An Examination of Gay and Lesbians Adoption as Parents

Like families headed by heterosexual parents, lesbian and gay parents and their children are a diverse group. Unlike heterosexual parents and their children, however, lesbian and gay parents and their children are often subject to prejudice because of sexual orientation that turns judges, legislators, professionals, and the public against them, frequently resulting in negative outcomes such as loss of physical custody, restrictions on visitation, and prohibitions against adoption. As with all socially stigmatized groups, the beliefs held generally in society about lesbians and gay men are often not based in personal experience, but are instead culturally transmitted.

Because many beliefs about lesbian and gay parents and their children are open to experiential test, psychological research can evaluate their accuracy. Organized research comparing lesbian and gay adults to heterosexual adults only began in the late 1950s, and research-comparing children of gay and lesbian parents with those of heterosexual parents is of a more recent time. Research on lesbian and gay adults began with Evelyn Hooker's landmark study (1957) and culminated with the declassification of homosexuality as a mental disorder in 1973. Case reports on children of gay and lesbian parents began to appear in the psychiatric literature in the early 1970s and have continued to appear. Beginning with the original work of Martin and Lyon (1972), first person and fictionalized descriptions of life in lesbian mother families have also become available. Organized research on the children of lesbian and gay parents did not, however, begin to appear in major professional journals until 1978, and most of the available research has been published more recently.

One belief that often underlies both judicial decision-making in custody litigation and public policies governing foster care and adoption has been the belief that lesbians and gay men are not fit to be parents. In particular, courts have sometimes assumed that gay men and lesbians are mentally ill, that lesbians are less maternal than heterosexual women, and that lesbians' and gay men's relationships with sexual partners leave little time for ongoing parent-child interactions. Results of research to date have failed to confirm any of these beliefs.

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The psychiatric, psychological, and social work professions do not consider homosexual orientation to be a mental disorder. More than 20 years ago, the American Psychiatric Association removed "homosexuality" from its list of mental disorders, stating, "Homosexuality implies no impairment in judgment, stability, reliability, or general social or vocational capabilities. In 1975, the American Psychological Association took the same position and urged all mental health professionals to help dispel the stigma of mental illness that had long been associated with homosexual orientation. The National Association of Social Workers has a similar policy.

The decision to remove homosexual orientation from the list of mental disorders reflects the results of broad research, conducted over three decades, showing that homosexual orientation is not a psychological maladjustment. The social and other circumstances, in which lesbians and gay men live, including exposure to widespread prejudice and discrimination, often cause acute distress; but there is no reliable evidence that homosexual orientation impairs psychological functioning.

Beliefs that gay and lesbian adults are not fit parents likewise have no practical foundation. Lesbian and heterosexual women have not been found to differ noticeably either in their overall mental health or in their approaches to child rearing, nor have lesbians' romantic and sexual relationships with other women been found to detract from their ability to care for their children.

Recent evidence suggests that lesbian couples that are parenting together tend to divide household and family labor relatively evenly and to report satisfaction with their couple relationships. Research on gay fathers has similarly found no reason to believe them unfit as parents.

In addition to judicial concerns about gay and lesbian parents themselves, courts have voiced three major kinds of fears about effects of lesbian or gay parents on children.

The first general concern is that development of sexual identity will be impaired among children of lesbian or gay parents for instance, that children brought up by gay fathers or lesbian mothers will show disturbances in gender identity and/or in gender role behavior. It has also been suggested that children brought up by lesbian mothers or gay fathers will themselves become gay or lesbian.

A second category of concerns involves aspects of children's personal development other than sexual identity. For example, courts have expressed fears that children in the custody of gay or lesbian parents will be more vulnerable to mental breakdown, will exhibit more adjustment difficulties and behavior problems, and will be less psychologically healthy than children growing up in homes with heterosexual parents.

A third category of specific fears expressed by the courts is that children of lesbian and gay parents may experience difficulties in social relationships. For example, judges have repeatedly expressed concern that children living with lesbian mothers may be stigmatized, teased, or otherwise disturbed by peers. Another common fear is that children living with gay or lesbian parents may be more likely to be sexually abused by the parent or by the parent's friends or acquaintances. This is all not true; its just another excuse not to give adoption rights to homosexuals.

In conclusion I believe, there is no evidence to suggest that lesbians and gay men are unfit to be parents. In my family we have three gay couples, they all have children and do a great job. One couple already had children before they got married and their children were old enough to understand. The second couple, decided to adopt a teenager. It was hard for the child to get used to it, but once he matured he was ok. Now the third couple I really cant say much about. They just decided to adopt a baby three months ago. But I hear they are doing just fine. As long as when the child gets older they explain how things are there is no problem. Not a single study has found children of gay or lesbian parents to be disadvantaged in any significant respect relative to children of heterosexual parents. Indeed, the evidence to date suggests that home environments provided by gay and lesbian parents are as likely as those provided by heterosexual parents to support and enable children's psychosocial growth.

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