VIOLATION OF DIGNITY AND PSYCHOTHERAPEUTIC TREATMENT FOR SEXUAL ORIENTATION REVERSAL

Abstract

The article analyzed how psychotherapeutic procedures aimed at reversing sexual orientation violate human dignity. Thus, the text presents observations on sexual reorientation therapies, emphasizing the elements that support the defense of such practices, as well as the influence these therapies may have on the pathologization of homosexualities. The study applied the dialectical method of approach and employed bibliographic and documentary analysis. To reach the results discussed, the research was grounded in the regulations of official bodies, such as the Federal Council of Psychology, and in the positions of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the American Psychiatric Association (APA). Subsequently, to better illustrate sexual reorientation practices, some of the procedures used were examined, highlighting the violent techniques employed and presenting the stance of health and psychology institutions regarding their scientific effectiveness and the ethical issues involved in such treatments. Based on the arguments presented, the final considerations revealed that these methods are violent and scientifically ineffective. It was also concluded that sexual orientation reversal therapies are, in fact, forms of torture that severely violate human dignity, condemning individuals whose existence challenges heteronormative standards and whose defense movement is rooted in stigma and the pathologization of non-heterosexual expressions.