Conceptions of Justice System professionals on adoption by gay and lesbian couples

Abstract

This exploratory and qualitative research aimed to understand how legal professionals and professionals working in the Public Ministry (psychologists, social workers, prosecutors, and judges) understand and notice adoption by gay and lesbian couples. Forty-one professionals were interviewed (six judges, three prosecutors, fourteen psychologists, and eighteen social workers), who work in ten judiciary districts of three Brazilian states, with the collected data being submitted to content analysis and interpreted according to the bioecological theory and local literature. For the professionals, adoption in Brazil is legally possible, but there are restrictions based on the propagation of moral values on the social imaginary. In general, they would more specifically assess, in these candidates, the possible repercussions of sexual orientation and adoption in their lives and in the lives of their families, worrying about the emotional safety of their future children. The importance of preparing candidates, children/adolescents, and professionals was emphasized, and these must act as agents of change to a cultural re-signification of preconceived conceptions.