Lesbian views on gay men and other lesbians pursuing adoption

Abstract

This study seeks to fill existing gaps in understanding people’s views toward gay men and lesbians who wish to become parents. Previous research has mainly focused on the perspectives of heterosexual individuals, neglecting those of lesbians. Unlike heterosexual and lesbian couples, who have easier access to biological parenthood, gay men often have to rely on surrogacy, which is more challenging. Additionally, lesbians are typically favored over gay men as adoptive parents, making it essential to examine these views from a lesbian perspective. In this qualitative study, 55 lesbians were shown vignettes of lesbian and gay male couples and asked to make choices and explain their reasoning. The following themes outline the reasons behind respondents’ preferences for lesbian or gay male couples depending on the child’s gender: (1) lesbians expressed a sense of comradery with other lesbians desiring parenthood; (2) placing a boy with two gay men and a girl with two lesbians was important due to shared lived experiences; (3) positive and negative stereotypes related to gender and sexual orientation shaped respondents’ opinions about prospective parents. The study illustrates why it is important to study views of gay men and lesbians who wish to become parents from different perspectives.