Significant differences between single moms and single fathers
Data
Advantages:
- Double dose of caretaking, communication, and intimacy in lesbian families
Disadvantages:
- Higher likelihood lesbian parents will separate
Parenting as a Dad
(What is already known)
Parenting as a Mom
(What is already known)
Same-Sex Couples
- More supervision, involvement, closeness, and communicaion/talking with children
- Less difficulty monitoring kids school progress, whereabouts, friends
- Less substance abuse, misconduct, delinquent behavior
- More playing sports, leisure activities away from home
- Reports less difficulty remaining firm and patient controlling children's behavior
- More visitation, interaction with noncustodial parent
For boys...
- Develop appropriate masculine identity
- Inhibit anti-social behaviors: Violence, criminality, substance abuse
For girls...
- Foster heterosexual femininity
- Help deter promiscuity, teen pregnancy, welfare dependency
For both...
- Disciplinarian
- Problem-solver
- Playmate who provides crucially masculine parenting
(Biblarz & Stacey, 2010)
For boys...
- Teach how to treat women with respect
For girls...
- Teach how to treat themselves with respect
For both...
- Provide nurturance
- Give security
- Impart primary care-taking
(Biblarz & Stacey, 2010)
Our Hypothesis
Data
Heterosexual Parents
Advantages:
- Children benefit from the social legitimacy of their parent's marriage
Disadvantages:
- Less parental involvement
- Yes - Gender matters.
- Men and women have different roles that are crucial for a child's development.
Heterosexual vs Homosexual
As cited in Biblarz & Stacey, 2010
Meta Analysis of 19 studies related to developmental outcomes found NO differences between children raised by heterosexuals or same-sex couples:
- Cognitive development
- Psychological adjustment
- Gender identity
- Sexual partner preference (as cited in Tasker, 2010)
However, there is less emphasis on gender conformity (Fulcher et al, 2008) and less emphasis on social conformity, limit setting, or disciplinary action in same-sex households (Bos et al, 2004; Bos et al, 2007, MaCallum & Golombok, 2004; as cited in Biblarz & Stacey, 2010)
Conclusion, Relation, & Future Ramifications
The Gender of Parents - Does it matter?
- Kids generally have a more secure attachment to their lesbian mothers over heterosexual mothers
- Children discuss emotional issues more frequently with lesbian mothers
- Teachers observe more attention and behavior problems of children with lesbian mothers
- Lesbian parents are more likely to split up
- There were no significant differences with heterosexual statistics and gay statistics
IN CONCLUSION...
Apart from lactation, research has not identified gender-exclusive parenting abilities. The "ideal" parenting
comes in many different genres and genders.
"We know the statistics - that children who grow up without a father are five times more likely to live in poverty and commit crime; nine times more likely to drop out of schools and twenty times more likely to end up in prison. They are more likely to have behavioral problems, or run away from home, or become teenage parents themselves."
-Barack Obama
Our Questions
Limitations
- Are there gender exclusive abilities?
- Does female-only parenting differ from male-only parenting?
- Does fatherless and motherless parenting create particular difficulties or opportunities for children?
- There is too little information on gay male parenting
- Biblarz & Stacey (2010) Review focused on differences, not similarities (Tasker, 2010)
- Small samples sizes in current studies (Tasker, 2010)
Biblarz & Stacy, 2010