Homosexuality in the DSM
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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"Leading up to the publication of the DSM-III-R, it had become clear to more and more people that the inclusion of "sexual orientation disturbance" and later "ego-dystonic homosexuality" in the DSM was the result of political compromises rather than scientific evidence, and that neither diagnosis actually met the definition of a disorder; critics pointed out that by the same logic, short people unhappy with their height could be considered mentally ill. Also influential was that it had been proven that psychological therapies could not "cure" homosexuality."--Sholem Stein |
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Homosexuality was classified as a mental disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) beginning with the first edition, published in 1952 by the American Psychiatric Association (APA). This classification was challenged by gay rights activists in the years following the 1969 Stonewall riots, and in December 1973, the APA board of trustees voted to declassify homosexuality as a mental disorder. In 1974, the DSM was updated and homosexuality was replaced with a new diagnostic code for individuals distressed by their homosexuality. Distress over one's sexual orientation remained in the manual, under different names, until the DSM-5 in 2013.
See also
- Homosexuality and psychology
- Heteronormativity
- Timeline of sexual orientation and medicine
- Association of LGBTQ Psychiatrists
- Sexual orientation change efforts
- Gender Dysphoria
