Predicting Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Change Efforts and Workplace Exclusion through Fundamentalist Institutional Policies

• In Event: 40820 - Section on Sociology of Sex and Gender Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Table 10: Politics and Gender

Abstract

Religious institutions, often major employers in certain regions, have historically excluded LGBTQ+ individuals while also employing them in various capacities. This paper explores how fundamentalist Christian institutions use ideological mechanisms—specifically, statements of faith—to regulate employment and reinforce Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Change Efforts (SOGICE). While overt SOGICE includes widely recognized conversion therapy practices, covert SOGICE operates through linguistic obfuscation, institutional policies, and exclusionary workplace norms.
Statements of faith serve as corporate mission statements outlining theological commitments and often contain coded language that signals adherence to fundamentalist beliefs. These documents function as predictors of covert SOGICE, employing strategies such as linguistic sanitation (e.g., “sexual stewardship”), victim-blaming narratives (e.g., compulsory celibacy), and pseudoscientific claims about gender identity. By analyzing these texts, this study identifies patterns that correlate fundamentalist doctrine—including inerrancy, biblicism, and perspicuity—with the presence of SOGICE discourse.
To assess the presence of SOGICE discourse, statements of faith (supplemented by other institutional documents or policies, if needed) will be systematically analyzed for indicators of fundamentalism and SOGICE. A keyword-based search and qualitative coding approach will be used to identify language indicative of fundamentalism and queer identity, such as prohibitions on LGBTQ+ orientation, references to “sexual purity,” or mandates for “restoration” or “discipleship” in alignment with heteronormative doctrine.
The final step involves comparing the rate of SOGICE discourse between fundamentalist and non-fundamentalist schools. Descriptive statistics will be used to determine prevalence differences, while chi-square tests will assess whether fundamentalist institutions are significantly more likely to endorse SOGICE-related policies.
Ultimately, this research contributes to the growing discourse on workplace discrimination, faith-based employment policies, and the covert mechanisms through which religious institutions perpetuate change efforts. Understanding these dynamics is crucial in addressing the ongoing marginalization of LGBTQ+ individuals in faith-based employment settings and advocating for greater accountability and inclusivity.

Author

• Willow Sipling, Western Michigan University