A Reflection on The Miseducation of Cameron Post and the Harms of Conversion Therapy

Hunter Guttenplan, Verrazzano Class of 2024, completed major in Psychology and minors in English Literature and Political Science

My capstone project was about the negative effects of conversion therapy and how it is portrayed in The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Emily M. Danforth, as well as research on how the portrayal of conversion therapy in the novel relates to conversion therapy in the United States.

I learned a lot about conversion therapy with the assistance of my former English Professor, Harry Thorne. I took his Coming of Age Narratives class, and we read a book called The Miseducation of Cameron Post. The novel immediately captivated me. Reading a young adult novel about mental health and psychotherapy was very enjoyable, especially as a Psychology major. The novel was so enjoyable that I knew it was exactly what I wanted to do for my capstone project. I could combine two of my academic interests, English and Psychology.

The results I found in the research were actually exactly as I expected. The representation of the oppression of people with queer identities in The Miseducation of Cameron Post was supported by real-world statistics. I learned a lot about Gender Dysphoria, therapeutic interventions in relation to conversion therapy, the fact that people in the LGBTQIA+ community are eight times more likely to report having attempted suicide, almost six times more likely to report high levels of depression, more than three times as likely to use illegal drugs, and are three times more likely to be at high risk of HIV and other STDs. I also learned about the public opinion in the United States regarding conversion therapy, and the influence of negative beliefs and clinical competence on Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual individuals.

One of the most interesting parts in my opinion was the high economic burden of conversion therapy. To be more precise, that economic burden is about nine billion dollars, which is outrageous.

If I were to continue developing this project, I would research the difference in conversion therapy throughout the years, as well as look at countries other than the United States. That way I can broaden my research on the issue since it doesn’t just apply to our country. I would also look at the difference in how conversion therapy was done throughout the decades. For example, I assume that conversion therapy was done differently in 1975 than it is now, especially due to the fact that homosexuality was not as socially acceptable back then as it is now.

It was a pleasure to work on this project under the guidance of Professor Thorne, and it was a rewarding experience doing this capstone project for the Verrazzano Honors Program.