“I found early on that my own clinical and research interests in sexual orientation enabled me to make a contribution to the mental health needs of lesbian and gay people, as well as educating a dominant culture in dire need of accurate information about sexual orientation.”
About Doug > Background
I came to the practice of psychology from a background in secondary education. My Master's degree is in Education from Stanford University (1975). My first career was as a high school drama teacher. Like many who come to clinical psychology from backgrounds in education, I was fascinated with the personal lives of my students.
I received my Doctorate in Counseling Psychology from the University of Washington in 1983. After a dissertation on the psychosocial correlates of sexual dysfunction in gay men and an internship at a queer mental health agency, I started full-time independent practice in an office in the Pioneer Square area of Seattle in 1984. I found early on that the profession was so diverse, and the lesbian and gay database in psychology so new, that my own clinical and research interests in sexual orientation enable me to make a contribution to the mental health needs of lesbian and gay people, as well as educating a dominant culture in dire need of accurate information about sexual orientation.
After I started my practice, I began to explore particular areas within the competent and ethical treatment of lesbian, gay and bisexual clients. As it happened, I had been working with a number of men who had been abused - both emotionally and physically - while undergoing prior “therapeutic” attempts to change their sexual orientation. The Lesbian and Gay Concerns Committee of the Washington State Psychological Association was exploring the potential abuses of what is known as “sexual orientation conversion therapy”. In the subsequent opportunities to write articles and co-author the American Psychological Association’s policy statement on Conversion Therapy and its Guidelines for Psychotherapy with Lesbian and Gay Clients, as well as lecturing and writing a book on the subject, I found a number of important projects. My practice now includes my community, and the culture.
I currently have a full-time practice in the Pike Place Market neighborhood of Seattle. with a special focus on the GLBT (Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender) Community. I also specialize in relationship counseling with both heterosexual and gay/lesbian couples. Please see details on my Psychotherapy Practice page.
Much of my professional life is spent outside the office as a lecturer/consultant and author. See details on the Lectures and Workshops and Publications pages, as well as my Vita.
I am actively involved in the American Psychological Association (APA), and have served in a number of positions in APA governance. I have also been a member of the Washington State Psychological Association (WSPA) since 1984, and have been active in a number of the Association’s Committees. For twenty years, I have also been affiliated with the University of Washington’s Psychology Department as a clinical faculty member, supervising students, interns and conducting trainings on lesbian, gay and bisexual issues. See details on my Professional Activities page and my Vita.