Gay Parents Research Articles

Intentional Kinship through Caring Relationships, Heritage, and Identity: Adoptive Parents’ Inclusion of Non-Biological and Non-Affinal Relationships on Family Maps

Structural open adoption has been beneficial to adoptees in integrating their birth heritage and identity. Adoptive parents also may sometimes seek out others who are neither related biologically nor through partnership to support their child in developing an integrated sense of identity. To what extent do these intentional kinship relationships become incorporated within the adoptive family network and how do adoptive parents view their role in their child’s life? Qualitative data on family inclusion of non-biological and non-affinal kin are reported from interviews with lesbian, gay, bisexual, and heterosexual adoptive parents (n = 25 families). Analyses of verbal and visual data from family map drawing interviews indicated that adoptive parents from the different types of families similarly included intentional kin in their conceptualization of their child’s family. Adopted children’s foster carers, family friends, other adoptive families, and other children and adults were specifically included on family maps to facilitate children’s knowledge of different aspects of their birth heritage and adoption story. The implications of open adoption policy therefore move beyond considerations of only birth family contact. In practice, open adoption procedures convey a broad message to families that appear to widen adoptive parents’ conceptualization of kinship.

Homophobie intériorisée, homoparentalité et développement de l’enfant : une revue systématique de la littérature

In France, more than three million people claim to be homosexual or bisexual and 200,000 to 300,000 children would have a homosexual parent(s). Same-sex parenting is at the centre of many sociopolitical debates. Over the last few decades, there has been an increase in scientific research in this area. This systematic review of the literature has two main objectives: 1) to identify the effects of internalized homophobia on mental health and social adjustment of homosexual parents; 2) to identify the effects of internalized homophobia on psychological and social development of children with a homosexual parent(s). The research that was performed on a total of 87,840 scientific publications on homoparentality, retrieved from computerized scientific databases: SciELO, PubMed, PsycINFO, SCOPUS, Medline, ProQuest and Web of Science. In this study, 79 empirical and experimental studies were selected that were published between 1971 and 2020. The analysis of data shows that internalized homophobia causes psychological disturbances in gay parents and their children. Parents’ sexual orientation does not appear to have negative effects on the child's cognitive and emotional development or on their sexual orientation. The internalization of homophobia is an obstacle to social adjustment and the perceived health of homosexual families. Further studies in this area are required for better identification of factors that promote the internalization of homophobia.

Revisiting the dominant coming out discourses in China’s LGBT activism and research: Lesbians’ chugui experiences within the family

This article, by illustrating coming-out stories of lesbians and their families, inspired by and extending Amy Brainer’s theorization of LGBT family of origin relationships based on her studies in Taiwan, critically revisits the dominant coming-out discourses in the LGBT activism and research in contemporary mainland China. I first argue that, although the belief that the Western-rooted idea of coming out and Chinese family traditions are incompatible is influential within China’s LGBT activist circles, what is seldom recognized is that “chugui”, the Chinese translation of “coming out”, has already become a local term. However, grassroots but creative definitions of “chugui”, such as “to cultivate a better parent-child relationship”, is rejected by LGBT activist elites. I then point out an imbalance in China’s LGBT research that mainly pays attention to strategies of not coming out to parents, which actually underestimates parents’ agency and even otherizes parents in the name of “filial piety”. Rather, the emerging liberalistic ideal of family relationships, especially mother-daughter relationships, enables coming-out practices to become intersubjective journeys for both LGBT children and their parents to rethink gender and sexuality. Finally, I criticize the narrowly defined “family”, or “home”, in China’s dominant coming-out discourses, which disproportionately focuses on one’s family of origin and presumes it as a heteronormative fortress. I call for studies that recognize queer empathy and solidarity in a family of origin and connects one’s experiences in her family of origin with her later life in chosen families, which may be the family of origin of her child(ren).

P–508 The relational self in fertility decision-making: Chinese lesbians exploring donor conception and biological ties

Abstract Study question How does the cultural importance attached to biological family ties shape Chinese lesbians’ decision-making processes regarding whether and how to have children? Summary answer The cultural significance of biological ties shapes Chinese lesbians’ fertility decisions, including those regarding conception methods, who will get pregnant, and whose sperm to use. What is known already Previous research has shown that normative expectations towards opposite-sex marriage and biological parenthood impose significant psychological burden on lesbians in China, where same-sex couples are not entitled to the rights to partnership/marriage, assisted reproductive technology (ART), and parenthood. Despite the legal barriers, online discussions on same-sex parenthood and commercial consultation services targeted at same-sex couples who want to travel overseas to use ART have emerged in recent years. While more lesbians have become parents of donor conceived children in Western developed countries, little is known about Chinese lesbians’ reproductive experiences in the context of increasing reproductive transactions that transgress borders. Study design, size, duration In-depth, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 35 Chinese lesbians between July 2017 and June 2018 in Beijing, China. To better understand the context and social and clinical implications of global ART services for Chinese society, I also carried out participant observation by attending informal gatherings organised by the local lesbian community and public events targeted at (same-sex) individuals and couples who want to travel overseas to use ART and producing fieldnotes after the events. Participants/materials, setting, methods Participants were aged between 25 to 45. The majority were in their thirties. Each interview took around 2 hours and was audio-recorded and transcribed. The interview guide covered questions about their family beliefs, views on and/or experiences of donor conception, and perceived and actual difficulties in pursuing motherhood. With the assistance of NVivo (a qualitative data analysis software), I carried out thematic analysis of the interviews and fieldnotes to identify common patterns across the dataset. Main results and the role of chance Participants shared a belief that being biologically connected with their (prospective) children was, to varying extents, important to their families. They were at different stages of fertility decision-making, ranging from achieved motherhood (8 participants), actively planning to pursue motherhood (9), hesitation in taking action (11), and a lack of interest in or hope of becoming a mother (7). Almost all participants expressed that they did not prefer adoption and that they were reluctant to involve known sperm donors, who were considered a threat to their parental status. Rather, they were inclined to seek ART overseas in order to create their desired biological ties in a clinical setting. Issues including donor screening, desire for family resemblances, the status of biological and social mothers, and plans to purchase sperms from the same donor to conceive “siblings” were discussed in the interviews. It is evident that when deciding on whether to have a child and how to involve any third parties, participants tended to embrace the relational self and carefully balance individuals desires with familial and social expectations. The felt need to legitimise their relationships with donor conceived children imposes psychological burden on lesbian intended parents and discourages many from pursuing motherhood. Limitations, reasons for caution The findings of this qualitative study are not intended to be generalised to the whole lesbian population in China. Given the hidden nature of this population, my research, despite its small sample size, represents a significant step forward and calls for more quantitative and qualitative studies on lesbians’ fertility health. Wider implications of the findings: This study shows that lesbians’ journeys to donor conception require not only medical and legal support but also psychosocial care that attends to one’s perceived importance of biological ties and family beliefs. It sensitises healthcare professionals to the specific fertility-related psychosocial needs and concerns among lesbians in a family-centred context. Trial registration number Not applicable

Lesbian and Gay Parents, Heterosexual Kinship, and Queer Dreams: Making Families in Twenty-First Century Taiwan

Abstract This article analyzes ways that legal and social understandings of kinship intersect for Taiwanese queer parents and prospective parents. Parents in this research experience varying degrees of legal and cultural intelligibility within the existing household registration system and the familial contexts in which they reside and carry out their daily lives. Many are rearing children in multigenerational, extended family households and are juggling a variety of gendered family roles and responsibilities that shape their parenting practices. Their experiences highlight the limits of rights discourses that treat marriage and parenthood as largely class- and gender-neutral institutions and presuppose a nuclear family model. Such uncritical approaches to marriage and parenthood leave the normative power of these systems intact even as they provisionally open to greater numbers of people. The article foregrounds pathways to parenthood and struggles for legal recognition among queers in a variety of family arrangements, including those that do not fit within the conventional representation of a cohabiting and marriage-desiring same-sex couple with children.

Changing Social Context and Queer Recruitment Panics

Following the Supreme Court’s decision on marriage equality, a sense of “mission accomplished” quickly shifted focus away from the legal concerns of same-sex families. One year later, legal uncertainties remain for LGBT parents and children, resulting in differing access to and use of familial rights across states.

Juventude periférica, gênero, sexualidade e violência de Estado: notas a partir de uma família LGBT na cidade de São Paulo

Esta análise busca explorar etnograficamente questões relacionadas à Família Stronger, coletivo LGBTQIA + da periferia de São Paulo. Famílias LGBT como a Stronger surgem no bojo de um processo de ocupação e deslocamento dissidente no espaço urbano da metrópole paulistana, especialmente a partir do fim do século XX. No âmbito de uma longa pesquisa etnográfica com essa família, exploro alguns de seus caminhos na construção de laços políticos relacionados à vivência citadina, inclusive em sua relação com outros coletivos. Argumento que a ocupação de determinados espaços opera como fator importante na constituição de sentidos geracionais dentro do grupo. Por fim, analisando dois casos distintos de assassinato de adolescentes que representaram nós cruciais no processo de politização das famílias LGBT e detonam uma ocupação específica do espaço público, reflito sobre como a participação política da Família Stronger é Autor0000-00-00T00:00:00Aconstruída em relação à violência contra corpos LGBTQIA+ nos espaços citadinos.

Legislating political space for LGBT families: The 2018 referendum on the definition of family in Romania

AbstractAs marriage is defined in post‐socialist Romania as the union of two spouses and not specifically between a man and a woman, the legalisation of homosexuality in 2002 created the possibility for legal same‐sex marriage and for a more inclusive sexual citizenship. By 2018, a political alliance mobilised a referendum to redefine marriage in a way that would make families headed by same‐sex couples impossible. LGBT rights organisations and others who promote a more tolerant society urged Romanian citizens to boycott the vote. Eventually, due to a missing quorum the referendum was invalidated leaving the definition of marriage as it was – between two spouses. With a mix of qualitative and quantitative methods, we analyse the way that this referendum functioned as a test of the re‐definition of family within the post‐socialist Romanian political space. The failure of this legislation then leads to our central question – were Romanians acting to promote a more tolerant and inclusive definition of family or were they merely reacting against the politicians, religious, and other influential groups who initiated the referendum? First, discourse analysis presents the various sets of ideas employed by actors involved for and against the referendum. Then we conduct a spatial analysis to reveal the territorial articulations of obedience to vote (voter turn‐out) and the results of voting along with other demographic characteristics. Even though the majority of the population with the right to vote preferred to boycott the referendum, our research demonstrates the spatial articulation of attitudes towards LGBT families showing that in Romania there are five overlapping discourses: the tolerant, the politically conformant, the homophobic, the passive rural, and the homosexual.

Reproductive Ethics and Family

Reproductive Ethics and Family

Perceptions of family acceptance into the military community among U.S. LGBT service members: A mixed-methods study

LAY SUMMARY There are approximately 16,000 families of lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) service members in the U.S. military, but very little is known about how accepted they feel in the communities in which they live. This study begins to address this question by considering the perspectives of LGBT service members, which they shared both in response to an online survey and in interviews. Findings suggest that many service members believe their spouses and families are accepted by their chain of command. However, a smaller but important group continued to express concerns about their family being accepted in their military community. Many service members appear concerned that family services available to them through the military are not appropriate for LGBT families. Altogether, this article highlights the need for more research to understand the well-being and needs of this group.

Early childhood administrators’ use of and beliefs about inclusive practices for gay and lesbian families

This qualitative study utilized purposive sampling across the state of North Carolina to examine the practices of early childhood administrators in creating centers that were inclusive to gay and lesbian headed families. Data from four open-ended questions were analyzed to consider the use of picture books, promotional materials, and training for staff that were lesbian and gay parent focused. As well, a fourth question that asked for any feedback the participants wished to share revealed underlying beliefs and values of the NC administrators. Results indicated a continuum of practices that tended toward heterosexism and homophobia with limited lesbian and gay affirming practices reported. Implications include the need to increase training availability, increase LGBT content in early childhood preparation programs, and creation of policies that are inclusive to lesbian and gay headed families in early childhood settings.

Sensitivity and rough-and-tumble play in gay and heterosexual single-father families through surrogacy: The role of microaggressions and fathers’ rumination.

Sensitivity and rough-and-tumble play in gay and heterosexual single-father families through surrogacy: The role of microaggressions and fathers’ rumination.

Deconstructing the Textual Representation of the Fathers in the Fantasy Picturebook One Dad, Two Dads, Brown Dad, Blue Dads (1994)

This paper aims to explore the linguistic and visual choices used by the writer and the illustrator in order to create meaning in the fantasy picturebook One Dad, Two Dads, Brown Dad, Blue Dads (1994), written by Johnny Valentine and illustrated by Melody Sarecky, which features a gay family. The analytical tools employed in this study to deconstruct meanings in the said picturebook are Kress and van Leeuwen’s (2006) Visual Social Semiotics and Painter et al.’s (2013) model to read visual narratives in children’s picturebooks. The analysis concentrates on the textual and compositional metafunctions in order to observe the intersemiotic relationship between verbal and visual meanings and their realizations through various linguistic and visual modes. The methodology is qualitative-descriptive. One Dad, Two Dads, Brown Dad, Blue Dads reveals that both visuals and written text narrate the story, although it is the visual that is given a predominant role on the page due to its size, the location of the characters and the frames. The analysis shows that this is a picturebook in which having two fathers is represented as nonnormalized, although they perform their family duties as they are expected to because they do the same things that other fathers do.

Different Placement Practices for Different Families? Children's Adjustment in LGH Adoptive Families.

ObjectiveThe purpose of this study was to examine the characteristics of children placed with lesbian, gay, and heterosexual adopters, and to examine children’s problem behaviors and positive psychosocial adjustment across the three family types.BackgroundThere is evidence that children with hard-to-place profiles may be more likely to be matched with lesbian and gay parents. In addition, children adopted from care face greater developmental difficulties than children raised by their birth families, although adoptive parents may buffer the negative effects of early adversity on their children’s psychosocial adjustment.MethodA final sample of 149 adoptive families from across the United Kingdom was recruited: 71 heterosexual parented, 39 lesbian parented, and 39 gay parented.ResultsThe results showed that gay and lesbian parents were more likely than heterosexual parents to be matched with hard-to-place children, partially because they were more open to being matched with children with hard-to-place profiles. However, no differences among the three family types on children’s psychosocial adjustment were found, when controlling for children’s early adversity.ConclusionAdopted children displayed similar levels of problem behaviors and positive adjustment in lesbian, gay, and heterosexual parented families. Early adversity and having a physical problem/disability accounted for much of the variance in problem behaviors whereas parenting did not. In contrast, it was suggested that parenting processes, namely, parental closeness, may help to explain children’s positive adjustment.

Sexualities and class in transnational family practices of LGB migrants in Belgium and the Netherlands

The present paper focuses on transnational families of lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) migrants and addresses their peculiar absence in sociological and geographical perspectives across migrations, families and sexualities research. It draws from a study of middle-class LGB migrants who are married or raising children with a same-sex partner in Belgium and the Netherlands and their parents still residing in select Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries with constitutional protection of heterosexual marriage. The goal of the study is to examine how intersections of class and sexualities shape CEE LGB migrants’ trajectories and transnational family practices. The analysis is based on one life story, situated in a comparative framework. The present study approaches the middle-class experiences and non-normative sexualities of CEE migrants as continuously reappearing and disappearing privileges and disadvantages. From this viewpoint, the study highlights class advantages as consistently alleviating the disadvantages of non-normative sexualities, but also simultaneously bringing both further restrictions and additional benefits to the married CEE LGB migrants, particularly those with children. These restrictions are best reflected in the limits to further mobilities that stem from the risk of losing extensive legal protection of same-sex partnership and parenting. The benefits further extending class advantages are identifiable in the intensification of transnational family practices following planned same-sex parenthood. These not only transform and strengthen the intimacies of CEE LGB migrants with their families-of-origin, but they also contribute to shifting assumptions of ‘normal’ familyhood, particularly in relation to technology-assisted reproduction, social parenthood and the nurturer roles.

“I Cannot Wait to Build that One Day”: Lesbian and Bisexual College-Age Women’s Views on Marriage and Family

After the US Supreme Court ruled in favor of marriage equality in 2015, the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community has gained visibility. One cohort that is affected by this decision is lesbian and bisexual college-age women. The present study, through six face-to-face semi-structured interviews with self-identifying lesbian and bisexual college-age women, sought to understand how these women view marriage and family. Three themes emerged are: (a) Heteronormative socialization, (b) Personal endorsement of marriage, and (c) LGBT Parenting. The results of this study suggest that college-age women still carry the effects of growing up and entering adulthood in a largely heteronormative society, endorse marriage as an institution, and find profound personal meaning in the prospect of forming a family. Even in the face of protracted legal battles that are eventually won, the humanity of individual and personal motivation remains the most salient factor in forming bonds and building families.

Social Inclusion or Gender Equality? Political Discourses on Parental Leave in Finland and Sweden

During the 2010s, both Finland and Sweden made advancements in their parental leave systems by widening the right to paid parental leave to a greater diversity of family constellations and investing in gender-equal leave distribution through longer leave periods reserved for the father. However, in the latter respect, Sweden has remained more successful than Finland. This article analyses government and political party discourses in Finland and Sweden during the 2010s in pursuit of an explanation to this difference and for understanding how ideas on social inclusion and gender equality have been used to drive, or block, policy reforms in the field of parental leave. The results show that the parental leave discourses have become influenced by ideas on social inclusion and gender equality in both countries, but in somewhat different ways. While gender equality has retained a stronger position in the Swedish discourse and its policy, social inclusion, and notably the rights of same-sex parents, have become more visible in the Finnish. However, the results also show that both ideas have remained contested on a party level, especially by confessional and nationalist-populist parties.

Parental Leave Reforms in Finland 1977–2019 from a Diversity Perspective

In Finland, all parents, regardless of gender, are eligible for parental leave and there are no restrictive eligibility criteria. In practice, however, the statutory leave options are not equally available to all parents. Since the 1970s, steps have been taken in redesigning the leave scheme to make it more inclusive. Several reforms have been made to promote equality, mainly between women and men, but also between diverse families, such as adoptive families, multiple-birth families or same-sex parent families. The ‘demotherisation’ of parental-leave rights has slowly shifted the focus from biological mothers to fathers and non-biological parents. In the most recent reforms, the focus has widened from equality between parents to include equality between children regardless of the form of the family that they are born or adopted into.

Father–child bonding and mental health in gay fathers using cross-border surrogacy during the COVID-19 pandemic

Research questionWhat are the psychological implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for father–child bonding and mental health among Italian gay fathers pursuing surrogacy in the USA or Canada? DesignBetween 20 March and 29 July 2020, this cross-sectional case–control study collected data on father–child bonding quality, depression, anxiety and somatization in 30 Italian gay fathers (n=15 families) who were having or successfully had a child through cross-border surrogacy during the COVID-19 pandemic. These fathers were compared with a sociodemographically similar group of 50 Italian gay fathers (n=25 families) who had children through cross-border surrogacy prior to the pandemic. ResultsAlthough father–child bonding quality and the mental health symptoms of fathers scored below the clinical cut-off points in both groups, fathers who had or were having a child during the COVID-19 pandemic reported poorer father–child bonding (estimate 3.04, SE 1.47, P=0.044) and more depressive (estimate –1.47, SE 0.49, P=0.005), anxious (estimate –1.96, SE 0.55, P<0.001) and somatic symptoms (estimate –2.48, SE 0.52, P<0.001). ConclusionsThe findings call for the development of international guidelines for cross-border surrogacy and underline the need for tailored and ongoing psychological and legal support for intended gay fathers to ease their strain and anxiety related to having a child through cross-border surrogacy during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Early Pension Claiming and Expected Longevity: A Register-Based Study on the Take-up of the Partial Old-Age Pension in Finland

Abstract As of February 2017, Finns have been able to claim a partial old-age pension early at age 61 independent of their working hours or earnings. Focusing on the take-up of the partial old-age pension in Finland, this article investigates whether early pension claiming is associated with expected longevity. We assume parental longevity to signal expected longevity. We use total register data on those eligible to claim a partial pension at age 61 in 2018 or 2019 and link this data to the information on their parents’ birth and death dates. To our knowledge, there exists no previous register-based study that uses parental longevity to explain pension claiming behavior. Since the longevity of the same-sex parent in particular influences subjective life expectancy, the variables of interest were the same-sex parent being alive and the age (at death) of the same-sex parent. The baseline results show a negative connection between the same-sex parent being alive and claiming. The connection disappears after controlling for gender, but the negative connection between the age (at death) of the same-sex parent and the claiming remains significant in a fully adjusted model. Known risk factors for shorter longevity, such as being male, having a lower income and wealth, also increase the likelihood of claiming. The results indicate that people take their expected longevity into account when making pension claiming decisions. This may hold critical implications for actuarial neutrality, the key assumption of the pension system design, and can lead to an unexpected increase in public pension expenditure.