Homosexuality Adoption
Introduction
The world has experienced some great technological advancement, but may not have the same advancements involving attitudes about relationships, marriage, and child rearing. The method of thinking regarding some gender issues have not been altered either by a more modern society. This lack of change also applies to the attitudes and perceptions regarding homosexuality. Today, homosexuals still feel oppressed for they are still treated differently by various social, religious, economic, political and legal groups (http://www.unice.fr/mdl/uk_works/HOMOSEXUAL%20PARENTS.htm, 2002).
One of the privileges that heterosexual couples enjoy which a homosexual couple would normally not have the access to, is the ability to have, adopt or raise children. In fact, despite the seemingly increased number of gay or homosexual couples around the world, the percentages of those, which are able to raise children, are small by comparison. In France, where there are 60,000 gay and lesbian couples, only 10 % of that number had at least one child (11 % for lesbians and 7 % for gays). However, almost 40 % of homosexuals claimed that they would like to have and raise children (http://www.unice.fr/mdl/uk_works/HOMOSEXUAL%20PARENTS.htm, 2002).
Homosexuality adoption
Getting pregnant or giving birth to a biological child can be extremely difficult and adopting a child can be equally challenging for gay or lesbian couples. For example, in Europe, only the Netherlands is allowing adoption for many gay and lesbian couples. Meanwhile, in Quebec, despite the fact that the majority of the population of the country recognizes the union of gay couples, most of the people of the country are still reluctant to support to idea of adoption, where only a mere 43 % are in favor (http://www.unice.fr/mdl/uk_works/HOMOSEXUAL%20PARENTS.htm, 2002).
Based on these difficulties, many homosexual couples are resorting to varied means and methods to gain the opportunity to raise a child of their own. There are some couples that have tried adopting a child, but they are dishonest and declare that they are single. They hide their true sexual orientation in hopes of being able to be considered as a prospective parent. Some couples, on the other hand, have tried artificial insemination with disregard to the law, which in some instances may only approve this method to be used by heterosexuals as a solution to infertility. Some Lesbian couples have even resorted to finding a willing sperm donor.
(http://www.unice.fr/mdl/uk_works/HOMOSEXUAL%20PARENTS.htm, 2002).
Arguments against Homosexual Parenting
There are still many people in society that believe in the notion that parenting by homosexual couples would be detrimental for the child. It is believed that any child raised in an environment by non-heterosexual parents will be placed at a great risk for future well being and success. (http://www.unice.fr/mdl/uk_works/HOMOSEXUAL%20PARENTS.htm, 2002). Some risks may involve: (1) an increased rate of sexual confusion, (2) a higher tendency to become promiscuous, (3) a greater risk of losing a parent at an early age (either because of AIDS, substance abuse or suicide). (4) and the probability of sexual abuse or psychological disorders which are brought on by difficulties with social integration.
In addition to the previously stated risks, there are still some who think that a child raised by a non-heterosexual parent will have a higher possibility of experiencing depression and other emotional difficulties and thereby encourage them to engage in same-sex behavior (as seen from their parents) (http://www.unice.fr/mdl/uk_works/HOMOSEXUAL%20PARENTS.htm, 2002).
It is also believed that homosexual parents are not capable of maintaining the positive relationships experienced by their heterosexual counterparts. It is stated that homosexual couples are less capable of maintaining stable relationships, which will ultimately lead to separation anxiety or the likelihood of one or both of the parents leaving the child behind. If the couple does maintain the relationship, and keeps the appearance of stability for the perception of the child, they will be rearing the child in an environment of pressure. This is due to the belief that a child without a real father or mother figure, in the traditional sense of the word, will have the tendency to become a problem for society when they grow up (http://www.unice.fr/mdl/uk_works/HOMOSEXUAL%20PARENTS.htm, 2002).
The emergence of violent behaviors or acting out by the children in these situations can also be commonly linked more to homosexual families than the heterosexual population. There is a stated notion that it is extremely hard for a child to accept that his parents are of the same sex. This in turn will motivate the child to rebel against society (http://www.unice.fr/mdl/uk_works/HOMOSEXUAL%20PARENTS.htm, 2002).
Does sexual orientation of the parent have an affect on the sexual orientation of the children?
A random study was conducted where the subjects were 5,182 adults representing six U.S. major cities. The subjects were asked to respond about the possible effects of parenting by homosexual couples. Given the total number of respondents, seventeen revealed that homosexuals raised them. Further probing revealed that (Levitt & Klassen, 1974):
1. Five of the seventeen respondents who have gay parents reported having sexual relations with their parents.
2. An unequal fraction revealed having sexual relations with their caretakers and/or relatives.
3. 47% of the respondents revealed that they have had a less than exclusively heterosexual orientation.
4. A disproportionate fraction among the respondents show signs that they are dissatisfied with their gender.
5. Among the respondents who revealed that they are gay also revealed that their first sexual experience was with a homosexual.
Psychologists and psychiatrists implied that based on this study, homosexuality is a learned pathology. It is not comparable to drug abuse or some other genetic condition, which can be passed from generation to generation. It can be learned through modeling and seduction (Levitt & Klassen, 1974).
This means that contagion is just choice among children with homosexual parents (Rees & Usill, 1956, p. 29). This has led many people to believe that children of homosexual parents have a higher tendency to acquire the sexual proclivity of the parents. More so, psychologists have concluded that gay parents tend to subject their children to additional sexual harm (Bigner & Bozett, 1989).
However, a more recent review suggests that it is just the courts that, “often have assumed that the children of homosexual parents are likely to be emotionally harmed, subjected to molestation, impaired in gender role development, or become homosexual themselves, yet none of these assumptions is supported by extant research and theory” (Bigner & Bozett, 1989.)
Moreover, despite thorough research, “There is no evidence either that homosexual parents are more likely to seduce or allow their children to be seduced than their heterosexual counterparts or that lesbian mothers or their acquaintances molest children more often than heterosexual individuals. However, research on the point is scant” (Bozett,1989).
The same research undertaking has also revealed that there have been no research studies that can confirm that the sexual orientation of the children of either lesbian or gay parents reflects the ‘contagion’ assumption, which was innate in so many court decisions. This has led more recent psychologists and psychiatrists to conclude that there have been no significant differences between lesbian mothers and their heterosexual counterparts when it comes to raising children (Bozett, 1989).
On the same note, until now, there has been no significant evidence that can prove that living with a homosexual parent may have, in any way, a negative effect on the children. In fact, what the evidence reveals is that gay parents are, at most times, as effective and may be even more so, than the non- gay parents in raising children (Bigner & Bozett, 1989).
Children raised in families with a parent who is gay or lesbian do not appear to be affected negatively by their experiences. When investigating anxiety, depression, and consequent contact with a health care professional, Tasker and Golombok (2000) also found no differences among children raised by lesbian mothers and those raised by heterosexual mothers.
Conclusion
Golombok et al. (1999) reported no significant differences among children of lesbian mothers and those of heterosexual mothers in terms of emotional difficulties, behavioral difficulties, and hyperactivity. The researchers did find, however, that children raised by heterosexual mothers generally experienced more psychiatric problems and were referred to a psychiatric clinic more often than children raised by lesbian mothers.
Families in which children have been raised by homosexuals pose a number of interesting challenges for psychological research and theory. Because they fit neither patriarchal nor heterosexist models of family life, homosexual parents and their children provide an opportunity to evaluate the importance of received ideas in both areas. Research to date, though still limited in quantity, suggests that both homosexual parents and their children are well adjusted and functioning normally. This finding, if borne out in subsequent studies, suggests that scholars may need to reconsider traditional notions about the importance of heterosexual male and female parents in human development.
Even acknowledging recent advances in the research on homosexual childbearing, there remains much to learn about homosexual parents and their children. Little information is yet available about the processes through which homosexual parents decide whether or not to make parenthood part of their lives, and almost nothing is known about the degree to which the transition to parenthood among homosexuals is similar to or different from that among heterosexual men and women. Detailed observational studies of parent-child interactions and relationships could add greatly to knowledge about aspects of parenting that are related to children’s adjustment in these nontraditional families. Longitudinal studies that follow families over time could enhance understanding of development during infancy, childhood, and adolescence. A more comprehensive understanding of the significant factors in human development seems likely to result from future research in this area.
The evidence clearly displays that there is no evidence to show that homosexual parenting has a negative impact on children.
All children require parental attention to develop emotionally, psychologically and psychosocially. Amazingly enough, all the reports studied proved that homosexual parents provide the same care and nurturing as what is given by heterosexual parents. Hence, the idea is validated that homosexual couples can provide effective parenting. Furthermore, there are research findings that indicate, “Children being raised by transsexual or homosexual parents do not differ appreciably from children raised in more conventional family settings on macroscopic measures of sexual identity” (Green, 1978 in Bozett, 1989, p. 193).
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