From the San Francisco Chronicle
Monday, November 23, 1992

LESBIAN FAMILIES -- STUDY SHOWS HEALTHY KIDS

Gay advocates say it will help in legal disputes

by David Tuller
Chronicle Staff Writer

In the largest study of its kind to date, a University of Virginia
psychologist has found that children born to or adopted by lesbians
are psychologically healthy.

The study involved 4- to 9-year-olds in 37 lesbian families from the
Bay area.  Although other studies have indicated that the children of
gay parents show normal personal and emotional development, most of the
earlier research has focused on children born to heterosexual couples
in which either the father or mother later came out of the closet.

The parents in the new study by Charlotte Patterson, an associate
professor of psychology, were open lesbians when they had their
children.

The study will appear early next year in a new book on issues in
gay and lesbian psychology, and gay and lesbian rights advocates
say that it will help them legally in custody, adoption and foster
care proceedings.

"The effect in legal terms is really tremendous," said Liz
Hendrickson, executive director of the National Center for Lesbian
Rights in San Francisco.  "It's crucial to have documentation that
says we're good parents because these studies get cited in custody
and other disputes."

No one knows exactly how many children have been born in recent years
to openly lesbian mothers, although one researcher estimated the
number at 5,000 to 10,000.

Patterson, who is herself gay, noted some differences between
the children in her study and children of heterosexual parents.

The lesbians' children were more likely to report both feelings of
stress, such as anger and fear, and feelings of well-being, such
as joy and contentedness.

Patterson suggested two possible explanations for the difference.

"Due to heterosexist, homophobic, and/or other qualities of their
environment, children with lesbian mothers may actually encounter
more stressful events and conditions than do heterosexual mothers,"
she wrote.

On the other hand, she noted that since the children also expressed
more positive feelings than children of heterosexuals, the change
may stem from being more encouraged by their mothers to discuss a
wide range of feelings.

"The greater tendency ... to admit feeling angry or upset, as well
as happy and joyful, may not be the result of any differences in
actual experiences, but rather a greater openness to voicing emotional
experiences of all kinds," she said.

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reprinted without permission
Frank
Minotaur@cup.portal.com