J. Freeman-Coppadge, Susanna M. Gallor, Alejandro Gepp Torres, Nathalie Huitema, Grigoropoulos Iraklis, Jay Jacobsen, Erin S. Lavender-Stott, Tyler Lefevor, Paul Linden, Isabel Lima, Julia Mackaronis, Mani B. Mitchell, Eduardo Morales, Josephine Pui-Hing Wong, Brie Radis, Alex Rivera, Christopher H. Rosik, Jordan Rullo, Walter R. Schumm, Samuel Skidmore, Dr. Lauren Smithee, Kersti Spjut, Dr. Denise Steers, Jim Struve, Tim van Wanrooij, Moshe-Mordechai (Maurits) van Zuiden, Dr. Amanda Veldorale-Griffin, Jeni Wahlig, Iva Žegura