UNDERSTANDING CLAIMS OF
SEXUAL-ORIENTATION CHANGE

Distinguishing orientation, identity, behavior, relationships and religious commitments

KEY POINT
A man may stop identifying as gay or change his behavior without demonstrating that his underlying pattern of attraction has changed.

Orientation Versus Identity

Sexual orientation generally concerns relatively enduring patterns of sexual and romantic attraction. Sexual identity is the label someone adopts, such as gay, bisexual, heterosexual or no label at all.

A man can therefore stop identifying as gay without demonstrating that his underlying attractions have changed. The American Psychological Association distinguishes sexual orientation from sexual-orientation identity and notes that some people with same-sex attractions choose to identify as heterosexual. APA discussion of sexual-orientation identity

“I was gay, but now I am straight.”

Several different possibilities can be hidden inside that statement:

·         Identity change: I used to call myself gay. Now I call myself straight.

·         Behavior change: I used to have sex or relationships with men. Now I do not.

·         Lifestyle change: I stopped participating in gay social environments.

·         Celibacy: I experience same-sex attraction but choose not to act on it.

·         Relationship change: I am now married to or sexually involved with a woman.

·         Belief change: I no longer consider homosexuality compatible with my religious beliefs.

·         Actual attraction change: I previously experienced predominantly or exclusively same-sex attraction and now experience predominantly or exclusively opposite-sex attraction.

Only the last statement is a claim that sexual orientation itself changed.

Claims Made by “Ex-Gay” Men

Research on sexual orientation change efforts, or SOCE, has repeatedly found that reported changes can involve behavior, identity, beliefs or suppression of same-sex sexuality rather than a transformation from homosexual attraction to heterosexual attraction.

The APA's review concluded that some people apparently learned to ignore or limit same-sex attractions, while others changed their sexual-orientation identity, behavior or values. That differs from establishing that their underlying erotic attractions changed from homosexual to heterosexual. APA task-force summary

A 2024 study examined 72 highly religious men who had undergone sexual orientation change efforts. Even among men reporting change, the researchers found that changes were substantially stronger in behavior than in attraction. The authors concluded that the process primarily supported conformity to religious norms against homosexual behavior rather than changing attractions. Read the 2024 study

A Person May Sincerely Believe He Became Straight

It is unwise to assume that every man making such a claim is lying. His account may be sincere even when his interpretation of what happened is questionable.

For example, a religious man might experience same-sex attraction but stop having sex with men, marry a woman, have children, stop calling himself gay and interpret all of those developments as evidence that he is now heterosexual.

gay identity + gay behavior  →  heterosexual identity + heterosexual behavior

From his perspective, this may equal “orientation change.” Scientifically, however, the central question is what happened to his pattern of attraction. If he continues experiencing predominant attraction toward men, changing his label and behavior does not by itself establish heterosexual orientation.

The Complication of Bisexuality and Sexual Fluidity

Not every apparent gay-to-straight transition necessarily involves a gay man suppressing homosexuality. Some people have meaningful attractions to both sexes. A bisexual man might identify as gay during one period and heterosexual during another, depending on his relationships, community, religion or self-concept.

Such a man could sincerely say, “I used to be gay, and now I am straight.” A more precise description might be that his identity changed while his capacity for attraction to both sexes remained.

Sexuality can also show some fluidity in some individuals. The strongest scientific claim is therefore not that sexual orientation can never change under any circumstances. It is that there is no credible evidence that psychological or religious intervention can reliably and deliberately convert homosexual orientation into heterosexual orientation.

The APA's current review describes sexual-orientation change efforts as largely ineffective and notes substantial methodological problems with reported successes. APA: The evidence against conversion therapy

Why “Ex-Gay” Is Different From “Straight”

“Ex-gay” is best understood primarily as an identity claim, not as a scientific classification of sexual orientation.

“I no longer identify as gay.” This is a statement about present identity.

“I changed my sexual orientation from homosexual to heterosexual.” This is an empirical claim about underlying sexuality.

Heterosexual identification, marriage to a woman, abstinence from sex with men, religious conversion or cessation of same-sex behavior does not by itself establish that sexual orientation changed.

Conclusion

The basic observation is sound, with one qualification: we should not automatically conclude that every man who says he went from gay to straight still has an exclusively homosexual orientation. What can be said with greater precision is that changing one's identity, behavior, relationships or religious commitments does not demonstrate a change in sexual orientation. Those variables must be distinguished.

Sources

·         American Psychological Association. “Appropriate Therapeutic Responses to Sexual Orientation.”

·         American Psychological Association. “Insufficient Evidence That Sexual Orientation Change Efforts Work.”

·         American Psychological Association. “The Evidence Against Conversion Therapy.”

·         Scientific study of sexual orientation change efforts among 72 highly religious men (2024).