Same-Sex Parent Socialization: Understanding Gay and Lesbian Parenting Practices as Cultural Socialization

ABSTRACT

Cultural socialization refers to the processes by which parents communicate cultural values, beliefs, customs, and behaviors to their children. To date, research on cultural socialization has focused primarily on racial- and ethnic-minority families, and more contemporary studies have examined these practices among international and transracial adoptive families. In general, four main themes have emerged in the literature: Cultural Socialization, Preparation for Bias, Promotion of Mistrust, and Egalitarianism. Since families with same-sex parents continue to experience stigma in society, there is reason to believe these parents engage in cultural socialization strategies specifically around issues of sexual orientation. Yet, current research on cultural socialization has not explicitly investigated same-sex parenting. Thus, the present study examined same-sex parent socialization among families headed by sexual-minority parents (52 fathers, 43 mothers) using a preexisting socialization framework. Findings revealed that the majority of parents endorsed behaviors designed to promote children's awareness of diverse family structures and prepare them for potential stigma-related barriers socialization along three dimensions: Cultural Socialization, Preparation for Bias, and Proactive Parenting. These results contribute to our empirical understanding of same-sex parenting and justify the need to broaden our conceptualization of cultural socialization to be more inclusive of these diverse family structures.     

Experiencing parenthood,care and spaces of hospitality

Drawing on research conducted in Australia and the United Kingdom, this paper explores how parenting and care provision is entangled with, and thus produced through, consumption in hospitality venues. We examine how the socio‐material practices of hospitality provision shape the enactment of parenting, alongside the way child‐parent/consumer‐provider interactions impact upon experiences of hospitality spaces. We argue that venues provide contexts for care provision, acting as spaces of sociality, informing children's socialization and offering temporary relief from the work of parenting. However, the data also highlight various practices of exclusion and multiple forms of emotional and physical labour required from care‐providers. The data illustrate children's ability to exercise power and the ways in which parents’/carers’ experiences of hospitality spaces are shaped by their enactment of discourses of ‘good parenting’. Finally, we consider parents’/carers’ coping behaviours as they manage social and psychological risks associated with consumption in such public spaces of leisure.     

“If You Don't Like Gay Marriage,Don't Get One!”: A Qualitative Analysis of Attitudes Toward Same-Sex Marriage in South Australia

ABSTRACT

Prejudice against sexual-minority groups has continuously declined in Australia over the past several decades, yet inequality in marriage policy that denies legal recognition of same-sex relationships remains. Social role theory suggests this may be due in part to traditional beliefs about gender roles that fuel concerns regarding the ability of same-sex couples to raise children because they violate these social norms and roles. The current study identified reasons behind support of, or opposition to, same-sex marriage. Data were collected from a community sample (n = 536) in South Australia through an open-ended question included on a larger survey. Content analysis suggested that gender role norms do play a part in negative attitudes toward same-sex marriage as well as perceptions of same-sex couples' ability to raise children. Our findings also revealed heteronormativity embedded in the responses of participants both for and against marriage equality. Implications for advocacy efforts focused on marriage equality, parenting by same-sex couples, and the focus for future research endeavours in this substantive domain are discussed.     

Socializing Children About Family Structure: Perspectives of Lesbian and Gay Adoptive Parents

Despite increasing numbers of lesbian- and gay- (LG-) parent families, little research on LG-adoptive-parent families has examined parental beliefs and perceptions related to discussing their sexual minority status with their children. This study assessed 266 LG adoptive parents (160 lesbian mothers, 106 gay fathers) from the Modern Adoptive Families (MAF) study, a nationwide survey (2012–2013) of adoptive parents' pre- and post-placement experiences. A cultural socialization lens provided the framework for examining LG parenting beliefs and practices. Two measurement scales were developed to examine parents' perceptions and self-efficacy related to socializing their child about being in a sexual-minority-parent family. Results indicate that LG parents endorse the importance of unique socialization practices and generally feel confident engaging in these practices. Parent education, transracial adoption, endorsement of racial socialization, and socialization self-efficacy were positively associated with endorsement of socialization practices. Excellent reliability suggests the 2 scales have the potential of being psychometrically sound instruments with which to measure parental endorsement and related self-efficacy of socialization practices for families headed by sexual minority parents. Findings contribute to a deeper understanding of socialization and communication patterns in LG-headed families, especially those formed through adoption. Research, policy, and practice implications are discussed.     

Sexual minority youth in romantic relationships: Associations with youth well-being

This study investigated differences in depressive symptoms, loneliness, and self-esteem for monosexual (lesbian, gay) and plurisexual (bisexual, pansexual, queer) sexual minority youth (SMY) by relationship status (single, partnered) and relationship configuration (same-gender partner, different-gender partner). Participants included 338 SMY (M_age = 19.10 years) who reported on their relationship status, partner's gender identity, well-being, and ability to confide in partner about LGBTQ issues. Results indicated that for plurisexual youth, single status was associated with greater loneliness; plurisexual youth with same-gender partners reported fewer depressive symptoms and marginally greater ability to confide in their partner about LGBTQ issues than those with different-gender partners. Findings reveal similarities across SMY while also highlighting some unique challenges among plurisexual youth with different-gender partners.     

Implicit Theories of Marital Relationships: A Grounded Theory of Socialization Influences

A qualitative study was conducted in an Eastern European university, involving 16 participants from functional and dysfunctional families who participated in semistructured interviews about the development of their implicit theories of a happy marital relationship. The students shared their ideas of a happy marriage, their parents’ marriage, including the level of happiness, conflict and other issues, what they thought were major influences on the formation of their ideas of marriage including exploration of the role of fiction media. The following major socialization influences emerged as themes: parental relationship, individual parental characteristics, observation of other relationships, gender role ideology, education, media, and experiences of own relationships.     

“I'm in Transition Too”: Sexual Identity Renegotiation in Sexual-Minority Women's Relationships with Transsexual Men

ABSTRACT

This qualitative research study examines the experiences of sexual-minority women in relationships with transsexual men (N = 20) using grounded theory analysis. This paper reports data on the core theme of “Sexual Identity Renegotiation” and reflects the process by which women manage their sexual-minority identities in the shifting social context of their partners taking on increasingly male signifiers. The research findings suggest that conflicts and strategies surrounding identity depend on the investment in, and the nature of, a sexual-minority identity. These struggles are also affected by the degree of visibility as a sexual-minority, influenced by both gender expression and the racialized experience of that expression. Clinical applications for work with this population are proposed.     

Minority Stress,Emotion Regulation,and the Parenting of Sexual-Minority Youth

ABSTRACT

Despite increasing societal acceptance of sexual-minority individuals, there are still gay, lesbian, and bisexual (GLB) adolescents who experience negative mental health outcomes. Minority stress theory posits that stigma-related stress associated with sexual-minority status drives increased risk among GLB individuals. Furthermore, recent evidence suggests that minority stress impacts emotion regulation (ER), identified as a particularly important risk factor for sexual-minority youth (SMY). Current research has identified some aspects of parenting contribute to GLB youth's mental health. We review the literature in these areas, and also integrate research from the broader developmental field on families and emotion socialization in order to identify the need for studies of parenting that go beyond existing data on parental acceptance and supportiveness of youth's sexual orientation. Limitations of the current literature and directions for future research are discussed, with specific focus on implications for interventions with SMY and their families.     

Computer-mediated parenting education: Digital family service provision

Computer-mediated family service provision holds the promise of equal efficacy, lower cost, and higher accessibility than traditional parent education groups that require parents to travel to a service venue, thereby alleviating often-cited pragmatic barriers to participation in parenting programs. Hence, examinations of which populations are attracted to particular service modalities are a necessary step in building a reliable evidence base. The scant computer-mediated parent education literature indicates that online parenting programs are beneficial to indicated or secondary prevention programs seeking to bolster specific parent, child, or dyadic outcomes; it is reasonable to ask, then, if this service provision mechanism would be equally effective for all parents, outside of targeted intervention designs. The current paper describes the provision of computer-mediated parenting services to a large sample of parents (N = 192, 89.6% female, average age 40 years; 27% racial/ethnic minority) with no shared prevention indicator through an employer-based program. Our research questions on service provision and utilization include: Who is served by primary prevention programs like this? Do participants report satisfaction with computer-mediated services commensurate with traditional face-to face services? In addition to significant differences in perceived social support by gender, marital status, and number of children younger than 18 living in the home, results from three measures of parenting attitudes and behaviors (e.g., discipline style, sense of competence, and locus of control), indicate that this sample has some confidence in their general abilities as parents, but struggle to feel an internal sense of control over their children's behavior, with the greatest number of parents tending towards overreactive discipline. Associations between these indicate a consistent pattern such that dysfunctional parenting practices tend to co-occur, and parents who do employ dysfunctional strategies feel less competent as parents. Participants report high satisfaction with these services, at equal or better rates than reported in the parent education literature. This work provides evidence that computer-mediated parenting services can attract and exceed expectations of participants with clinical and subclinical but moderate parenting needs, indicating that this service delivery mode has the potential to reach a wide number of individuals ideally situated for prevention services.     

Marital Status,Gender, and Parents’ Psychological Well‐Being*

This study analyzes the associations between marital status, gender, and depressive symptoms among parents. The regression results indicate that married parents report fewer traditional depressive symptoms and lower rates of alcohol abuse than do single parents. Mothers and fathers also appear to be more likely to exhibit different depressive symptoms: Mothers are more likely than fathers to report traditional depressive symptoms and fathers are more likely to report the abuse of alcohol. Finally, we find evidence that indicators of parenting burdens such as economic strain, household labor, childcare, social support, and religious involvement mediate and moderate these relationships.     

Expanding “Irish Family” Repertoires: Exploring Gay Men's Experiences as Parents in the Republic of Ireland

ABSTRACT

This article explores gay men's parenting experiences and practices in order to seek insight into how gay men accept or challenge heterosexual family norms and how “family” is understood in the Irish context. It is based on small-scale qualitative research (interviews) with seven gay fathers. Despite the limited routes to parenthood for gay men in Ireland, the research findings indicate that the participants enjoy parenting and that they are motivated in their parenting practices. The gay fathers in this study are participative parents who have made significant decisions in their lives in order to prioritize their children's welfare. The diversity of family constellations and care arrangements that surround gay fathering in Ireland can expand family and care repertoires beyond the traditional biparent heterosexual norm. Gay fathers in Ireland appear to enjoy some security at the private familial level and in the responses from their families and communities, but they are keenly aware that nontraditional families are given less status in Irish society. Unlike other jurisdictions, gay parenting is not articulated by the gay fathers in this research as a rights-based argument. Instead, these Irish gay fathers are de facto activists who seek to “humanize” gay parenting.     

Religious Affiliation,Religiosity, and Attitudes Toward Same-Sex Parenting

Legalizing marriage and facilitating access to parenting for same-sex couples are controversial subjects in many countries. Based on a survey of 1,861 French heterosexual students, this study examined the effects of gender, methods gays and lesbians use to become parents, religious affiliation (Catholic vs. no religious affiliation), and religiosity (in Catholic participants) on attitudes to same-sex parenting. The participants ranged in age from 18 to 66 (M = 22.27, SD = 5.20), 67% were women, 31% described themselves as Catholic, and 69% had no religious affiliation. The results based on generalized estimating equation analyses indicate that women were more favorable to same-sex parenting than men and that participants across religious groups preferred “traditional” families composed of two, different-sex parents who do not use medically assisted procreation. Of all the methods same-sex couples use to become parents, respondents preferred adoption and rejected surrogacy. Furthermore, Catholic participants were less favorable of same-sex parenting in general than participants without religious affiliation. Higher levels of religiosity intensified that rejection. Gender does not mitigate this effect for Catholic participants, suggesting that religiosity plays a major and independent role in shaping attitudes to same-sex parenting.     

The Role of Religion in Parenting Satisfaction and Parenting Stress Among Young Parents

Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health, we examine how religious characteristics affect parenting satisfaction and stress among young parents, and how these relationships vary by gender and relationship status. Results indicate that religiosity is associated with higher parenting satisfaction, and differences across religious traditions are observed for parenting stress. These relationships are generally not moderated by gender or relationship status, suggesting religion influences parenting satisfaction and stress similarly across these contexts. Religion has a generally positive influence on parenting attitudes among young parents—both mothers and fathers—in diverse family structures.     

Work,parenting and gender: the care–work negotiations of three couple relationships in the UK

Changes globally mean that there are now record numbers of mothers in paid employment and a reported prevalence of involved fathering. This poses challenges to mothers and fathers as they negotiate care–work practices within their relationships. Focusing on interviews with three heterosexual couples (taken from a wider UK qualitative project on working parents), the paper considers care–work negotiations of three couples, against a backdrop of debates about intensive mothering and involved fathering. It aims to consider different configurations of work and care within three different couple relationships. We found that power within the relationships was negotiated along differential axis of gender and working status (full- or part-time paid work). We present qualitatively rich insights into these negotiations. Framed by a critical discursive psychological approach, we call on other researchers to think critically about dominant discourses and practices of working, caring and parenting, pointedly how couples situated around the world operationalise these discourses in talking about themselves as worker and carers.     

“One should follow the wind”: Individualized filial piety and support exchanges in Indian immigrant families in the United States

Within the context of social and demographic transformation, including trend toward globalization, changing patterns of longevity and immigration, this study examines the informal support exchanges between older parents and their adult children in Indian (South Asian) multi-generational families in the United States. Guided by symbolic interactionist thought and a life course perspective, this paper draws on qualitative data from in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 10 older adults in Atlanta, Georgia to study their expectations of and experiences with family support and the principles of Grounded Theory Methods informed our analysis. Filial piety, known as seva in the Indian culture, was used as a framework by the participants to make sense of support exchanges and intergenerational relationships within their own families. Participants' accounts of support exchanges with their parents in India do not always match with the support exchanged with their children in the U.S. The similarities and differences participants speak of as they compare themselves to the traditional practices surrounding seva suggest “individualized” practices of intergenerational relationships/familial support and the influence of and interplay between individual, familial, and wider societal forces. Our findings have implications for policy and practice with older immigrant adults and their families, and shed light on the experiences of growing old in a foreign land.     

Parenting perceptions among college students: A qualitative examination

This study assessed the knowledge and attitudes of young adults without children in regard to discipline and parenting practices. A qualitative design was utilized (n?=?26) with semistructured focus groups. Results indicated participants believed discipline is important, with spanking and loss of privileges being the most effective strategy for behavior change. The majority of participants reported plans to discipline future children the way in which they were disciplined, suggesting a high percentage intend to utilize spanking. Findings suggest that personal experiences shape parenting beliefs, attitudes, and knowledge. Results inform efforts at educating future parents on appropriate parenting practices and indicate the need for protocols for young adults to educate about practices that may diverge from their personal experiences.     

Gender Dynamics in Stepfamilies: Adult Stepchildren’s Views

This project explores gender relations in stepfamilies from the vantage point of adult stepchildren who acquired stepparents during childhood. Drawing from 2 rounds of interviews with 15 adult stepchildren systematically selected from the 1997 wave of the University of Southern California Longitudinal Study of Generations, 5 themes of gender dynamics in these families were identified. These were as follows: the persistence of traditional gender practices in the parenting and stepparenting of children, stepmothers as kinkeepers, the renegotiation of relationships with biological fathers once children reached adulthood, parents and stepparents as relationship gatekeepers, and gendered patterns in investment toward biological children and stepchildren. The results provided strong evidence that relationships in these stepfamilies were significantly affected by gendered social practices.     

Parental Divorce and the Types of Commitment-Related Messages People Gain from Their Families of Origin

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the influences of types of commitment-related messages gained from families of origin. A sample of young adults was asked about the messages they believed they gained from their families of origin, to what degrees those messages affected their relationship experiences, and how these messages are related to their beliefs about romantic relationships. Results indicated that people with divorced or unhappy parents were more likely to report gaining messages such as relationships are not permanent, one must approach relationships with caution, and relationships are beset by lack of trust and fidelity, and less likely to report gaining messages such as marriage is enduring, relationships need love and happiness, and relationships should be partnerships. In addition, participants indicated they felt that those messages had influenced their experiences in relationships. Overall, the results add to the growing evidence of the importance of family of origin upon people's attitudes about and experiences in romantic relationships.     

Lesbian women and household labor division: A systematic review of scholarly research from 2000 to 2015

ABSTRACT

Recent studies have begun to attend to distribution of household labor within same-gender couples compared to heterosexual couples, yet much of the available research with lesbian couples has attempted to superimpose division of household labor frameworks developed with heterosexual couples (e.g., gender role socialization, exchange bargaining theories) to fit the experiences of same-gender couples. Using two academic search databases, the present article provides a systematic review of the available 28 peer-reviewed articles published from 2000–2015 about lesbian partnerships and household labor divisions. Results indicate that lesbian couples engage in a more equal distribution of household labor than heterosexual couples, and that lesbian women often opt to eschew traditional gendered divisions of chores in favor of other factors such as quality of task or ability. The systematic review uncovered notable constraints in the demography of participants (e.g., race, socioeconomic status, geographic location) across studies. Strategies for deepening the depth and breadth of this line of work for future researchers, and implications for relationship satisfaction are also discussed.     

Predictors of White Adoptive Parents’ Cultural and Racial Socialization Behaviors With Their Asian Adopted Children

This study investigated the role of White racial identity statuses, cultural and racial socialization beliefs, cultural socialization self-efficacy, and racial socialization self-efficacy in predicting White adoptive parents’ (N = 200) cultural and racial socialization behaviors with their Asian adopted children. Only cultural and racial socialization beliefs contributed to the prediction of socialization practices. In addition, we examined whether cultural and racial socialization self-efficacy would moderate the relationship between parents’ cultural socialization and racial socialization beliefs and behaviors; there was no support for cultural or racial socialization self-efficacy as moderators in the beliefs–behaviors relationships. Finally, findings revealed that parents were more involved in cultural socialization than racial socialization behaviors, although they did not engage frequently in either type of socialization behavior, particularly racial socialization.