Growing Up in a Lesbian Family: Effects on Child Development [Hardcover]

Fiona Tasker. (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 7, 1997 | ISBN-10: 1572301708 | ISBN-13: 978-1572301702 | Edition: 1

Legal battles over same-sex marriage have drawn increasing public attention to the question of whether lesbian and gay families can raise happy, healthy children. Opponents of the legal recognition of homosexual unions have based their arguments in part on the premise that children brought up by parents of the same sex face significant social and psychological disadvantages. This pioneering volume provides an objective and long overdue look at the experiences of the children themselves. Presenting a unique longitudinal study of 25 children raised in lesbian mother families, and a comparison group raised by single heterosexual mothers, the book examines the developmental effects of growing up in a same-sex household--and confronts a range of myths and stereotypes along the way. This book will be of interest to professionals, educators, and students in psychology and sociology, others interested in the long-term influences of childhood experiences on adult life, and readers in women's studies and lesbian/gay studies. With important implications for child custody disputes and other decision making about the parental rights of lesbians, the book is also an invaluable resource for lawyers, social workers, and policy makers.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"How does parental sexual orientation affect child development? In this book, Tasker and Golombok describe their important new study of young adults who grew up with a lesbian mother. This is serious, ground-breaking research in an area of tremendous public interest, and it makes a major contribution to both scientific and political debates about lesbian motherhood. As such, the book will be of interest to lawyers and policymakers as well as to psychologists and other mental health professionals." --Charlotte Patterson, Dept. of Psychology, University of Virginia

"This is a well-researched and thorough account of the issues affecting the sons and daughters of lesbians. On the basis of their well-designed research study and carefully considered conclusions, the authors effectively challenge assumptions about the ways in which parents of any sexuality influence their children's development. By comparison with a control group of people raised by divorced heterosexual mothers, a sense of perspective is maintained on peer stigmatization, development of sexual identity and relations with step-parents. If evidence has any effect on prejudice, this book should go a long way toward ending discrimination against lesbian mothers and reassuring those who need it that the children raised by lesbians are in no way disadvantaged or harmed by their upbringing. In fact, the book points to several benefits for children growing up in a lesbian-led family." --Lisa Saffron, author of What About the Children? Sons and Daughters of Lesbians and Gay Men Speak About Their Lives and Challenging Conceptions- Planning a Family by Self-Insemination

"Perfect timing! This is the heart of Hawaii's landmark same-sex marriage case -- what happens to children in same-sex couple households? Finally, a follow-up of boys and girls raised in lesbian-headed homes. Assumptions, prejudices, predictions, hopes, and fears aside -- here are the facts!" --Richard Green, M.D., J.D., Research Director, Gender-Identity Clinic, Charing Cross Hospital, London; Senior Research Fellow, Institute of Criminology, University of Cambridge; Professor of Psychiatry Emeritus, University of California, Los Angeles

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

Fiona Tasker, Ph.D., is a Lecturer in Psychology at Birkbeck College, University of London. She completed her Ph.D. at the University of Cambridge, and was a post-doctoral research fellow at City University, London. Her previous publications include papers on children of divorce and children in lesbian and gay families.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 194 pages
• Publisher: Guilford Press; 1 edition (March 7, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1572301708
• ISBN-13: 978-1572301702
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,840,279 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Very informational with many tables of research results!, April 26, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Irving, Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Growing Up in a Lesbian Family: Effects on Child Development (Paperback)

This book was very informational for research on lesbian parenting. The research was conducted in the United Kingdom, therefore the subjects interviewed were all British. This book gave a realistic overview of the adverse effects on child development as well any postive effects.

This book seemed to be more objective on the subject, with clynical results. At times, the book was somewhat "dry", but most detailed research material is "dry" in nature.

Mona, Employee, Student, Mother & Wife

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Needed Book Sets the Record Straight, October 2, 2000

By 

HEM6 "hem6" (Atlanta, GA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Growing Up in a Lesbian Family: Effects on Child Development (Hardcover)

Although the data analyzed in this book are almost 10 years old, this text does provide a timely *empirical* analysis of children growing up with lesbian mothers. The authors discuss a variety of previous research evidence that it is quality of family relationships -- not the sexual orientation of the parents -- that most impacts children's development; but their study adds to this literature in an important way: theirs is a longitudinal study that looks at *adult* adjustment of children of lesbians. On the down side are some editorial issues: typos, repeated annoying use of the redundant term "lesbian women," and worst of all LOTS of material directly from Golombok & Fivush's 1994 book, Gender Development! The greatest contribution of this book is the evidence it provides to dispel ignorant, homophobic myths and sterotypes that children brought up by gay parents are somehow necessarily worse off than children raised by straight parents. I think the authors actually intend this book to be used to change public opinion and even influence court decisions on child custody. I hope it works.