Gender Roles in the Same Sex-Marriage
Introduction
The issue of same-sex parenting is has been hotly debated and subjected to different views. Some people argue that partners in same-sex marriages should be allowed to raise children while others are of the contrary opinion. Nevertheless, it is now clear that the issue of same-sex parenting tends to move from the obscured fringes to what seems like the rolling center of the family-policy debate (Meezan & Rauch, 2005). The issues surrounding parent-child relationships in same-sex marriages are many. Ranging from the identity of the children to the division of gender roles, the same-sex parents tend to face challenges in raising their children. The first point of debate involves the issue of the origin of these children. Some same-sex parents prefer foster care while others prefer formal adoption. However, regardless of the method chosen, people who oppose same-sex marriages often invoke religious and moral arguments. The paper will perform a critical analysis of articles surrounding the issue of gender roles in same-sex marriage. The paper argues that there are still serious misconceptions surrounding the gender issue roles in same-sex marriages. Therefore, there is no significant difference between the heterosexual and same-sex marriages concerning gender roles in parenting.
“Same-Sex Parenting and Child Development: Reviewing the Contribution of Parental Gender”
The article raises many concerns surrounding the issue of same-sex parenting. In particular, the paper reviews the contributions of parental gender. In doing so, the article first analyzes the issues brought forward by other previous research concerning whether the gender of parents matters. The earlier papers seemed to emphasize the difference in the outcomes of the children raised by same-sex parents and those raised by heterosexual parents. However, these earlier works only seemed to concentrate on the differences while grossly ignoring the major similarities (Tasker, 2010). Ignoring or even tending to neglect the instances of similarity between these two categories of children creates a distorted and an incomplete picture. According to this article, a meta-analysis that focused on investigating the differences between the children raised by heterosexual parents and those raised by same-sex parents found out that there were no significant differences between them. Ideally, the areas of concern in the same-sex marriage parenting included cognitive developments of the children, gender identity, sexual partner preference, and psychological development.
On the issue of parent-child relationship and same-sex parenting, non-heterosexual parents had a better relationship with their children as compared to heterosexual parents. On the other hand, the parental sexual orientation was not seen as being associated with any significant differences in the quality of the parent-child relations. It was as a result of an analysis conducted on the data of the children. The exact reporting on the parent child relationships in the same-sex marriages highly depends on the person giving the report. For instance, it is expected that if the same-sex parents are the ones giving reports about their parenting, then it would be easy to say that the report is somehow biased (Tasker, 2010). However, if the report is provided by other individuals outside the scope of same-sex marriage, the distortion of the report is expected to be very minimal. According to the meta-analysis, lesbian parents are more likely to form closer parent-children relationships as compared to the other types of parenting relationships.
A critical factor that can be used to explain this kind of close nature of the parent-child relationships in same-sex marriages is that the same-sex parents always try to express greater warmth. They do this in a bid to protect their children from any homonegativity. However, the article raises a serious concern on the issue of whether closer parenting is done to manage intolerance in the marriages (Tasker, 2010). The article argues that if closer parenting were done with the aim of managing intolerance, then the gay marriages would have closer parent-child relationships. The variations in commitments to parenting, which is caused by the different routes to parenthood, can also be used to explain the perceived differences between heterosexual and same-sex parenting.
Some lesbian mothers try to compensate using other methods as a way of fostering masculinity in their sons and femininity in their daughters. It greatly depends on the perceptions of the same sex parents regarding the social demands of the cultural context. Children from sex marriages can easily pick up cultural images of masculinity and femininity from external families, peers or even through the media (Tasker, 2010). Therefore, they are not isolated from the external families. As a result, they have the chance of learning about their roles in these interactions.
Analysis and Relation to Thesis
Gender roles in same-sex marriages may not always be straightforward. Considering lesbian and gay marriages, the lesbian marriages are prone to having more defined gender roles as compared to the gay marriages. Additionally, gay marriages are more prone to wrangles concerning parental duties and responsibilities as opposed to lesbian marriages. It is contributed to the fact that women tend to be more submissive as opposed to men. However, the heterosexual parents do not have an upper hand when it comes to raising the children as compared to same-sex parents. In fact, in most instances, the same-sex parents tend to develop closer ties with their children as compared to the heterosexual parents. The article tends to support the thesis that ‘There is no significant difference between the heterosexual and same-sex marriages concerning gender roles in parenting'.
“Same-sex parenting and children’s outcomes: A closer examination of the American psychological association’s brief on lesbian and gay parenting."
The article opens up by citing the differences noted between the outcomes of children who are raised in a marriage based intact family and those brought up in a cohabiting, single-parent or divorced families. Among these families, there was a perceived difference between the children who were raised by two biological parents and those brought up by only one biological parent (Marks, 2012). These differences occurred in connection with different issues, such as mortality, health, drug abuse use, poverty, education, and suicide risks. The article argues that these outcomes represent very important variables that might influence the well-being of families and children as well as the economy at large.
However, the research leading to this article repeatedly showed that there are no significant differences between the children from lesbian or gay households and those from, heterosexual households. No single study has found out that children from same-sex parents were more disadvantaged than their counterparts from heterosexual parents. The central results presented by most of the studies considered in this article indicate that the gender roles in both heterosexual and same-sex marriages are quite similar (Marks, 2012). The environment provided by the lesbian or gay parents is quite similar to that provided by the heterosexual marriages. Therefore, the same-sex marriages are in a position to enable psychological development and growth of their children
Analysis and Relation to Thesis
This article offers a thorough analysis of previous research works regarding the issue of same-sex parenting and the gender roles of same-sex parents. The article provides evidence that there is no significant difference between same-sex parenting and heterosexual parenting. Specifically, there is no significant difference between the outcomes of children raised by same-sex parents and those raised by heterosexual parents. It is attributed to the fact that the same-sex parents are still in a position to offer an environment for growth and psychological development.
“Children in Same-Sex Marriages”
This article begins by evaluating the opinion raised by most sociologists that same-sex marriages are not oriented towards raising children. However, the paper argues that different scenarios favor children to be brought up in same-sex marriages. For instance, a child might have been born in a previously heterosexual marriage. However, this child may end up being raised in a new same-sex marriage of one of the biological parents. Additionally, the child may end up being adopted by same-sex parents (Solodnikov & Chkanikova, 2010). In lesbian marriages, the children might have been conceived using sperm donors.
The American psychologists and sociologists were the first ones to raise concerns regarding the raising of children by same-sex parents. It was in the 1980s when the first wave of babies in same-sex marriages was witnessed. However, this was not positively received by many people (Solodnikov & Chkanikova, 2010). It was until the 1990s when the same-sex parents were legally allowed to raise children. In most cultures, the public opinion has not yet approved the raising of children by same-sex parents. Those of the opposing view tend to raise concerns about the gender identity of the children, the prosperity of the children towards a specific gender orientation, and the mental as well as the physical well-ness of the children. In approximately all instances, such comprehensions appear to be biased.
People who tend to oppose the raising of children by same-sex parents wonder if it is possible for same-sex marriage environment to provide the children with the appropriate and the required gender roles. Additionally, they also raise the question of whether the children raised by this environment will be able to incorporate the parents in their future heterosexual relationships. The most important concern raised is that children may end up copying the sexual orientation of their parents. According to an analysis conducted on this article regarding earlier works touching on the parent-child relationships of same-sex marriages, children from homosexual fathers tend to form heterosexual marriages (Solodnikov & Chkanikova, 2010). Additionally, the article also provides that the amount of time that the same-sex parents spend on their children is unlikely to influence the sexual behavior of the children. Concerning lesbian mothers, there is no significant difference between what is seen to take place between these marriages and what takes place in heterosexual marriages, especially in child rearing.
In same-sex marriages, difficulties also arise. It not only surrounds the issue of biological parenthood but also the issue of social parenthood. Additionally, the combination of social and biological parenthood are also common in same-sex marriages. Often, the relationship between same-sex parents and their children tend to develop the same way as that of heterosexual families. However, the parent-child relationship might be surrounded by inner conflicts (Solodnikov & Chkanikova, 2010). In bringing up their children, the same-sex parents seem to take extreme caution compared to the heterosexual relationships.
Analysis and Relation to Thesis
The article offers a critical analysis of earlier works regarding the issue of same-sex parents. It recognizes that there are no significant differences concerning gender roles between same-sex parents and heterosexual parents. However, the article argues that the same-sex parents should always be cautious when bringing up their children. In doing so, the article acknowledges the roles of the same sex parents in raising up their children. It supports my thesis that ‘there is no significant difference between the heterosexual and same-sex marriages concerning gender roles in parenting’.
Analysis of the findings and conclusion
All the three articles support the argument that there is no significant difference between the outcomes of children raised by same-sex parents and those raised by heterosexual parents. However, some of the articles acknowledge that there might be a difference between lesbian and gay marriages when it comes to the ‘closeness’ of the children to parents. In most instances, the children of the same sex parents fail to follow the sexual orientation of their parents. It indicates that the gender roles of same-sex parents are quite similar to those of heterosexual marriages. People who oppose same-gender parenting have no concrete basis. Therefore, there is no significant difference between the heterosexual and same-sex marriages concerning gender roles in parenting.
References
Marks, L. (2012). Same-sex parenting and children’s outcomes: A closer examination of the American Psychological Association’s brief on lesbian and gay parenting. Social Science Research, 41(4), 735-751.
Meezan, W., & Rauch, J. (2005). Gay marriage, same-sex parenting, and America's children. The Future of Children, 15(2), 97-113.
Solodnikov, V. V., & Chkanikova, A. M. (2010). Children in Same-Sex Marriages. Russian Social Science Review, 51(3), 38-59.
Tasker, F. (2010). Same‐sex parenting and child development: Reviewing the contribution of parental gender. Journal of Marriage and Family, 72(1), 35-40.
