Should same sex couples be allowed to raise children?

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What are the criteria for "fine"?

Obtain education, careers, relationships, stay out of criminality, emotionally healthy.....all at the rate of hetro raised kids or better. If not, then we should not encourage this, for instance by allowing gay marriage. We almost certainly will regardless of the facts though. I look at this as a lost cause.

Children raised by lesbian parents fare as well as they would in heterosexual households, new research suggests.

The finding, which comes from a review of essentially all studies on the topic of same-sex parents and the health of their children, helps to tease out politics and science on this highly divisive issue. In general, kids in both heterosexual and lesbian households had similar levels of academic achievement, number of friends and overall well-being.

[...]

Here are some highlights of the findings:

- In a study of nearly 90 teens, half living with female same-sex couples and the others with heterosexual couples, both groups fared similarly in school. Teen boys in same-sex households had grade point averages of about 2.9, compared with 2.65 for their counterparts in heterosexual homes. Teen girls showed similar results, with a 2.8 for same-sex households and 2.9 for girls in heterosexual families.

- In another study, teens were asked about delinquent activities, such as damaging others' property, shoplifting and getting into fights, in the previous year. Teens in both same-sex and heterosexual households got essentially the same average scores of about 1.8 on a scale from 1 to 10 (with higher scores meaning more delinquent behaviors).

- A 2008 study comparing 78 lesbian families in the United States with their counterparts (lesbian households) in the Netherlands, showed American kids were more than twice as likely as the Dutch to be teased about their mothers' sexual orientation.

Stacey says she doesn't think kids growing up in lesbian households get teased more than other kids; it's just that when they do get teased, the target is the non-traditional household, rather than some other aspect of their life or identity. (On another note, gay and lesbian teens are more likely than others to get bullied.)

Researchers looked at information gleaned from 15 studies on more than 500 children, evaluating possible stigma, teasing and social isolation, adjustment and self-esteem, opposite gender role models, sexual orientation, and strengths.

Studies from 1981 to 1994, including 260 children reared by either heterosexual mothers or same-sex mothers after divorce, found no differences in intelligence, type or prevalence of psychiatric disorders, self-esteem, well-being, peer relationships, couple relationships, or parental stress.

"Some studies showed that single heterosexual parents' children have more difficulties than children who have parents of the same sex," Perrin says. "They did better in discipline, self-esteem, and had less psychosocial difficulties at home and at school."

Another study of 37 children of 27 divorced lesbian mothers and a similar number of children of heterosexual mothers found no differences in behavior, adjustment, gender identity, and peer relationships.

The problem with the research cited by both Dr. Dobson and Mr. Pitts is that it compares children of heterosexual couples only with those of single parents and not with children of same-sex parent families, said Gary Gates, a senior research fellow at the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law and an expert on census data involving gay and lesbian households.

"There are virtually no studies that make a direct comparison with same-sex parents," he said, noting census data show one in four same-sex couples are raising a child under the age of 18.

General consensus
Since the 1970s, it has become increasingly clear that it is family processes (such as the quality of parenting, the psychosocial well-being of parents, the quality of and satisfaction with relationships within the family, and the level of co-operation and harmony between parents) that contribute to determining children’s well-being and ‘outcomes’, rather than family structures, per se, such as the number, gender, sexuality and co-habitation status of parents.[15][10]

The scientific research that has directly compared outcomes for children with gay and lesbian parents with outcomes for children with heterosexual parents has been remarkably consistent in showing that lesbian and gay parents are every bit as fit and capable as heterosexual parents, and their children are as psychologically healthy and well-adjusted as children reared by heterosexual parents,[9][10][11] despite the reality that considerable legal discrimination and inequity remain significant challenges for these families.[10] No credible empirical research suggests otherwise.[11][26][27]

Literature indicates that parents’ financial, psychological and physical well-being is enhanced by marriage and that children benefit from being raised by two parents within a legally-recognized union.[11][25][15][26]

Professor Judith Stacey, of New York University, stated: “Rarely is there as much consensus in any area of social science as in the case of gay parenting, which is why the American Academy of Pediatrics and all of the major professional organizations with expertise in child welfare have issued reports and resolutions in support of gay and lesbian parental rights”.[28] These organizations include the American Academy of Pediatrics,[26] the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry,[29] the American Psychiatric Association,[30] the American Psychological Association,[31] the American Psychoanalytic Association,[32] the National Association of Social Workers,[33] the Child Welfare League of America,[34] the North American Council on Adoptable Children,[35] and Canadian Psychological Association.[36]

allowed but discouraged until we see some evidence that gay raised adults are fine.

This was part of a discussion I had with others in my sociology class, and there was a clear divide within the class.

I believe that same sex parents can adequately bring up children just as well as couples of the opposite sex, and there is some evidence, which bears this out. The only issue, from within our discussion, that seemed to be a point against same sex parents, was the possible ridicule that the children of same sex parents might experience in school and generally among their peers...

allowed but discouraged until we see some evidence that gay raised adults are fine.

hawkeye10 wrote:

allowed but discouraged until we see some evidence that gay raised adults are fine.

that red herring is smoked, not swimming anywhere


anthropologists and sociologists can provide the evidence - going back many centuries

If the gays are allowed to raise children, then the terrorists have won.

Some people think unmarried couples should not engage in sex--go figure.

allowed but discouraged until we see some evidence that gay raised adults are fine.

Opinions.

The conditions should be that the child is cared for and gets everything a child should have and none of the things it shouldn't. Gay people are not any more or less likely to supply any of these things than anyone else.
I don't care if a bi-sexual threesome of gypsies wants to raise a child, as long as they care for it and give it all the things a child should have and none of the things it shouldn't.

This bias against gay people, for instance, may be one thing a child shouldn't have.

No idea. But I doubt it would be worse than some of the attitudes "acceptable parents" have, and pass on.

A sixteen year old heroin junkie can have a child. All she needs is a womb, and there is nothing anyone can do to stop her.
Is she better suited to raise a child than, say, two gay adults with steady incomes and a healty lifestyle?

An "ideal couple" from good traditional homes are no less likely to be abusive parents or otherwise traumatize their children for life than any other group of people. It simply cannot be determined in such a broad perspective.

a good balance home , is what childern want

and heterosexual relationship can and do , and does this , the other 50% of married couples that make it are ignored

a good balance home , is what childern want

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a good balance home , is what childern want

And what makes you think gay couples cannot provide this?