Dr. Julia Sadusky Distorts My Research
Scientific integrity and public health demand that I correct the record regarding serious misrepresentations of my research.
In 2021, I was the lead author of Sexual attraction fluidity and well-being in men: A therapeutic outcome study. Unfortunately, Dr. Sadusky has repeatedly mischaracterized my study, distorting both the design and the findings. These inaccuracies are either the result of a serious misunderstanding of the research, or a deliberate misrepresentation.
For example, Dr. Sadusky falsely claimed that my study followed only 22 participants and that most of the 75 participants “did not stay in the study,” concluding that we have “no way of knowing the outcome of 71% of participants.” This is incorrect. All 75 participants met the pre-established inclusion criterion of staying in the study for at least six months. Our outcome data reflect complete reports from all 75 participants. Many participants identified as “dropped out” by Dr. Sadusky were actually early completers who met their therapy goals before the 2-year maximum follow-up period.
Dr. Sadusky challenged the claim that the study was “large scale.” The study was conducted at more than one clinical site with five therapists and included clients from the U.S. and abroad, who came to the U.S. to take part in the therapy. Contrary to Dr. Sadusky’s assertion that the study does not “care” to assess for trauma, the OQ-45 instrument we used contains several items specifically designed to detect trauma symptoms, which were incorporated into the overall well-being scale.
Dr. Sadusky also claimed, “we can’t say there is a causal shift” between a therapeutic intervention and sexual attraction changes. This contradicts emerging research. At least six recent studies across three continents—conducted by researchers with varying ideological perspectives—now suggest that sexual attractions can change as a byproduct of interventions. These studies include Allen et al. (2023), Bartels et al. (2018), Cornine (2013), Dickenson et al. (2021), Nicolosi and Szanduła (2024), and Pela and Sutton (2021).
Our own study (Pela & Sutton, 2021) demonstrated that the Reintegrative Protocol produced statistically significant changes in sexual attraction that are unlikely to be explained by natural sexual fluidity alone, contrary to Dr. Sadusky’s claims that there is “no evidence” of such a connection.
Fair criticism of research is essential in the scientific community. However, major distortions and failure to correct public misstatements violate ethical standards (see APA Ethical Standard 5.04). For the sake of scientific integrity, I call on Dr. Sadusky and others who are repeating her inaccurate claims to immediately remove those false claims and publicly correct the record.
Sincerely,
Carolyn Pela, Ph.D.
Read Sexual attraction fluidity and well-being in men: A therapeutic outcome study.
Download PDF here.
References:
Allen, A., McKillop, N., Katsikitis, M., & Millear, P. (2023). The effects of bilateral stimulation using eye movements on sexual fantasies with follow-up. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 79, 101826. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbtep.2022.101826
Bartels, R. M., Harkins, L., Harrison, S. C., Beard, N., & Beech, A. R. (2018). The effect of bilateral eye-movements versus no eye-movements on sexual fantasies. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 59, 107–114. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbtep.2018.01.001
Cornine, C. K. (2013). EMDR, sexual confusion, and god-image: A case study. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 32(1), 83–89.
Dickenson, J., Diamond, L., King, J., Jenson, K., & Anderson, J. (2020). Understanding heterosexual women’s erotic flexibility: The role of attention in sexual evaluations and neural responses to sexual stimuli. Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, 15(4), 447-465. https://doi.org/10.1093/scan/nsaa058
Nicolosi, J.J., Jr. & Szanduła, J. (2024) Memory reconsolidation for unwanted sexually arousing memories: A randomized, placebo-controlled study. Integratus, 2(4), 287-305 https://doi.org/10.1521/intg.2024.2.4.287
Pela, C., & Sutton, P. M. (2021) Sexual attraction fluidity and well-being in men: A therapeutic outcome study. Journal of Human Sexuality, 12, 61-86.
