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- Title
European gay fathers via surrogacy: Parenting, social support, anti‐gay microaggressions, and child behavior problems.
- Authors
D'Amore, Salvatore; Green, Robert‐Jay; Mouton, Benedicte; Carone, Nicola
- Abstract
The present study investigated child behavior problems, parenting styles, coparenting, and couple relationship satisfaction in 67 European gay father families via surrogacy and 67 European heterosexual parent families via unassisted conception, all with children aged 1.5–10 years (M = 3.57 years, SD = 2.09). The two family groups were matched for child age and gender. In the gay father group only, the associations between family anti‐gay microaggressions, family/friend support, and other main variables also were explored. Children of gay fathers had fewer externalizing and internalizing problems compared to children of heterosexual parents. Also, gay fathers reported more effective parenting styles, greater coparenting quality, and higher couple relationship satisfaction compared to heterosexual parents. Overall, child externalizing problems (i.e., aggression, rule‐breaking) and internalizing problems (i.e., anxiety, depression) were more strongly associated with being raised in a heterosexual parent family, more authoritarian parenting, and lower positive coparenting. Specific to the gay father sample, anti‐gay microaggressions experienced by family members were associated with more child internalizing problems, lower positive coparenting, and lower social support from family and friends. These results refute concerns about possible detrimental effects on child development of surrogacy conception or of being raised by gay fathers. The results further suggest that family therapists treating child behavior problems should focus mainly on improving the coparenting relationship, reducing authoritarian/punitive parenting styles, and (for gay father families specifically) coping with anti‐gay microaggressions and lack of social support outside the nuclear family.
- Subjects
EUROPE; MENTAL depression risk factors; RESEARCH funding; GAY men; SPOUSES; PARENTING; ANXIETY; DESCRIPTIVE statistics; HUMAN reproductive technology; BEHAVIOR disorders in children; MARITAL satisfaction; FATHERS; CHILD development; SOCIAL support; INTERPERSONAL relations; MICROAGGRESSIONS; SOCIAL stigma; FRIENDSHIP; CO-parents
- Publication
Family Process, 2024, Vol 63, Issue 2, p1001
- ISSN
0014-7370
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1111/famp.12950