The Foundation for Attraction Research (FAR) was a Utah-based research and publishing institute with the goal of providing literature and conducting research supportive of religious teachings of the

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a nontrinitarian restorationist Christian denomination and the largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement. Founded durin ...

(LDS Church) on homosexuality, including asserting that

sexual orientation change efforts Conversion therapy is the pseudoscientific practice of attempting to change an individual's sexual orientation, romantic orientation, gender identity, or gender expression to align with heterosexual and cisgender norms. Methods that have b ...

were effective. One of the founders, A. Dean Byrd, was also in leadership of the

National Association for Research & Therapy of Homosexuality The Alliance for Therapeutic Choice and Scientific Integrity (ATCSI), which until 2014 was known as the National Association for Research & Therapy of Homosexuality (NARTH), also known as the NARTH Institute, is a US organization that promotes con ...

(NARTH). FAR published a guidebook for therapists in 2009, and the LDS Church's counseling organization LDS Family Services held a conference based on the book in 2011. The book advised homosexual readers to seek

reparative therapy Conversion therapy is the pseudoscientific practice of attempting to change an individual's sexual orientation, romantic orientation, gender identity, or gender expression to align with heterosexual and cisgender norms. Methods that have been ...

through

Evergreen International Evergreen International, Inc. was a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization located in Salt Lake City, Utah whose stated mission was to assist "people who want to diminish same-sex attractions and overcome homosexual behavior". These pseudoscienti ...

and LDS Family Services.

History

FAR was founded in 2005 and run by mostly professors from the LDS Church's largest university,

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU) is a Private education, private research university in Provo, Utah, United States. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is the flagship university of the Church Educational System sponsore ...

(BYU). These included psychology professor Dean Byrd and social work professor Shirley Cox. The board of directors also consisted of BYU English professor Doris Dant, law professor William Duncan, religion professor John Livingstone, and retired psychology professor Gawain Wells. In 2009 the organization published ''Understanding Same-Sex Attraction'' through the LDS Church's publishing arm

Deseret Book Deseret Book () is an American publishing company headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, that also operates a chain of bookstores throughout the western United States. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Deseret Management Corporation (DMC), th ...

. It advocated therapy to change sexual attractions. In 2012 FAR co-hosted the Reconciling Faith and Feelings conference with the Association of Latter-day Saint Counselors and Psychotherapists (AMCAP).

Publications

* ''Understanding Same-Sex Attraction: Where to Turn and How to Help'' (2009)

References

External links

Official website archive
{{DEFAULTSORT:Foundation for Attraction Research 2005 establishments in Utah Brigham Young University Book publishing companies based in Utah 2014 disestablishments in Utah Conversion therapy organizations Defunct Latter Day Saint organizations LGBTQ and Mormonism Latter Day Saint movement in Utah Christian organizations established in 2005 Religious organizations disestablished in 2014

History

Publications

See also

References

External links