IMHCA’s Position Statement on Conversion Therapy

How Do Ethics Apply to this Case?

“Therapy isn’t free-form speech— it’s licensed, evidence-based healthcare” (APA, 2025). The ethical codes of every mental health discipline include ethical guidelines related to non-discrimination and examination of provider biases when providing treatment to clients.

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The AMHCA Code of Ethics (2020)

The AMHCA Code of Ethics (2020) clearly states that any therapeutic approach undermining client autonomy, dignity, or self-determination is unethical. AMHCA’s ethical principles—affirmation of identity, protection from harm, and informed consent—guide our shared commitment to serving clients with integrity and respect.

Affirmation of Identity:
We recognize that diverse sexual orientations and gender identities are natural variations of human experience—not mental disorders. Any effort to alter or “cure” a client’s identity is a direct violation of AMHCA ethical standards (AMHCA, 2020, Principles 1.a, 1.c).

Protection from Harm:
Extensive research shows that conversion therapy is not only ineffective but also psychologically damaging, often leading to depression, anxiety, and suicidality. Consistent with Principle 2.a: Nonmaleficence, we reject any practice that risks such harm.

Informed Consent:
Ethical counseling requires full transparency about the nature, purpose, and evidence base of treatment methods. Because conversion therapy lacks scientific validity and carries known risks, clients cannot provide genuine informed consent (Principle 1.e).

C. Counselor Responsibility and Integrity
c. Maintain knowledge of relevant scientific and professional information related to the services rendered and recognize the need for ongoing education.

g. Recognize the important need to be competent with respect to cultural diversity; CMHCs are sensitive to the diversity of different populations and to changes in cultural expectations and values over time.

m. Actively attempt to understand the diverse cultural backgrounds of the clients with whom they work. This includes learning how the CMHC’s own cultural/ethical/racial/religious identities impact their own values and beliefs about the counseling process.

2. Non-Discrimination
a. CMHCs do not condone or engage in discrimination based on ability status, age, culture, ethnicity, sex, gender identity, race, religion, national origin, political beliefs, sexual orientation, relationship status, or socioeconomic status.

c. CMHCs have a responsibility to educate themselves about their own biases toward those of different races, creeds, identities, orientations, cultures, and physical and mental abilities, and then to seek consultation, supervision, and/or counseling in order to prevent those biases from interfering with the counseling process.

The APA Code of Ethics (2016)

Principle D: Justice
Psychologists recognize that fairness and justice entitle all persons to access to and benefit from the contributions of psychology and to equal quality in the processes, procedures, and services being conducted by psychologists. Psychologists exercise reasonable judgment and take precautions to ensure that their potential biases, the boundaries of their competence, and the limitations of their expertise do not lead to or condone unjust practices.

Principle E: Respect for People’s Rights and Dignity
Psychologists respect the dignity and worth of all people, and the rights of individuals to privacy, confidentiality, and self-determination. Psychologists are aware that special safeguards may be necessary to protect the rights and welfare of persons or communities whose vulnerabilities impair autonomous decision making. Psychologists are aware of and respect cultural, individual, and role differences, including those based on age, gender, gender identity, race, ethnicity, culture, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, disability, language, and socioeconomic status, and consider these factors when working with members of such groups. Psychologists try to eliminate the effect on their work of biases based on those factors, and they do not knowingly participate in or condone activities of others based upon such prejudices.

3.01 Unfair Discrimination
In their work-related activities, psychologists do not engage in unfair discrimination based on age, gender, gender identity, race, ethnicity, culture, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, disability, socioeconomic status, or any basis proscribed by law.

3.04 Avoiding Harm
(a) Psychologists take reasonable steps to avoid harming their clients/patients, students, supervisees, research participants, organizational clients, and others with whom they work, and to minimize harm where it is foreseeable and unavoidable.

(b) Psychologists do not participate in, facilitate, assist, or otherwise engage in torture, defined as any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental, is intentionally inflicted on a person, or in any other cruel, inhuman, or degrading behavior that violates 3.04(a).

NASW Code of Ethics (2021)

Value: Social Justice
Ethical Principle: Social workers challenge social injustice.

Social workers pursue social change, particularly with and on behalf of vulnerable and oppressed individuals and groups of people. Social workers’ social change efforts are focused primarily on issues of poverty, unemployment, discrimination, and other forms of social injustice. These activities seek to promote sensitivity to and knowledge about oppression and cultural and ethnic diversity. Social workers strive to ensure access to needed information, services, and resources; equality of opportunity; and meaningful participation in decision making for all people.

Value: Dignity and Worth of the Person
Ethical Principle: Social workers respect the inherent dignity and worth of the person.

Social workers treat each person in a caring and respectful fashion, mindful of individual differences and cultural and ethnic diversity. Social workers promote clients’ socially responsible self-determination. Social workers seek to enhance clients’ capacity and opportunity to change and to address their own needs. Social workers are cognizant of their dual responsibility to clients and to the broader society. They seek to resolve conflicts between clients’ interests and the broader society’s interests in a socially responsible manner consistent with the values, ethical principles, and ethical standards of the profession.

1.04 Competence
(a) Social workers should provide services and represent themselves as competent only within the boundaries of their education, training, license, certification, consultation received, supervised experience, or other relevant professional experience.

(b) Social workers should provide services in substantive areas or use intervention techniques or approaches that are new to them only after engaging in appropriate study, training, consultation, and supervision from people who are competent in those interventions or techniques.

1.05 Cultural Competence
(a) Social workers should demonstrate understanding of culture and its function in human behavior and society, recognizing the strengths that exist in all cultures.

(b) Social workers should demonstrate knowledge that guides practice with clients of various cultures and be able to demonstrate skills in the provision of culturally informed services that empower marginalized individuals and groups. Social workers must take action against oppression, racism, discrimination, and inequities, and acknowledge personal privilege.

(c) Social workers should demonstrate awareness and cultural humility by engaging in critical self-reflection (understanding their own bias and engaging in self-correction), recognizing clients as experts of their own culture, committing to lifelong learning, and holding institutions accountable for advancing cultural humility.

(d) Social workers should obtain education about and demonstrate understanding of the nature of social diversity and oppression with respect to race, ethnicity, national origin, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, marital status, political belief, religion, immigration status, and mental or physical ability.

ACA Code of Ethics (2014)

C.2. Professional Competence

C.2.a. Boundaries of Competence
Counselors practice only within the boundaries of their competence, based on their education, training, supervised experience, state and national professional credentials, and appropriate professional experience. Whereas multicultural counseling competency is required across all counseling specialties, counselors gain knowledge, personal awareness, sensitivity, dispositions, and skills pertinent to being a culturally competent counselor in working with a diverse client population.

C.5. Nondiscrimination
Counselors do not condone or engage in discrimination against prospective or current clients, students, employees, supervisees, or research participants based on age, culture, disability, ethnicity, race, religion/spirituality, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, marital/ partnership status, language preference, socioeconomic status, immigration status, or any basis proscribed by law.

C.7. Treatment Modalities

C.7.a. Scientific Basis for Treatment
When providing services, counselors use techniques/procedures/modalities that are grounded in theory and/or have an empirical or scientific foundation.

C.7.c. Harmful Practices
Counselors do not use techniques/procedures/modalities when substantial evidence suggests harm, even if such services are requested.

AAMFT Code of Ethics (2015)

Commitment to Service, Advocacy and Public Participation
Marriage and family therapists are defined by an enduring dedication to professional and ethical excellence, as well as the commitment to service, advocacy, and public participation. The areas of service, advocacy, and public participation are recognized as responsibilities to the profession equal in importance to all other aspects. Marriage and family therapists embody these aspirations by participating in activities that contribute to a better community and society, including devoting a portion of their professional activity to services for which there is little or no financial return. Additionally, marriage and family therapists are concerned with developing laws and regulations pertaining to marriage and family therapy that serve the public interest, and with altering such laws and regulations that are not in the public interest. Marriage and family therapists also encourage public participation in the design and delivery of professional services and in the regulation of practitioners. Professional competence in these areas is essential to the character of the field, and to the well-being of clients and their communities.