Increasingly, the counseling profession recognizes the fundamental role of sexuality throughout our lifespan, as sexual health is integral to our overall physical and mental well-being, our relationships and connections with others, and the safety of our communities (World Health Organization [WHO], 2006). As a step towards raising the standards of practice, education, and research in sexuality-related topics within counseling and related professions, we have developed Exemplary Practices for Counseling Sexology and Sexuality Counseling (Pope et al., 2024). We intentionally chose the language of “exemplary practices” versus “competencies” to demonstrate the pluralistic, dynamic, and ever-evolving nature of sexuality. “Competencies” indicate standards that demonstrate sufficient knowledge or skills to perform a task, whereas “exemplary practices” denote repeated ways of being or behaving that serve as an effective model on which to base our own ways of being and actions.

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To provide context for the exemplary practices, we will start by discussing the present need for such a model. Additionally, we review relevant definitions and explain our choice of language, theoretical foundations, and the structure of the exemplary practices. Like sexuality, the exemplary practices are influenced by the interaction of historical, sociocultural, psychological, political, and other contextual factors (Pope et al., 2017; Zeglin et al., 2018). We will introduce the 12 Exemplary Practice Areas, with a brief review of the domains under each practice area: a) attitudes, beliefs, & understanding of historical influences; b) knowledge; c) counseling skills, which includes practices to enhance the counseling relationship and assessment of sexuality-related topics within counseling; d) action and advocacy; and e) education and supervision.