Gay people are most of the time looked at strangely, because people who judge them do not understand their perspective. Their student, professional and personal lives are affected by suspicion, harassment, and discrimination.
And when they decide to have a baby, all these negative perceptions on their life accentuate and intensify. Opponents of lesbian and gay people claim that their children are prone to developing negative mental patterns, habits, and behaviors.
Children of same-sex couples are prone to judgment, discrimination, and harassment too. Because people simply do not understand how two same-sex people can love each other and raise children together.
But what does science say? Does having homo parents influence child behavior?
The answer is no. Let’s see why.
Same-Sex Parents Have the Same Challenges as Heterosexual Couples
According to expert essay writers on LGBT topics from custom essay help, heterosexual people think that same-sex couples live their lives completely differently.
That they engage in damaging activities that can have negative consequences on their children’s development. This is not true at all.
Homosexual parents have the same challenges as heterosexual couples. They must provide shelter and education for their children, too. They must raise healthy and functional children too, and for this, they invest time, effort, and resources. They need to adapt their parenting style and be warm, affectionate, and offer their children an appropriate environment for development.
And this is exactly what every parent wants for his children, no matter his sexual orientation.
Additional Unique Challenges
But one thing is different. Children that have heterosexual parents are not victims of harassment, bullying, or discrimination. Or not as much. So, homo parents might need to develop more skills to cope with this challenge and help their children do the same too.
Even though more and more humans have begun to understand that you should not discriminate against people based on their sexual orientation, we still have a long way to go.
This is why homo parents might develop and improve their conflict management skills better and faster than hetero parents.
And because according to Bowlby’s theory on attachment, parents are the primary caregivers and attachment figures in children’s lives, they are their role models too. They learn their skills, how to handle and face challenges or accept themselves from their parents.
Children Raised by Same-Sex Couples Score Better in School
According to a study by assignment help and finance assignment help, children who grow in same-sex families score better at tests. They are more likely to graduate from high school, compared with the other group. The study was conducted in the Netherlands, the first country to legalize same-sex marriages.
The scientists followed a large group of children along with their growth and development. They took into consideration parents’ income, children’s educational performance, and family dynamics. The results are stunning! Children raised by same-sex couples are 7% more likely to graduate and had general testing scores better than children raised by hetero couples.
This is because there is still a social stigma in our society against homo people, so to adopt a child or use fertilization, they need to have a high economic status.
This means that they invest a lot of money to make this possible, so their motivation to have and take care of a child is high. Homo parents already have the resources necessary, so they can offer their children everything it needs for a well-functioning environment and a high educational performance.
Children Raised by Homo Parents Have More Skills
There is an immense amount of work and studies that have been conducted to discover the particularities of homo couples and their children. Scientists have found out that children raised by homo parents are often warmer, more compassionate, and have higher levels of self-acceptance.
Even though the first studies conducted in this domain showed that children raised by homo parents are prone to developing negative mental conditions, recent and more robust studies have shown that this is not the case. They grow up to be healthy adults, who have good conflict resolution skills, are altruistic, and able to communicate openly and honestly.
If children raised by homo parents develop mental conditions, it is not because of the sex of their parents, but because of stigma, discrimination, and harassment. Divorce is another way children can get affected by their environment, but divorce is common in hetero couples too.
Parenting Style
How important is the parenting style for children? Very important. Studies have shown that homo couples have a more pleasant and encouraging parenting style than hetero couples.
This means that homo parents provide a better family environment and interaction, and adopt good and healthy habits for their children. They are more understanding, compassionate, and foster self-acceptance and self-confidence in their children.
There is no difference between children raised by homo parents and hetero ones. Studies that have shown the contrary were either based on core values of the researchers (such as religion, which is one of the main opponents of the LGBT community) or lacked the robustness, validation and replication levels a study needs to be valid.
Conclusion
So, does having homo parents influence child behavior? The right answer is no. Science has shown that there are no core and important differences between children raised by homo couples and those raised by hetero ones. On the contrary, children raised by hetero parents might lack some skills that are otherwise well developed in children with homo parents.
Homo parents usually have the resources necessary to offer their children a supportive and encouraging development, and also provide shelter, food, and good educational resources.
The parenting style is the most important thing that can influence a child’s behavior, and homo parents are often warmer and more compassionate. The things that can negatively affect a child’s behavior are bullying, harassment, discrimination, and stigma, not the sex of their parents.
Author Bio: Michael Gorman is a highly skilled freelance writer and proofreader from the UK, a member of the international community of professional essay writers. He currently works at my assignment help australia, a college paper writing service. Michael is an advocate for LGBTQ+ rights and aims to promote a better understanding of their way of being and to reduce stigma.
