Offspring created as a result of donor insemination: a study of family relationships, child adjustment, and disclosure

Lycett, Emma; Daniels, Ken; Curson, Ruth; Golombok, Susan

doi:10.1016/j.fertnstert.2003.11.039

Cited by 96 publications

(58 citation statements)

References 20 publications

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“…We found that no parents regretted disclosing and most reported either a neutral or positive response from their children, congruent with other studies where parent's disclosure outcomes are available (4,7,19,28,(34)(35)(36)(37). Many parents in our study expressed relief after disclosure, which we attribute to the absence of negative responses from the children.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

Strategies for disclosure: how parents approach telling their children that they were conceived with donor gametes

Dougall

Scheib

Nachtigall

2007

Fertility and Sterility

120

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Objective-To describe how parents envision, plan, and enact disclosing to their children that they were conceived with donor gametes. Design-In depth ethnographic interviews.Setting-Participants were recruited from 11 medical infertility practices and 1 sperm bank in Northern California.Patients-141 married couples who had conceived a child using donor gametes (62 with donor sperm and 79 with donor oocytes).Interventions-Husbands and wives were interviewed together and separately. Main outcome measures-Thematic analysis of interview transcripts.Results-Disclosing parents predominantly subscribed to one of two disclosure strategies: the conviction that early disclosure is of paramount importance so that the child "always knows," or the belief that later disclosure is preferable after family routines have been established and the child has the maturity to understand biologic concepts and has developed a sense of discretion. No parent regretted disclosing and many expressed relief.Conclusions-Parents choosing early disclosure were more at ease with the disclosure process while parents choosing later disclosure reported greater uncertainty about how and when to disclose. Parents wished for more peer and/or professional support and guidance to assist them in with disclosure, not only initially, but continuing long after their children are born.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

Strategies for disclosure: how parents approach telling their children that they were conceived with donor gametes

Dougall

Scheib

Nachtigall

2007

Fertility and Sterility

120

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“…One in four believed that knowledge of the donation could disturb the child's relationship with its parents, a belief that is not supported by research. While there is no evidence that parents' telling their children about the donation at a young age has negative consequences [17][18][19], finding out about one's genetic origin by donation as an adult has been reported to be a traumatic experience [20]. In the present study, about one third of Norwegian and Danish doctors feared that contact with the donor could be harmful for the child or the family and a considerable number of participants could not form an opinion regarding this issue.…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 65%

Attitudes towards gamete donation among IVF doctors in the Nordic countries—are they in line with national legislation?

Lampic

Svanberg

Sydsjö

2009

J Assist Reprod Genet

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Purpose To compare attitudes towards gamete donation between IVF doctors in the Nordic countries, and to determine whether attitudes are in correspondence with national legislation. Materials and methods A study-specific questionnaire was used to study attitudes of 108 IVF doctors (92% response). Participants constituted 78% of all IVF doctors in Sweden, Denmark and Norway and 15% of IVF doctors in Finland. Results Despite similar legislation regarding offspring right to learn his/her donor's identity, IVF doctors from Norway reported significantly more negative attitudes towards disclosure than did Swedish physicians. A majority from all countries demonstrated positive attitudes towards embryo donation and allowing sperm donation for lesbian couples. Physicians reported strong support for anonymous donation but less support for 'known' donation. Conclusion There are discrepancies between IVF doctors' attitudes towards gamete donation and national legislation in four Nordic countries. Negative attitudes towards disclosure to offspring may counteract legislative intentions.

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“…A British lesbian couple have already volunteered to be the first to utilise the service, should it become commercially available (Walles, 2003 The increased use of this technique in Aotearoa/New Zealand must also be understood in the context of the self-imposed policy of some clinics to only offer identifiable donors. v See Brewaeys (2003), Brewaeys, Ponjaert, Van Hall and Golombok (1997), Golombok (1998Golombok ( , 2000, Lycett, Daniels, Curson, and Golombok (2004), Murray (2004), and Tasker and Golombok (1997). vi Anecdotally, it appears some fertility clinics have resolved the opposition of certain employees to treating single women and lesbian couples by limiting the nature of that service to that of supplying screened sperm for the purposes of self insemination.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transgressive technologies? Strategies of discursive containment in the representation and regulation of assisted reproductive technologies in Aotearoa/New Zealand

Michelle

2006

Women's Studies International Forum

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Abstract:Drawing on a case study of the contemporary representation and regulation of assisted reproductive technologies in Aotearoa/New Zealand, this paper traces the cultural anxieties evident in public, political, and media discussion and debate around the provision and use of ART, with a specific focus on the use of donor insemination and IVF by single women and lesbian couples. It documents the operation of various narrative mechanisms, normative assumptions, and discursive strategies that work to identify the legitimate uses and users of such technologies whilst simultaneously affirming conventional understandings of "gender", "motherhood", and "the family", and concludes that contemporary anxieties and ethical dilemmas provoked by women's transgressive uses of ART have been addressed through legislative changes that target these women for official surveillance and control while also effectively limiting their reproductive options.

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Offspring created as a result of donor insemination: a study of family relationships, child adjustment, and disclosure

Cited by 96 publications

References 20 publications

Strategies for disclosure: how parents approach telling their children that they were conceived with donor gametes

Strategies for disclosure: how parents approach telling their children that they were conceived with donor gametes

Attitudes towards gamete donation among IVF doctors in the Nordic countries—are they in line with national legislation?

Transgressive technologies? Strategies of discursive containment in the representation and regulation of assisted reproductive technologies in Aotearoa/New Zealand

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