Being raised by a same-sex couple is no hindrance to healthy psychological development, researchers say as the first generation of children conceived by lesbians through donor insemination is coming of age.
There is a lot of stigma attached to homosexuality and whether children raised by same-sex fair well in life or not. To look into the psychological adjustment of adolescents who were conceived through donor insemination by lesbian mothers, researchers followed 77 families of both boys and girls. The researchers interviewed the lesbian mothers about their children and then rated the teenagers on the Child Behavior Checklist, a standardised assessment that has been used for decades. Each teenager also filled out an internet-based psychological questionnaire.
When comparing the results to how mothers living in conventional families rated their teenagers, children of same-sex couples were more competent in school, had fewer social problems, broke fewer rules and were less aggressive. Based on what the children reported themselves, they did just as well whether or not they knew the identity of their biological father.
However, those teenagers who - according to their mothers - experienced homophobia and bullying did turn out to be more anxious and have more depressive symptoms than their peers. It wasn't clear if the anxiety was a product of the bullying or if it was the other way around.
This study, the first to follow children of lesbian couples all the way from conception to adolescence, concludes that adolescents who have been reared in lesbian-mother families since birth demonstrate healthy psychological adjustment.
There is a lot of stigma attached to homosexuality and whether children raised by same-sex fair well in life or not. To look into the psychological adjustment of adolescents who were conceived through donor insemination by lesbian mothers, researchers followed 77 families of both boys and girls. The researchers interviewed the lesbian mothers about their children and then rated the teenagers on the Child Behavior Checklist, a standardised assessment that has been used for decades. Each teenager also filled out an internet-based psychological questionnaire.
When comparing the results to how mothers living in conventional families rated their teenagers, children of same-sex couples were more competent in school, had fewer social problems, broke fewer rules and were less aggressive. Based on what the children reported themselves, they did just as well whether or not they knew the identity of their biological father.
However, those teenagers who - according to their mothers - experienced homophobia and bullying did turn out to be more anxious and have more depressive symptoms than their peers. It wasn't clear if the anxiety was a product of the bullying or if it was the other way around.
This study, the first to follow children of lesbian couples all the way from conception to adolescence, concludes that adolescents who have been reared in lesbian-mother families since birth demonstrate healthy psychological adjustment.