The Families of Lesbians and Gay Men: A New Frontier in Family Research

Who cares? UK lesbian caregivers in a heterosexual world

“…Indeed, Allen and Demo (1995) examined family based and developmental research and found that only 1% of papers published between 1980 and 1993 had any mention of lesbians or gay men, they concluded that lesbians and gay men were being perceived as 'individuals' rather than 'family members'; a perception that has led to sexuality not being seen as a relevant axis of enquiry in family psychology (see also Clark & Serovich, 1997). …”

Az azonos nemű párok általi örökbefogadással kapcsolatos attitűdök Magyarországon

“…A jelentésben használt meghatározás szerint a szivárványcsaládokat két vagy több -azonos nemű partner iránti vonzalommal jellemezhető -ember (például egy azonos nemű pár) vagy egy gyermeke(ke)t nevelő leszbikus, illetve meleg felnőtt alkothatja (Allen-Demo 1995). E definíciót egy olyan tanulmányból kölcsönözték, mely éppen azt vizsgálta, hogy az 1980-as években, illetve az 1990-es évek első felében, milyen korlátozott mértékben foglalkozott a családokra vonatkozó pszichológiai és társadalomtudományi szakirodalom a leszbikusok és melegek családi kapcsolataival.…”

The description of gay and lesbian families in second-parent adoption cases

“…These works, as well as popular press items such as a Newsweek (Kantrowitz, 1996) cover announcing the pregnancy of rock-star Melissa Etheridge's lover, Julie Cypher, have become part of popular consciousness, but have not yet been translated into empirical social science data. Allen & Demo (1995) conclude that researchers have yet to ®nd meaningful ways to incorporate sexual orientation into studies of family phenomena even though there is a growing recognition of new family forms, and lesbian and gay families often are listed as an example.…”

“…. from viewing the family as a monolithic entity to recognizing family pluralism'' (Allen & Demo, 1995, p. 111, citing Cheal, 1991Scanzoni, Polonka, Teachman & Thompson, 1989;Sprey, 1990;Thomas & Wilcox, 1987). On the other hand, these cases, through conferring a legal status similar to a heterosexual nuclear family, re¯ect that the``nuclear family is the standard by which other family forms are evaluated; [and] individuals .…”

“…According to Allen & Demo's (1995) review of nine outlets for family scholarship, less than four percent of articles published between 1980 and 1993 discuss gay and lesbian families or family issues. Notable exceptions to this lack of reporting include the work by Blumstein & Schwartz (1983) who discuss same-sex partnerships, Lewin's (1993) study of lesbian mothers, and the literature on the psychosocial development of children of gay and lesbian parents (Bozett, 1987;Patterson, 1992Patterson, , 1994 Choose (1991). These works, as well as popular press items such as a Newsweek (Kantrowitz, 1996) cover announcing the pregnancy of rock-star Melissa Etheridge's lover, Julie Cypher, have become part of popular consciousness, but have not yet been translated into empirical social science data.…”