2026 APF Theodore Blau Early Career Award for Outstanding Contribution to Professional Clinical Psychology.

I was selected as a recipient of the 2026 American Psychological Foundation (APF) Theodore Blau Early Career Award for Outstanding Contribution to Professional Clinical Psychology.

Read the PsySSA announcement

South African Clinical and Counselling Psychologists’ Training, Experience, Perceived Competence, and Confidence in Practising Affirmatively with Sexually Diverse People (2024)

My PhD (Psychology) dissertation.

Open document

Determining the Efficacy of the Psychological Society of South Africa’s LGBTIQA+ Sensitization Training on Related Clinical Competencies Among a Cohort of Social Work Practitioners (2025)

The study evaluated the effectiveness of the Psychological Society of South Africa’s (PsySSA) LGBTIQA+ sensitization training designed to address knowledge and skill gaps among practitioners working with sexually and gender-diverse populations. Using a quasi-experimental design with social work practitioners from five regions in Gauteng, results showed significant improvements in participants’ clinical preparedness and knowledge following the training. The findings demonstrated that 60.3% of the change in clinical competencies was attributable to the intervention, confirming its efficacy in enhancing practitioners’ competence in LGBTIQA+ affirmative practice.

Read full article

Practice Guidelines for Psychology Professionals Working with Sexually and Gender-Diverse People (2nd ed) (2025)

As with the first edition in 2017, I contributed significantly to the Practice Guidelines for Psychology Professionals Working with Sexually and Gender-Diverse People (2nd ed.) provide an updated, evidence-based framework to support affirming, ethical, and contextually relevant psychological practice in South Africa. The revised guidelines integrate recent research, human rights developments, and intersectional understandings of sexuality, gender, and diversity. They aim to enhance psychologists’ competence and confidence in providing inclusive care, addressing systemic discrimination, and promoting the wellbeing and dignity of sexually and gender-diverse individuals across all areas of psychological work.

Download guidelines

Chemsex in South Africa (2025)

Written for the SANCA drug awareness week, the article explores the phenomenon of chemsex - the intentional use of specific psychoactive substances to facilitate, enhance and prolong sexual experiences, usually among men who have sex with men (MSM).

Read full article

The cost of being transgender: Where socio-economic status, global health care systems, and gender identity intersect (2019)

The article examines how financial barriers, healthcare structures, and social inequality shape transgender people’s access to gender-affirming care across four countries — Canada, Japan, South Africa, and the United States. It highlights that access to transition-related services is profoundly influenced by socioeconomic status, insurance coverage, and the inclusivity of national health systems. The authors argue that equitable, affirming, and affordable care requires systemic change and advocate for mental health professionals to play a proactive role in reducing gatekeeping and promoting social justice in healthcare.

Read full article

Queering the History of South African Psychology: From Apartheid to LGBTI-Affirmative Practices (2019)

The article traces the historical relationship between South African psychology and LGBTI+ issues, showing how the discipline largely pathologized queerness and aligned with apartheid ideologies until the country’s democratic transition in 1994. It highlights how the post-apartheid Constitution’s human-rights framework and PsySSA’s later initiatives—such as joining IPsyNet and developing affirmative practice guidelines—helped shift the field toward inclusion and advocacy. Ultimately, the piece documents how evolving sociopolitical contexts enabled the emergence of LGBTI+-affirmative psychology in South Africa after decades of marginalization.

Read full article

Lesbian, gay and bisexual clients’ experience with counselling and psychotherapy in South Africa: Implications for affirmative practice (2016)

The article reports on a qualitative study conducted to inform the PsySSA affirmative practice guidelines for psychology professionals working with sexually and gender-diverse people. Through interviews with 15 lesbian, gay, and bisexual participants, it found that positive therapeutic experiences were linked to counsellors who showed acceptance, non-judgment, and affirmation of clients’ sexual orientation. In contrast, negative experiences stemmed largely from disaffirming or pathologising attitudes, underscoring the importance of explicitly affirmative stances in psychological practice.

Read full article