Is homosexuality a mental disorder?

Question

At one time in the American Diagnostic and Statistical Journal of Mental Disorders it was listed as a mental disorder until gay groups gave pressure to remove it during the 1970s. Today we are seeing the same type of push to remove pediofilia as a mental disorder...comments

Answer 1

It isn't. Many scientific studies show that it's genetic. Pedophilia is a serious crime, since it includes a minor, and minors must not be exposed to any sexual relationships. But how can you compare between the two? If it's between consenting adults, then it's OK. How can love bother you?

Answer 2

Mutual enjoyable activities between consenting adults in the privacy of their own home are nobody Else's business. The removal of homosexuality by the psychiatric community in '75 was not a response to pressure from gay groups but an acknowledgment that Freud and Kraft-Ebbing had been wrong to ever so list it. Pedophilia involves people other than consenting adults and is therefor a crime, as it should be. Removing it as a mental illness would only mean that offenders could not use insanity/mental defect as a defense.

Answer 3

If you are comparing pedophilia to homosexuality, then you are grossly uneducated on both topics. Pedophilia pertains to a person (pedophile) regarding children (and only children) as sexual beings and objects. Homosexuality is the attraction between different people of the same sex. One of the above behaviors harms innocent lives and the other is a natural human attraction.

Why on earth do you think homosexuality was eventually dismissed as a mental disorder? Because FURTHER RESEARCH proved that fact to be true. It certainly had very little to do with so-called "pressure" from gay groups in the 1970's. In the future, please engage in more research before making such an erroneous comment.

Some earlier psychiatrists researched and determined that homosexuality was not a mental disorder long before homosexuality was even extracted from the DSM. In 1901, Havelock Ellis stated that homosexuality was inborn, and that many homosexuals were brilliant individuals who made notable contributions to society. I would suggest reading up on Ellis' work; he was a brilliant researcher.

Homosexuality is as natural as being heterosexual. Bigotry and intolerance stem from a fear of the unknown, and they only prove how ignorance emanates from a lack of knowledge. If everyone were to take a class or two in psychology, there would be a lot less hate and a lot more tolerance.

Answer 4

Thanks for joining the fight against LGBT, hatred and prejudice!

Yes, you are right, people that try to compare homosexuality to pedophilia are guilty of causal association. (I wake up every day just before the sunrise. I don't use an alarm clock, therefore, the sun rises because I awake!) It's nice to see that you're right on top of these kinds of issues - to keep us aware of the rumors. After a limited search, I could not find supporting documentation that there is a possibility that pedophilia is in danger having it's classification as a mental disorder changed, but it is always a great idea to remain vigilant to protect the youth of the world.

There are too many people who through ignorance, prejudice or simply not knowing better claim that homosexuality and pedophilia go hand in hand. Thank you for showing us that there's good, scientific data that puts a clear distinction between the two. You're an inspiration!

Which PFLAG chapter do you belong to?

Answer 5

They are really both orientations. Homosexuality can be excepted by people because it is not harming anybody or doing any damage. I don't think that people are going to change pedophilia as a regular sexual orientation becuase a lot of people who are pedophiles might get the idea that it is now ok to explore their sexuality on children. The idea why people think that it is a mental disorder is becuase they just can't understand these things and why people can be attracted to their own sex or children.

Answer 6

homosexuality is definitely not a mental disorder. it is also not 100% determined by either biology or culture. ignorance makes people think that homosexuals have something wrong with them or that they are abnormal. they are still regular people who happen to be attracted to the same sex. there's nothing wrong with that.

and if anyone trays to say pedophilia is a mental disorder, they must have one of their own. some pedophile could try and say he was mentally crazy when he raped some poor innocent girl? I don't think so... sure, pedophiles are very sick people and they should be punished, but it is not something to do with medicine that makes them behave that way. there is absolutely no excuse for their behavior whatsoever.

Answer 7

All major professional mental health organizations have gone on record to affirm that homosexuality is not a mental disorder.

Answer 8

Gay groups did not push to have it removed from the DSM. It was removed when research was presented that shows the possibility of genetics and "prewiring". It's not a choice; let me put it to you like this.... Go out and get yourself a plate of food that your really dislike.... Then have yourself a nice big bite. Did you make the choice to dislike the food, or did your body tell you to spit it out? Furthermore, being gay is in NO WAY comparable to pedophilia.

Answer 9

Same sex attraction is from abnormal feelings.

President Koocher Says the American Psychological Association Has No Disagreement With the Treatment of Unwanted Homosexual Attraction
http://www.narth.com/docs/koocher.html

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Answer 10

I don't think it is. My only advice to you is, talk to some gay people, both male and female (and bisexuals). I have gay friends and I ask them questions all the time (I make sure they don't mind me asking first). Everyone obviously has their own opinion on the subject, but it helps to have some sort of basis for it.