lecture 8 - LGBTQ+ families

SEXUAL ORIENTATION

A PERSON’S EROTIC AND EMOTIONAL ORIENTATION TOWARD MEMBERS OF HIS OR HER OWN GENDER AND/OR MEMBERS OF THE OTHER GENDER

SEXUAL IDENTITY

ONE’S SELF-IDENTITY AS HOMOSEXUAL, HETEROSEXUAL, OR BISEXUAL (SUBJECTIVE).

THEORIES OF SEXUAL ORIENTATION

• DISCRETE CATEGORIES

• SPECTRUM

SEXUAL IDENTITY

• HOW SOMEONE PERSONALLY IDENTIFIES THEIR OWN SEXUALITY.

• SOME TERMS YOU MAY HEAR:

  • GAY, LESBIAN, BI, STRAIGHT, QUEER, BI-CURIOUS, QUESTIONING

    
    

IDENTITY/ORIENTATION/BEHAVIOUR

• SEXUAL IDENTITY CAN BE BUT IS NOT ALWAYS CONSISTENT WITH SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND SEXUAL BEHAVIOUR

• SOME STRAIGHT-IDENTIFIED PEOPLE ARE ATTRACTED TO AND HAVE SEX WITH MEMBERS OF THE SAME-SEX, EVEN THOUGH THEY MAINTAIN THEIR HETEROSEXUAL IDENTITY (E.G., REBACK & LARKINS, 2010)

• LIKEWISE, SOME LESBIAN AND GAY IDENTIFIED PEOPLE ARE ATTRACTED TO AND HAVE SEX WITH CROSS-SEX PARTNERS

  
  

LGB POLITICS IN CANADA

• BEFORE 1969, PEOPLE WERE SENT TO PRISON AS “DANGEROUS SEX
  OFFENDERS” FOR HAVING SAME-SEX SEXUAL ACTIVITY

• 1969 – PM TRUDEAU DECRIMINALIZED CONSENSUAL SAME-SEX ACTIVITY CRIMINAL LAW AMENDMENT ACT, 1968-69 (BILL C-150)

  • HOWEVER, THE LAW STILL DISCRIMINATES AGAINST ANAL SEX.

    AGE OF CONSENT FOR ANAL SEX IS 18 (16 FOR VAGINAL SEX)

  • NO MORE THAN 2 PEOPLE CAN BE PRESENT FOR ANAL SEX, OTHERWISE IT IS CONSIDERED TO BE “IN PUBLIC” AND THEREFORE ILLEGAL (NO SUCH CLAUSE FOR VAGINAL SEX)

• 1992 – CANADIAN FORCES POLICY CONCERNING SEXUAL ORIENTATION
  WAS FOUND TO VIOLATE THE CHARTER OF RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS

• 1996 – HUMAN RIGHTS ACT WAS AMENDED TO SPECIFICALLY PROHIBIT DISCRIMINATION BASED ON SEXUAL ORIENTATION

• 1999 – LAWS RELATING TO FAMILY LAW, ADOPTION, BENEFITS, AND INCOME TAX WERE AMENDED TO GIVE SAME-SEX COUPLES THE SAME RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS AS COMMON-LAW HETEROSEXUAL COUPLES

• 2003 – ONTARIO BECOMES THE FIRST PROVINCE TO RULE THAT THE
  DEFINITION OF MARRIAGE AS A UNION BETWEEN A MAN AND A
  WOMAN WAS UNCONSTITUTIONAL

  • DEFINITION IS CHANGED TO “THE VOLUNTARY UNION FOR LIFE OF TWO
    PERSONS TO THE EXCLUSION OF ALL OTHERS”.

  • BC AND QUEBEC SHORTLY FOLLOW SUIT

• 2005 – CIVIL MARRIAGE ACT IS PASSED WHICH EXTENDS THE RIGHT
  TO MARRY TO ALL CANADIANS, REGARDLESS OF SEXUAL ORIENTATION
  
  

ATTITUDES TOWARD SAME-SEX MARRIAGE IN CANADA

• PRIOR TO LEGALIZATION OF SAME-SEX MARRIAGE, 49% WERE SUPPORTIVE, 46% WERE OPPOSED(THE STRATEGIC COUNSEL, 2002)

• 2009 – 61% SUPPORT SAME-SEX MARRIAGE, 23% SUPPORT SAME-SEX UNIONS. ONLY 11% WERE UNSUPPORTIVE OF ANY LEGAL RECOGNITION (ANGUS REID STRATEGIES, 2009)

LESBIAN AND GAY FAMILIES

• ABOUT 15% OF FEMALE SAME-SEX COUPLES AND 3% OF MALE
  SAME-SEX COUPLES HAVE CHILDREN LIVING WITH THEM

  • IT IS LEGAL FOR SAME-SEX COUPLES TO ADOPT

  • IT IS ALSO LEGAL FOR A CHILD TO HAVE THREE PARENTS ON THEIR BIRTH CERTIFICATE (E.G., 2 MOTHERS AND A BIRTH FATHER)

• CHILDREN OF SAME-SEX COUPLES MAY BE THE PRODUCT OF:

  • PREVIOUS HETEROSEXUAL RELATIONSHIPS (BIO MOM OR DAD MAY STILL BE INVOLVED

  • ADOPTION

  • KNOWN OR UNKNOWN DONOR INSEMINATION (LESBIAN COUPLES)

  • SURROGACY (GAY COUPLES)

  • GAY MEN MAY CO-PARENT WITH LESBIAN WOMEN

• RESEARCH SHOWS NO DIFFERENCES BETWEEN CHILDREN OF SAME-SEX PARENTS AND HETEROSEXUAL PARENTS IN TERMS OF:

  • RELATIONSHIP QUALITY

  • PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING – ADJUSTMENT & MENTAL HEALTH

  • SOCIAL ADJUSTMENT

  • PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT

  • SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND GENDER IDENTITY

• RESEARCH SHOWS NO DIFFERENCES BETWEEN ADOLESCENTS OF SAME-SEX PARENTS AND HETEROSEXUAL PARENTS IN:

  • PEER RELATIONS - QUALITY, NUMBER, TIME SPENT WITH
    FRIENDS AND PRESENCE OF A BEST FRIEND)

  • MENTAL HEATH - DEPRESSION, SELF-CONTROL, SELF-ESTEEM

  • GPA

  • DELINQUENT BEHAVIORS – ALCOHOL & SUBSTANCE ABUSE

  • SEXUAL ACTIVITY – TIMING OF INTERCOURSE & NUMBER

LESBIAN FAMILIES

• EGALITARIAN GENDER IDEOLOGIES

  • HIGH LEVELS OF:

    • SHARED EMPLOYMENT

    • DECISION MAKING

    • PARENTING AND FAMILY WORK

• HIGHER SATISFACTION WITH EACH OTHER AND EACH OTHER’S PARENTING

• STRONG DESIRE FOR CHILDREN AND SURPASS HETEROSEXUAL PARENTS IN:

  • TIME SPENT WITH CHILDREN

  • PARENTING SKILL

  • WARMTH AND AFFECTION

• BIOLOGICAL VS. SOCIAL VS. STEP MOTHERHOOD

  • MANY NON-BIO MOMS ADOPT CHILDREN

  • BIO MOM OFTEN TAKES MORE RESPONSIBILITY FOR CHILD CARE

  • DIFFERENCES IN MOTHERHOOD CAN CREATE STRESS IN THE RELATIONSHIPS

    
    

LESBIAN FAMILIES - SIMILARITIES TO HETERO FAMILIES

• COUPLE DYNAMIC CHANGE DURING THE TRANSITION TO PARENTHOOD

• TRANSITION TO PARENTHOOD IS MARKED BY DECREASED WARMTH,
  INCREASED CONFLICT, DIFFERENTIATION BETWEEN PARTNERS IN CHILD CARE AND PAID EMPLOYMENT

• LESBIAN FAMILIES ARE DIVERSE IN TERMS OF ETHNICITY, LOCATION, CLASS

LESBIAN FAMILIES - COMPARED TO HETERO FAMILIES

• COMPARED TO CHILDREN OF HETEROSEXUAL PARENTS:

  • LESS GENDER-STEREOTYPICAL ATTITUDES

    • INDIRECT PATHWAY BY WHICH SEXUAL ORIENTATION INFLUENCES CHILDREN’S GENDER ATTITUDES AND BEHAVIORS

  • MORE TOLERANT AND OPEN-MINDED
    

GAY FATHERHOOD

• CHALLENGES TRADITIONAL NOTIONS OF MASCULINITY

• GAY MEN OFTEN ASSUMED THAT THEY WOULD NOT BE FATHERS

  • PREVIOUS BARRIERS TO GAY COUPLES ADOPTING

  • PREJUDICES AGAINST GAY MEN BECOMING FATHERS

    
    

GAY FAMILIES

• MUCH LESS RESEARCHED THAN LESBIAN FAMILIES, BUT INCREASING

• ON AVERAGE, GAY COUPLES CO-PARENT MORE EQUALLY AND COMPATIBLY THAN HETEROSEXUAL COUPLES

  • SIMILAR TO LESBIAN COUPLES – ONE OFTEN TOOK ON MORE CHILD CARE RESPONSIBILITIES

  • TASKS DIVIDED BY PERSONAL CHOICE, APTITUDE, AND FAIRNESS, RATHER THAN GENDER

    
    

CHILDREN OF GAY COUPLES

• ONLY RESEARCHED VIA PARENT

• DAUGHTERS PERCEIVED BY PARENTS AS MORE SUPPORTIVE

• BOTH DAUGHTERS AND SONS SEEN AS MORE TOLERANT AND ACCEPTING OF DIFFERENCES

  
  

LGBT YOUTH

• IN ADOLESCENTS, SEXUAL IDENTITY IS STILL FORMING

• SEXUAL ORIENTATION IS ALSO DISTINCT FROM BEHAVIOUR

  • NOT ALL GAY OR LESBIAN IDENTIFIED YOUTH HAVE
    ENGAGED SAME-SEX SEXUAL BEHAVIOURS

  • SAME-SEX SEXUAL BEHAVIOURS OCCUR AMONG STRAIGHT IDENTIFIED YOUTH

SO HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE GAY, LESBIAN, OR BISEXUAL?

• ABOUT 1 IN 10 HAVE HAD SAME-SEX SEXUAL ACTIVITY
  AS ADULTS

BISEXUAL IDENTITY

• GENERALLY START TO THINK OF THEMSELVES AS BISEXUAL IN EARLY TO
  MID-20S

• OFTEN BASE THEIR SEXUAL IDENTITY ON FEELINGS OF SEXUAL ATTRACTION TO EITHER MEN OR WOMEN, REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THEY HAVE EXPRESSED THESE FEELINGS THROUGH SEXUAL BEHAVIOUR

• CAN BE INVOLVED WITH EITHER A WOMAN OR MAN, DO NOT HAVE TO BE INVOLVED WITH BOTH.

  • JUST AS HETEROSEXUALS DO NOT STOP BEING STRAIGHT EVEN IF THEY ARE EXPERIENCING A PERIOD OF CELIBACY

    
    

SEXUAL FLUIDITY

• WOMEN ARE MORE LIKELY TO BE BISEXUAL THAN MEN

• WOMEN ALSO APPEAR TO DEMONSTRATE MORE SEXUAL FLUIDITY THAN MEN

• IN A 10-YEAR LONGITUDINAL STUDY (DIAMOND, 2008), 79 LESBIAN, BISEXUAL AND “UNLABELED” WOMEN WERE ASKED ABOUT THEIR SEXUAL IDENTITY

• OVER THE COURSE OF THE STUDY 66% OF THE WOMEN CHANGED THEIR
  SEXUAL IDENTITY LABEL, 33% CHANGED IT MORE THAN ONCE

COMING OUT

• THE PROCESS OF ACKNOWLEDGING TO ONESELF, AND THEN TO OTHERS, THAT ONE IS GAY/LESBIAN/BISEXUAL

• PSYCHOLOGICALLY VULNERABLE STAGE

• ACCEPTANCE OR REJECTION DURING THIS TIME CAN BE CRITICAL TO SELF-ESTEEM

  
  

HOMOPHOBIA

A STRONG, IRRATIONAL FEAR OF HOMOSEXUALS; NEGATIVE ATTITUDES AND REACTIONS TO HOMOSEXUALS

HETEROSEXISM

THE BELIEF THAT EVERYONE IS HETEROSEXUAL AND HETEROSEXUALITY IS THE ONLY LEGITIMATE, ACCEPTABLE, AND HEALTHY WAY FOR PEOPLE TO BE.

EFFECTS OF DISCRIMINATION AND WHAT CAN BE DONE

• A STUDY OF GAY MEN SHOWED THAT THOSE WHO CONCEAL THEIR
  SEXUAL IDENTITY HAD A HIGHER RISK OF CANCER AND INFECTIOUS
  DISEASES (COLE ET AL., 1996)

• CAN ALSO HAVE PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS (PACHANKIS, 2007)

  • WHAT CAN BE DONE?

    • EXAMINE PERSONAL ATTITUDES

    • PARENTS NEED TO BE AWARE OF WHAT MESSAGES THEY ARE CONVEYING TO THEIR KIDS

    • DON’T ASSUME EVERYONE IS HETEROSEXUAL

    • EDUCATION

INTERNALIZED HOMONEGATIVITY

• HOMONEGATIVITY AND HETEROSEXISM CAN HAVE SERIOUS EMOTIONAL AND PHYSICAL CONSEQUENCES FOR LGB INDIVIDUALS

• WHEN LESBIAN, GAY, AND BISEXUAL YOUTH ADOPT THE NEGATIVE ATTITUDES THEY HEAR AND SEE AROUND THEM, THEY OFTEN START BELIEVING THAT THERE IS SOMETHING WRONG WITH THEM

• CAN CAUSE LOW SELF-ESTEEM AND DEPRESSION

• LGBT YOUTH ARE MUCH MORE LIKELY TO ATTEMPT SUICIDE (UP TO 30% MAY ATTEMPT)

  
  

TRANSGENDER

• WHEN YOUR GENDER IDENTITY DOES NOT MATCH YOUR
  BIOLOGICAL SEX

  • MAY ALTER YOUR BIOLOGICAL SEX TO MATCH YOUR GENDER
    IDENTITY

• GENDER IDENTITY MAY BE LINKED TO, BUT IS NOT THE SAME AS SEXUAL IDENTITY

• TRANSPHOBIA: NEGATIVE ATTITUDES AND REACTIONS TO
  TRANSGENDERED PEOPLE – CHALLENGES NOTIONS OF GENDER

  
  

TRANSGENDERED

• SEX: THE APPEARANCE OF THE GENITALS AS MALE OR FEMALE

• GENDER: SOCIAL CONSTRUCT THAT REFERS TO THE WIDER SET OF CHARACTERISTICS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO FEELINGS OF BEING MALE OR FEMALE

• GENDER IDENTITY: ONE'S SENSE OF ONESELF AS BELONGING TO THE FEMALE OR MALE CATEGORY

• GENDER ROLES: CULTURAL EXPECTATIONS OF ONE'S BEHAVIOR AS "APPROPRIATE" FOR A FEMALE OR MALE

TRANSGENDERED FAMILIES

• VERY LITTLE RESEARCH

• TRANS YOUTH ALSO GO THROUGH A COMING OUT PROCESS

• FACE NEGATIVE REACTIONS (FROM FAMILY, FRIENDS, HEALTH CARE WORKERS, EMPLOYERS)

• SOME PURSUE A PHYSICAL TRANSITION (TO MATCH THEIR “EXTERIOR” TO HOW THEY FEEL INSIDE)

• HORMONE REPLACEMENT, SURGERIES

THE PREGNANT MAN

• THOMAS BEATIE

• FEMALE TO MALE TRANSSEXUAL

  • KEPT REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS

• MARRIED TO A BIOLOGICAL WOMAN

• PREGNANT BY SPERM DONOR

  • USED HIS EGG

• RECENTLY GAVE BIRTH TO 3RD CHILD