Children Raised by Same-Sex Parental Partners - Essay Example

Download file to see previous pages Past research has shown that children raised in households with same-sex parents have no adverse psychological effect associated with this non-traditional family form (Pagelow, 1980: Bozett, 1989: Patterson,1992: Wainwright, Russell, and Patterson, 2004: Golombok, et al, 1983, 2003: Chan, Raboy, and Patterson, 1998). However, an important gap remains in the literature in that we still do not know whether or not adverse effects from being raised in homes where the parents are not legally and culturally supported by legal recognition from society have adverse psychological effects. The purpose of this quantitative and qualitative study is to understand the potential psychological effects caused by current legal and social issues on children raised by same-sex parents. For this study, a meta-analysis will be undertaken to establish the effect of same-sex parenting on children.

The issues of familial rights within homosexual partnerships have raised sociological questions that have proponents for and against marriage between couples of the same sex. As families of non-traditional forms are being created and sustained, the issue of child development within a non-traditional structure becomes a relevant social issue. When looking at families that consist of same-sex couples who are not afforded the same legal rights and protections as those of opposite-sex couples, a relevant question arises when the lack of those protections affects the security and welfare of the children within families that are not fully supported by the legal system.

In order to study the psychological effect of two parents who maintain a homosexual relationship on a child who is raised by those parents, one must take into consideration the sociological concept of family. Family, through most of Western history, has been an economic institution. Stephanie Coontz, in her book Marriage, A History: From Obedience to Intimacy, or How Love Conquered Marriage, discusses how in Western history “marriage was not a relationship based on mutual love between a breadwinner husband and an at-home wife but an institution devoted to acquiring in-laws and improving the family labor force.” (2005). ...Download file to see next pages Read More