Kids of same-sex parents: normal

[craichead 0]

Kids of same-sex parents

On measures of psychosocial well-being, school functioning and romantic relationships and behaviors, teens with same-sex parents are as well-adjusted as their peers with opposite-sex parents, a new study finds. A more important predictor of teens' psychological and social adjustment, it found, is the quality of the relationships they have with their parents.

"This is the first study that has looked at adolescents with same-sex parents in a national sample, and it shows clearly across a wide range of variables that they're doing pretty well," said study author Charlotte J. Patterson, a professor of psychology at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville.

The research, published in the November issue of Child Development, draws data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, a school-based study of the health-related behaviors of kids in Grades 7 through 12.

Appeared as part of this article:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/features/health/chi-0411210549nov21,1,6715833,print.story

_Pm

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"Scared of love, love and aeroplanes...falling out, I said takes no brains." -- Andy Partridge (XTC)

[jjiimmyyt 0]

I don't think it matters if your parents are 2 men, 2 women, 1 of each. If they love you and raise you right thats what counts. Respect each other, each others ideas. You don't have to agree with everyone all the time.

End result: Balanced indivduals in the world who get on.

"This isn't an iron lung, people. You can actually disconnect and not die." -Dave

[christelsabine 1]

Very fine said.
I agree 100 percent.

dudeist skydiver # 3105

[ChasingBlueSky 0]

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I don't think it matters if your parents are 2 men, 2 women, 1 of each. If they love you and raise you right thats what counts. Respect each other, each others ideas. You don't have to agree with everyone all the time.

End result: Balanced indivduals in the world who get on.

This is what cracks me up - people are worried that homosexuals are going to destroy marriage and kids. If you think about it, the traditional setup is failing already - 51% divorce rate and a slew of really fucked up kids all across this country.

I agree with you Jimmy - as long as their is love, the kids will do fine. They may even be more well adjusted than the average kid simply because they will have grown up in an open-minded environment.

Personally? I wished almost every single day while growing up that my parents would get divorced just so I didn't have to listen to them fight every day. Yes. It was every day.

_________________________________________
you can burn the land and boil the sea, but you can't take the sky from me....
I WILL fly again.....

[craichead 0]

Yah, I agree, too. However, as you well know, there are some people here who claim that most, if not all children of same-sex parents turn out emotionally damaged simply because their parents are the same sex. Just wanted to post information showing evidence against that baseless theory!
Just as a footnote to the original post: the study appeared in the December 2004 issue of Child Development, not the November issue as the article stated.

_Pm

Here's the abstract:

http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/links/doi/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2004.00823.x/abs/

Child Development
Volume 75 Issue 6 Page 1886 - December 2004
doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.2004.00823.x

Psychosocial Adjustment, School Outcomes, and Romantic Relationships of Adolescents With Same-Sex Parents
Jennifer L. Wainright, Stephen T. Russell, and Charlotte J. Patterson

This study examined associations among family type (same-sex vs. opposite-sex parents); family and relationship variables; and the psychosocial adjustment, school outcomes, and romantic attractions and behaviors of adolescents. Participants included 44 12- to 18-year-old adolescents parented by same-sex couples and 44 same-aged adolescents parented by opposite-sex couples, matched on demographic characteristics and drawn from a national sample. Normative analyses indicated that, on measures of psychosocial adjustment and school outcomes, adolescents were functioning well, and their adjustment was not generally associated with family type. Assessments of romantic relationships and sexual behavior were not associated with family type. Regardless of family type, adolescents whose parents described closer relationships with them reported better school adjustment.

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"Scared of love, love and aeroplanes...falling out, I said takes no brains." -- Andy Partridge (XTC)

[MC208B 0]

actually, kids in that situation have only one parent, the other person isn't a parent.

I would speculate that these kids get lots of shit from their peers in school since kids are generally cruel to "different" kids.

[billvon 3,118]

>there are some people here who claim that most, if not all children of
> same-sex parents turn out emotionally damaged simply because their
> parents are the same sex.

I think there are a great many people who feel threatened by homosexuals. I think much of the "they will corrupt children" thing is their projection of their fears onto children. "Gays make my skin crawl; how can a child grow up normally with his skin crawling all the time?" A secondary fear that some have is that gay parents will encourage their child to be gay (or at least make it acceptable for him to do so) - and if you start with the premise that gays are evil and morally corrupt, then it follows that gay parents might corrupt children.

[billvon 3,118]

>actually, kids in that situation have only one parent, the other person isn't a parent.

If a father of two dies, and his wife remarries, would you claim that the child in such a family has only one parent? An odd definition, one not shared by most people.

[AndyMan 7]

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the other person isn't a parent.

I presume adopted kids have no parents?

I think most would disagree.

_Am

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You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

[PhillyKev 0]

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actually, kids in that situation have only one parent, the other person isn't a parent.

Hmmm...if two men adopt a child, which one is the parent and which isn't?

That ridiculous notion flies in the face of tradition. I hear people claiming same sex parents are bad for kids, go against society, etc. etc. Well, up until fairly recently most kids were raised by extended families including neighbors. Being specifically raised by the two people who coppulated to produce you is a fairly recent invention.

[MC208B 0]

Bill, I'm not making any presumption at all about what adults think. Kids will be messed with by other kids because of "gay parents", really, it happens.

[PhillyKev 0]

Kids will be messed with by other kids because of fill in the blank, really, it happens.

[AndyMan 7]

Kids get shit from other kids for lots of different reasons, most of which are beyond anyones control.

As the study shows, despite this they turn out quite normal.

_Am

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You put the fun in "funnel" - craichead.

[billvon 3,118]

>Kids will be messed with by other kids because of "gay parents", really, it happens.

I agree that they will get shit. I got shit because my mother was a teacher. George got shit because he was black. Uneal got shit because he wasn't catholic like 99% of the other kids at the high school I went to. That doesn't mean that there is any problem with parents who are teachers, or black, or Hindu.

[tigra 0]

Kids can be cruel in general! And most kids are "different" in one way or another! I'll bet if you did a poll here, most would admit to having been teased in school for one of the following reasons (or any number of different reasons) being too fat, too thin, too smart, too dumb, wearing glasses, having pimples, dressing funny, being poor, being rich, bringing our own lunch every day, buying lunch in the cafeteria everyday, farting in class, puking on the teachers desk, getting rides to school with our mom's, having to ride the bus to school everyday, and I know I left stuff out! Even the "popular" kids had their bad days!

Arguing that gay people shouldn't raise kids because they'll be teased by other kids is one of the most ridiculous things I have ever heard! Sorry!

[MC208B 0]

Actually, up until fairly recently, kids were raised by both of their biological parents. That all started to change in the late 60's early 70's.

This "extended family" "it takes a village to raise a child" mumbo jumbo is the recent developement.

Adopted parents if the childs biological parents die? Well, they're adopted parents.

If mom runs off with another woman or dad runs off with another man, then the child still has only two parents, their real mom and dad.

My X wife and her husband are mom and jay, the stepdad. My GF and I are dad and my GF. My X wife and I are are childrens parents.

Before any of you start spouting off about fear, hate, etc. save your keystrokes. I have nothing against gay people at all.

I just have a "gut feeling" that in spite of all this emperical data about gay parents, the kids will be getting shit from other kids that know about it. Cause that's what kids do.

[MC208B 0]

I'm not arguing against gay parents or anything else, I'm just stating that kids living with gay COUPLES will be fucked with and probably a lot more than if they're fat, skinny, etc

[Falko 0]

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I just have a "gut feeling" that in spite of all this emperical data about gay parents, the kids will be getting shit from other kids that know about it. Cause that's what kids do.

Good! Then they will learn to distinguish the assholes from the real friends early.
A skill that will prove to be most helpful later in life.

Ich betrachte die Religion als Krankheit, als Quelle unnennbaren Elends für die menschliche Rasse.
(Bertrand Russell, engl. Philosoph, 1872-1970)

[christelsabine 1]

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I just have a "gut feeling" that in spite of all this emperical data about gay parents, the kids will be getting shit from other kids that know about it. Cause that's what kids do.

If "parents" are able to give/teach their kids self-confidence, it will not matter if these parents are man/woman or something else. I was a gipsy kid. In my opinion, every kid around me had blue eyes, blond hair. I was dark haired, black eyed, my skin always a little dark. One of my brothers one day said: Hey! The OTHERS do not look like you! That's all.

Beside of my parents, it was my younger brother giving me the spine to stand all. Children are dealing it with each other. They are stronger than we think.

Children will love their parents as long as they receive their love. They do not question the gender.

dudeist skydiver # 3105

[tigra 0]

All kids need to learn to deal with school yard bullies. It helps us later in life when we're dealing with workplace bullies and bigots. In actual fact, the bullies fuck with whoever they perceive as the weakest, not the most different! Its all about who they can intimidate and what they can get away with!

[wmw999 2,588]

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This "extended family" "it takes a village to raise a child" mumbo jumbo is the recent developement

It's not, really. It's just that when the vast majority of people lived in small towns or rural areas, it was natural. Folks just knew who to keep an eye out for; kids would play with each other. They kind of knew which kids were trouble, and as a kid you knew you'd better not do something wrong because your parents would hear about it.

It meant that if a poor kid went into the store with almost enough for a piece of candy, the nice store owner, knowing who he is, sells it to him for what he has plus wiping a counter. It meant that neighbors would tell you where your kid was when it was dinner time.

That's how a village raises a child.

Wendy W.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[PhillyKev 0]

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Actually, up until fairly recently, kids were raised by both of their biological parents. That all started to change in the late 60's early 70's.

This "extended family" "it takes a village to raise a child" mumbo jumbo is the recent developement.

Yes, because we have so many recently developed villages.

I just have a "gut feeling" that in spite of FILL IN THE BLANK, the kids will be getting shit from other kids that know about it. Cause that's what kids do.

[PhillyKev 0]

It also means if you are up the street playing with your neighbors and an adult sees you doing something dangerous, they talk to you about it, not ignore you. If you have something you need to talk to someone about, you can pick from all of the adults in your area who you feel most comfortable talking to. It means when you need help with something, you can rely on people outside of your household.

No one is raised just by their parents unless they live in a cave away from the rest of society.

[wmw999 2,588]

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I just have a "gut feeling" that in spite of all this emperical data about gay parents, the kids will be getting shit from other kids that know about it. Cause that's what kids do.

Empirical evidence is what disproves one's gut feeling. You might distrust its completeness, but, particularly if it can be replicated (the gold standard), it's pretty valid as a piece of evidence.

My gut feeling is that a kid raised by homophobes will catch less shit, because he'll be dishing it out. Is that better?

Wendy W.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[christelsabine 1]

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Cause that's what kids do.

They get shit anyhow! That's the way it works beneath children (anyhow, the most of them). If your kid shows no difference at all, it will face troubles because of that!

That's life. It starts early.

dudeist skydiver # 3105