Heterosexual Parent Families Research Articles

Parenting and psychological adjustment during middle childhood in lesbian, gay, and heterosexual parent families formed through assisted reproduction.

Parenting and psychological adjustment during middle childhood in lesbian, gay, and heterosexual parent families formed through assisted reproduction.

Supplemental Material for Parenting and Psychological Adjustment During Middle Childhood in Lesbian, Gay, and Heterosexual Parent Families Formed Through Assisted Reproduction

Supplemental Material for Parenting and Psychological Adjustment During Middle Childhood in Lesbian, Gay, and Heterosexual Parent Families Formed Through Assisted Reproduction

The intergenerational transmission of attachment during middle childhood in lesbian, gay, and heterosexual parent families through assisted reproduction: The mediating role of reflective functioning

ABSTRACT The present study examined the attachment patterns distribution of 60 lesbian mothers, 50 gay fathers, and 42 heterosexual parents through assisted reproduction and their 76 children, using the Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) and the Friends and Family Interview (FFI), respectively. The study also explored the intergenerational transmission of attachment through reflective functioning (AAI-RF). All families lived in Italy and children were aged 6–12 years (M years = 8.11, SD = 2.17; 48.68% assigned female at birth). The AAI patterns distribution was similar across family types and did not significantly differ from international and national normative data. Similarly, children’s FFI attachment patterns were evenly distributed between family types, and no significant differences emerged in comparison to international and national normative data referring to middle childhood samples. Mediational models revealed that, in all three family types, parents with greater AAI coherence of mind exhibited higher AAI-RF, which, in turn, was associated with increased FFI attachment security in children. Furthermore, parents’ AAI coherence of mind directly influenced children’s FFI attachment security. The results support and expand hypotheses regarding the intergenerational transmission of attachment in lesbian, gay, and heterosexual parent families through assisted reproduction, while offering unique indications to support these families during middle childhood.

Parenting, dyadic coping, and child emotion regulation in lesbian, gay, and heterosexual parent families through assisted reproduction

ABSTRACT Aims The present study examined the associations between family structure, parenting, and dyadic coping and children’s emotion regulation in lesbian, gay, and heterosexual parent families through assisted reproduction. It also explored differences in parenting dimensions and dyadic coping, based on parents’ sexual orientation. Methods Participants were 60 lesbian mothers through donor insemination, 50 gay fathers through surrogacy, and 42 heterosexual parents through gamete donation, all with a child aged 6–12 years (M = 8.67; SD = 2.16; 48.68% females) and residing in Italy. In each family, both parents reported parenting stress, parent – child relational self-efficacy, parental control, dyadic coping, and their perception of the child’s emotion regulation. Results Mixed models indicated no significant differences between family types in parenting stress and use of a controlling parenting style. However, lesbian mothers reported higher parent – child relational self-efficacy than heterosexual parents, and higher dyadic coping strategies than gay fathers. Also, children of gay fathers showed greater emotion regulation than children of heterosexual parents. Across family types, higher levels of parenting stress and dyadic coping, and lower levels of parent – child relational self-efficacy were associated with lower child emotion regulation. Conclusion Given that in middle childhood, across family types, better emotional regulation was associated with lower parenting stress and dyadic coping, and greater effectiveness in the parent – child relationship clinical work should focus on the parent’s and couple’s ability to cooperatively manage stressors while maintaining a balanced focus on their children’s resources and autonomy.

European gay fathers via surrogacy: Parenting, social support, anti-gay microaggressions, and child behavior problems.

The present study investigated child behavior problems, parenting styles, coparenting, and couple relationship satisfaction in 67 European gay father families via surrogacy and 67 European heterosexual parent families via unassisted conception, all with children aged 1.5-10 years (M = 3.57 years, SD = 2.09). The two family groups were matched for child age and gender. In the gay father group only, the associations between family anti-gay microaggressions, family/friend support, and other main variables also were explored. Children of gay fathers had fewer externalizing and internalizing problems compared to children of heterosexual parents. Also, gay fathers reported more effective parenting styles, greater coparenting quality, and higher couple relationship satisfaction compared to heterosexual parents. Overall, child externalizing problems (i.e., aggression, rule-breaking) and internalizing problems (i.e., anxiety, depression) were more strongly associated with being raised in a heterosexual parent family, more authoritarian parenting, and lower positive coparenting. Specific to the gay father sample, anti-gay microaggressions experienced by family members were associated with more child internalizing problems, lower positive coparenting, and lower social support from family and friends. These results refute concerns about possible detrimental effects on child development of surrogacy conception or of being raised by gay fathers. The results further suggest that family therapists treating child behavior problems should focus mainly on improving the coparenting relationship, reducing authoritarian/punitive parenting styles, and (for gay father families specifically) coping with anti-gay microaggressions and lack of social support outside the nuclear family.

Assessing Triadic Interactions and the Family Alliance among Belgian Lesbian Mothers and Their Donor-Conceived Children

Both empirical and clinical evidence with heterosexual parents and their biological children has shown the significant influence of early family interactions on children’s socioemotional and cognitive development during their first years. Yet, very little research has applied family-level assessment to families who are diverse with respect to parents’ gender and sexual orientation, and child’s method of conception. The present cross-sectional study compared 24 lesbian mother families with donor-conceived children and 24 heterosexual parent families with spontaneously conceived children with respect to triadic interaction quality and the family alliance (i.e., emotional and interactional coordination during family activities), as observed during the Lausanne Trilogue Play procedure. All parents were first-time parents, White, cisgender, residing in Belgium, had an upper-middle socioeconomic status, and a child aged 3–74 months (M = 21.00, SD = 17.72). Across family types, triadic interactions demonstrated similar scores in each family alliance dimension, characterized by appropriate levels of participation, organization, focalization, and affect sharing. The results have clinical implications for the use of the LTP as both a clinical assessment and a tool to reinforce and intervene with lesbian coparents. Family psychologists may find the results particularly informative when working to support coparenting relationships among diverse families.

Assisted Conception Socialization Self-Efficacy Among Israeli Lesbian, Gay, and Heterosexual Parent Families and its Association with Child Externalizing Problems.

This questionnaire-based study compared 36 Israeli lesbian mother families (n = 72 lesbian mothers) formed by donor insemination, 39 Israeli gay father families (n = 78 gay fathers) formed by gestational surrogacy, and 36 Israeli heterosexual parent families (n = 72 heterosexual parents) formed by assisted reproduction (without donated gametes), all with a target child aged 3–10 years. The families were examined for parents’ assisted conception socialization self-efficacy, depression, negative and positive affect, life satisfaction, positivity, resilience, social support, and child externalizing problems. Multiple factors associated with child externalizing problems were also examined. Multilevel modeling analyses indicated that parents’ assisted conception socialization self-efficacy did not differ between family groups; however, lesbian mothers and gay fathers reported fewer child externalizing problems and greater social support, relative to heterosexual parents. Also, lesbian mothers—but not gay fathers—reported lower levels of depression, greater life satisfaction, and more positivity than did heterosexual parents. Finally, irrespective of family type, greater assisted conception socialization self-efficacy was associated with fewer parent-reported child externalizing problems. Findings are interpreted in light of the cultural socialization framework and Israel’s familistic and pronatalist environment. Implications for health professionals, educators, and policymakers working with diverse family forms are discussed.

Parental sensitivity and intrusiveness in gay-, lesbian-, and heterosexual-parent families with infants conceived using artificial reproductive techniques: Do parents’ gender and caregiver role matter?

The goal of our study was to examine whether differences in the sensitivity and intrusiveness of fathers and mothers from gay-, lesbian-, and heterosexual-parent families (57 French couples, 47 Dutch couples, and 31 British couples) with their first-born infants were explained by gender or caregiver role, while controlling for nesting within families, infant temperament, and twinship. We assessed the sensitivity and intrusiveness of 147 primary caregivers (45 fathers, 102 mothers) and 123 secondary caregivers (68 fathers and 55 mothers). All infants were conceived using assisted reproductive techniques and averaged 4 months of age. They were videotaped at home with both parents while engaged in play, feeding, and other childcare (bathing or changing) and these videotapes were coded for sensitivity and intrusiveness. Information about relative levels of caregiving, infant temperament, and twinship was collected via parent report questionnaires. Mixed linear models showed that sensitivity while playing, cleaning, and feeding were not predicted by parental gender, relative parental involvement, and the interaction between parental gender and parental caregiver role. Models for intrusiveness while playing and feeding showed similar results. However, intrusiveness during cleaning was predicted by parental gender and the interaction between parental gender and caregiver role. Post-hoc analyses showed that secondary caregiving fathers showed more intrusive behavior during cleaning (M = 1.51, SD = 0.09) than secondary caregiving mothers (M = 1.26, SD = 0.10). Our results also showed that contextual factors, such as having singletons or twins, infant temperament, and country of residence were related to parenting behavior. In sum, our findings do not support presumptions that mothers are more capable of providing better quality care than fathers, or that, at this early stage, primary caregiving parents are better attuned to their infants than those who are less involved.

Adoptive Gay Father Families: A Longitudinal Study of Children's Adjustment at Early Adolescence.

Findings are presented from the second phase of a UK longitudinal study of 33 gay father, 35 lesbian mother, and 43 heterosexual parent families when their adopted children reached early adolescence. Participants predominantly lived in urban/suburban areas and were mostly white and well-educated. Standardized interviews, observations, and questionnaires of parental mental health, parent-child relationships, and adolescent adjustment were administered to parents, children, and teachers between 2016 and 2018. There were few differences between family types. However, adjustment problems had increased in all family types, with better parenting quality and parental mental health associated with fewer adjustment problems. The findings contribute to adoption policy and practice, and to theoretical understanding of the role of parental gender in child development.

Determinants of Non-paid Task Division in Gay-, Lesbian-, and Heterosexual-Parent Families With Infants Conceived Using Artificial Reproductive Techniques.

Background: The division of non-paid labor in heterosexual parents in the West is usually still gender-based, with mothers taking on the majority of direct caregiving responsibilities. However, in same-sex couples, gender cannot be the deciding factor. Inspired by Feinberg’s ecological model of co-parenting, this study investigated whether infant temperament, parent factors (biological relatedness to child, psychological adjustment, parenting stress, and work status), and partner relationship quality explained how first-time gay, lesbian, and heterosexual parents divided labor (childcare and family decision-making) when their infants were 4 and 12 months old. We also tested whether family type acted as a moderator.Method: Participants were drawn from the new parents study. Only those who provided information about their biological relatedness to their child (N = 263 parents) were included. When infants were 4 months (T1), parents completed a password-protected online questionnaire exploring their demographic characteristics including work status and standardized online-questionnaires on task division (childcare and family decision-making), infant temperament, parental anxiety, parental depression, parental stress, and partner relationship satisfaction. When infants were 12-months-old (T2), parents provided information about task division and their biological relatedness to their children.Results: Linear mixed models showed that no factor explained the division of family decision making at T1 and T2. For relative time spent on childcare tasks at T1, biological relatedness mattered for lesbian mothers only: biologically related mothers appeared to spend more time on childcare tasks than did non-related mothers. Results showed that, regardless of family type, parents who were not working or were working part-time at T1 performed more childcare tasks at T1. This was still true at T2. The other factors did not significantly contribute to relative time spent on childcare tasks at T2.Conclusion: We had the opportunity to analyze the division of non-paid tasks in families where parenting was necessarily planned and in which gender could not affect that division. Although Feinberg’s model of co-parenting suggests that various factors are related to task division, we found that paid work outside the home was most important during the first year of parenthood in determining caregiving roles.

Identity-based socialization and adopted children’s outcomes in lesbian, gay, and heterosexual parent families

We investigated associations among three parent socialization practices (racial/cultural socialization, adoptive communicative openness, LGBT family socialization) and related child outcomes (social competence, understanding of adoption) among 96 lesbian, gay, and heterosexual adoptive parent families with school-age children (Mage = 8 years). No socialization practices differed as functions of child sex or parental sexual orientation. Parents in transracial (versus same-race) adoptive families reported higher racial/cultural socialization and lower adoptive communicative openness. Higher racial/cultural socialization was associated with higher LGBT family socialization; the latter was also associated with higher adoptive communicative openness. Although no parent-reported socialization practices were associated with children’s understanding of adoption, child-reported LGBT family socialization was correlated with greater understanding. Moreover, when simultaneously considering parent-reported socialization, higher child-reported LGBT family socialization statistically predicted greater social competence. These findings provide insights about how socialization practices relate to one another and to preadolescent child outcomes among adoptive families representing diverse identities.

Widening the lens on family processes and the development of parent-child attachment relationships

ABSTRACTThis commentary addresses the research conducted by McConnachie et al. (this issue) on attachment in gay father families, lesbian mother families, and heterosexual parent families. Strengths of the research included the inclusion of different family constellations, the focus on between-family and within-family differences, the longitudinal research design, and the age-appropriate assessment of attachment. Some limitations noted included the lack of control for age at adoption in analyses, the lack of information on parenting processes and parental mental health in the formation of attachment, and questions about information obtained from parent reports of children’s prior caregiving histories.

Father-child attachment in adoptive gay father families

ABSTRACTThe attachment security of children in 30 gay father families, 29 lesbian mother families and 38 heterosexual parent families was investigated using the Friends and Family Interview (FFI) at the second phase of a longitudinal study. Children in gay father families showed significantly higher levels of secure-autonomous attachment than children in heterosexual parent families, significantly lower levels of preoccupied attachment than children in either lesbian mother or heterosexual parent families, and significantly lower levels of disorganised attachment than children in heterosexual parent families. For children in gay father families, stepwise multiple regression revealed that neither hyperactivity nor emotional symptoms at Phase 1 were predictive of disorganisation at Phase 2. However, when entered alone, Phase 1 emotional symptoms predicted Phase 2 disorganisation. The results indicate that adopted children in gay father families are at least as likely to be securely attached as children in lesbian mother or heterosexual parent families.

Welbevinden van homoseksuele vaders met een kind via draagmoederschap1

Abstract Wellbeing of gay fathers with children born through surrogacy A study of parental wellbeing in the U.K., France, and the Netherlands compared parents in 38 gay father families, 61 lesbian mother families, and 42 heterosexual parent families. In all family types, the parents had just become parents for the first time and had an infant aged around 4 months. The infants in the gay father families were born through surrogacy, and those in the lesbian mother families were conceived after insemination with donor sperm. The heterosexual parent families had used in vitro fertilization without sperm or egg donation. Standardized measures of parental wellbeing (parental stress, psychological adjustment, and partner relationship satisfaction) were used to collect data via a password-protected online survey. Both parents in all families completed the survey. The parents’ scores on the studied variables were similar regardless of family type or caregiver role. The findings of the present study contribute to the theoretical understanding of the role of family type and caregiver role in families whose first child was conceived by means of assisted reproductive technologies, and especially our knowledge of gay fathers who became parents through surrogacy.

Transition to parenthood and quality of parenting among gay, lesbian and heterosexual couples who conceived through assisted reproduction

ABSTRACT Little research has focused on the emotions felt during pregnancy and early parenthood as well as the initial quality of parenting displayed by first-time parents who conceived using assisted reproduction technologies (surrogacy, donor insemination, and in vitro fertilization). Research on primary and secondary caregivers in gay, lesbian, and heterosexual families is especially sparse. The current study examined 35 gay-father families, 58 lesbian-mother families, and 41 heterosexual-parent families with their infants. Families were assessed at home when their infants were 4 months old (±14 days), and each parent participated in an audio-recorded standardized semi-structured interview in which we explored parental feelings during pregnancy, feelings about the parental role, perceived parental competence, the enjoyment of parenthood, expressed warmth, and emotional over-involvement. Heterosexual parents reported less positive feelings in early pregnancy than lesbian parents, while gay parents reported less positive feelings at the end of pregnancy than lesbian mothers and more positive feelings about parenthood during the first post-partum weeks than heterosexual parents. Family type and caregiver role did not interact to affect reported feelings, perceived competence, enjoyment, warmth, and involvement. The present findings elucidate the transition to parenthood among first-time parents who conceived using assisted reproductive technologies.

Not a "mom thing": Predictors of gatekeeping in same-sex and heterosexual parent families.

The current study is the first to examine parental gatekeeping in both same-sex (57 female, 51 male) and heterosexual (n = 82) couples, all of whom became parents via adoption. Aspects of the individual, the couple, and the work context, measured preadoption, were examined as predictors of gatekeeping. Gatekeeping refers to attitudes and behaviors aimed at regulating and limiting the involvement of the other parent in housework and child care and was measured 2 years postadoption. Findings revealed that women in heterosexual relationships reported higher gatekeeping compared with all other groups, and men in same-sex relationships reported higher gatekeeping compared with women in same-sex relationships and men in heterosexual relationships. Across the full sample, lower job autonomy predicted higher gatekeeping in both housework and child care, whereas greater relationship ambivalence, greater perceived parenting skill, and lower perceived partner parenting skill predicted higher gatekeeping in child care. Findings provide insight into how gatekeeping behaviors and beliefs are enacted in diverse types of couples and suggest that work factors should be taken into account when conducting research on, and seeking to improve, coparenting relationships. (PsycINFO Database Record

Parent-school relationships and young adopted children’s psychological adjustment in lesbian-, gay-, and heterosexual-parent families

Almost no research has examined the role of parent-school relationships in relation to child psychological functioning in adoptive families or same-sex parent families, much less same-sex adoptive families. Yet adoptive families, and particularly same-sex adoptive families, may be vulnerable to marginalization in the school setting, which could have implications for child adjustment. Using parent reports, in a sample of 106 lesbian, gay, and heterosexual adoptive parent families with young children (Mage=3.38years at T1 and 5.42 years at T2), this study examined T1 parent-school relationships (school involvement, parent-teacher relationship quality, parent-school contact about child problems, and perceived acceptance by other parents) and adoption-specific school experiences at T1 (i.e., parent input about classroom inclusion and parent-teacher conflicts related to adoptive family status) in relation to children’s later (T2) internalizing and externalizing symptoms, controlling for T1 symptoms. Follow-up analyses assessed these predictors in relation to concurrent (T1) symptoms. Family context and demographic variables were included as controls. Parents’ school involvement was negatively related to later internalizing symptoms; providing input to teachers about inclusion, and parent-teacher conflicts related to adoption, were both positively related to later internalizing symptoms. Perceived acceptance by other parents was negatively related to later internalizing and externalizing symptoms. School-initiated contact about child problems more strongly predicted higher externalizing symptoms in same-sex parent families than heterosexual parent families. Cross-sectional analyses (T1 predictors in relation to T1 child outcomes) revealed a somewhat different set of findings: most notably, parents’ school involvement was negatively related to externalizing symptoms. Findings have implications for early childhood educators and school administrators who seek to improve diverse family-school partnerships to enhance children’s emotional and behavioral well-being.

Contact with birth family in adoptive families headed by lesbian, gay male, and heterosexual parents

In this study, we examined the extent and type of contact with birth family in adoptive families headed by sexual minority and heterosexual parents prior to or at the time of placement, following placement, and currently. Data were drawn from the Modern Adoptive Families project, a nationwide, non-random survey of adoptive parents' beliefs and experiences that was conducted from 2012 to 2013. The current sample consisted of 671 families headed by heterosexual parents, 111 families headed by lesbian parents, and 98 families headed by gay male parents whose oldest adopted child was less than 18years old and who was placed domestically either from the public child welfare system or from a private agency or independent adoption facilitator. For child welfare adoptions, sexual minority parents reported higher levels of contact and tended to have more positive relationships with birth family compared to heterosexual parents. Fewer differences by family type were found for private agency adoptions. Higher rates of contact and more positive relationships with birth family were found for private domestic placements compared to those from foster care. Secondary analyses suggest that family demographic and adoption placement differences between sexual minority- and heterosexual-parent families do not account for family type differences in contact with birth family. Policy and practice implications are discussed.

Dutch adolescents from lesbian-parent families: How do they compare to peers with heterosexual parents and what is the impact of homophobic stigmatization?

In this study, we compared internalizing and externalizing problem behavior of 67 Dutch adolescents (Mage = 16.04) in planned lesbian families who were matched with 67 adolescents in heterosexual-parent families. We also examined whether homophobic stigmatization was associated with problem behavior in adolescents with lesbian mothers after taking into account demographic characteristics, mothers' scores on emotional involvement, and adolescents' earlier problem behavior (measured at age 4–8 years old). Standardized instruments measuring problem behavior were completed by parents and adolescent offspring, and questions about stigmatization were answered by adolescents with lesbian mothers. The results revealed no differences in internalizing and externalizing problem behavior associated with family type. Offspring in lesbian families who reported more experiences of homophobic stigmatization also demonstrated more internalizing and externalizing problem behavior.

Lesbian and Heterosexual Two-Parent Families: Adolescent–Parent Relationship Quality and Adolescent Well-Being

This study compared 51 adolescents from intact two-mother planned lesbian families (all conceived through donor insemination) with 51 adolescents from intact mother–father families on their relationships with their parents (parental control, disclosure to parents, and adolescent–parent relationship quality), psychological adjustment (self-esteem, social anxiety, and conduct problems), and substance usage (consumption of tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana/hashish). The adolescents (average age 16 years) were matched on demographic characteristics (age, gender, educational level, country of birth, parental birth country) with a sample from a large school-based survey, and data were collected by means of adolescent self-reports. Analyses indicated that adolescents in both family types had positive relationships with their parents, which were favorably associated with psychological well-being. On the assessments of psychological adjustment and substance use, family type was significantly associated only with self-esteem and conduct problems: Adolescents with lesbian mothers had higher levels of self-esteem and lower levels of conduct problems than their counterparts in heterosexual-parent families. Overall, the findings indicate that adolescents from intact two-mother lesbian families are comparable to those in a matched comparison group with intact mother–father families. The few differences found on psychological well-being favored the adolescents in lesbian two-mother families.