Dr. Randolph Chan partnered with Society of True Light, a LGBT+ self-acceptance concern group, to conduct research on sexual orientation change efforts (SOCE) among sexual minorities in Hong Kong. From August 2020 to March 2021, a total of 219 sexual minority persons completed an online survey. The findings revealed that 21.9 per cent of the respondents attempted SOCE. 73 per cent of the respondents with SOCE had religious backgrounds. It was much higher than those without SOCE (24 per cent).
Among those respondents with SOCE, 43 attempted this on their own, while the remaining 26 people were motivated by others. Most participants with other-initiated SOCE experience had been recommended to change sexual orientations by more than one party, including family members (50.0 per cent), religious leaders (42.3 per cent), religious groups (34.6 per cent), counsellors (34.6 per cent), relatives (23.1 per cent) and even medical doctors (3.8 per cent).
Regardless of being self-initiated or other-initiated, no respondents perceived that SOCE was effective. On the contrary, many experienced emotional distress. 39.6 per cent of people with SOCE met the criteria for probable clinical depression. It was much higher than those without SOCE (17.5 per cent). 83.3 per cent of people with SOCE had suicidal ideation, and 27.1 per cent of them even had a specific plan. The figures were much higher than those without SOCE (59.6 per cent with suicidal ideation and 14.0 per cent with a suicidal plan).
The research findings were published in:
Chan, R. C. H., Leung, J. S. Y., & Wong, D. C. K. (2022). Experiences, motivations, and impacts of sexual orientation change efforts: Effects on sexual identity distress and mental health among sexual minorities. Sexuality Research and Social Policy, 19, 1534–1548.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s13178-021-00669-5
Research Report on Sexual Orientation Change Efforts in Hong Kong (https://true-light.asia/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/STL_Research_Report_SOCE_2022_03_31.pdf)
The press conference was covered by a number of news outlets:
