F A M
Study: Gay youth want partners, kids
Relationship goals similar between
gay, straight youth
by Lainey Millen . Q-Notes staff
NEW YORK, N.Y. — In what is believed to
be the first study of its kind, social scientists
have found that many lesbian and gay youth
have expectations of spending their adult life
in a long-term relationship raising children.
More than 90 percent of females and more
than 80 percent of males said they expect to
be partnered in a monogamous relationship
after age 30. Two-thirds of females and more
than half of males expressed likelihood that
they would raise children in the future.
“These findings, which appear to be repre
sentative of urban lesbian or gay youth’s aspi
rations, are a glimpse into the future of the
LGBT community!’said Robert-Jay Green, PhD,
executive director of the Rockway Institute, a
national research and public policy center
located at Alliant International University.
“If these young people realize their expecta
tions, the LGBT community will be a vastly dif
ferent place in 20 years, with many more families
and children. The implications are staggering for
how the lesbian/gay community will be different
in the 21st century than in generations past,
when it was mainly a secret society of singles.”
The study was conducted by Anthony R.
D’Augelli, H. Jonathon Rendina and Katerina
0. Sinclair of Pennsylvania State University
and Arnold Grossman of New York University
and published in the Journal of LGBT Issues
in Counseling.
The researchers interviewed 133 young
people (age 16 to 22) from the New York City
area who identified themselves as “almost
totally” or “totally” lesbian or gay. The partici
pants were asked about their foture relation
ship and parenting plans.
One-third of males and one-half of
females in the study reported being in a rela
tionship. Males reported fewer and briefer
relationships than females. In both genders,
approximately 70 percent of participants
expressed satisfaction with their relationship.
When asked about expectations of future
relationships, 66 percent of males and 80 per
cent of females rated future long-term rela
tionships as “extremely important” or “very
important.” Eighty-two percent of females and
61 percent of males hoped to be partnered
during the next five years.
Ninety-two percent of females and 82 per
cent of males expected to be monogamously
partnered after age 30, and 79 percent of
females and 73 percent of males expected to live
with their partner. Sixty-four percent of females
and 37 percent of males said it was “extremely
likely” they would marry if allowed by law.
When asked about expectations of child
raising, 36 percent of females and 20 percent of
males said it was “extremely likely” they will
raise children. Overall, 67 percent of males and
55 percent of females expressed some degree
of likelihood that they would raise children.
Of those who expressed some likelihood, 58
percent of males and 54 percent of females
expect to be raising their own biological chil
dren. Forty-two percent of males and 32 percent
of females expect to adopt. Sixteen percent of
males and 14 percent of females expect to be
foster parents. Thirty-six per
cent of females and 17 per
cent of males expect to help
their partner raise her or his
biological children.
D’Augelli and colleagues
cautioned that the partici
pants in this study may not
be representative of all les
bian and gay youth in the
US. Because these partici
pants lived in or near a
major urban center, they
likely were more aware of lesbian and gay
community resources and more likely to be
connected to support programs and services.
The researchers explained that youth in rural
areas — because they might not be exposed to
same-sex relationships or to social services
directed to lesbian and gay youth — might have
different responses, although no data were col
lected to test for such urban/rural differences.
Dr. Green of the Rockway Institute com
mented, “We seem to be witnessing the main-
streaming of lesbian/gay youth, with many of
them wanting exactly what heterosexual youth
have always wanted — the whole American
dream complete with kids and the minivan.
This should not be surprising when one consid
ers that most lesbian/gay youth also have been
raised in very mainstream heterosexual families
with similar values and parental models.”
He continued, “Although some lesbian/gay
adults may prefer less conven
tional lives, most agree that the
primary issue is whether these
youth will be given the equal
legal rights to realize their cou
ple and family aspirations just
like their heterosexual peers.”
The nonpartisan Rockway
Institute promotes scientific
and professional expertise to
counter anti-gay prejudice and
Improve public policies affect
ing LGBT people. The
Institute’s view is that public opinion, policies
and programs should be shaped by the facts
about LGBT lives, not by political ideology.
A primary goal of the Institute is to organ
ize the most knowledgeable social scientists,
mental health professionals and physicians in
the U.S. to provide accurate information about
LGBT issues to the media, legislatures and the
courts. The Institute also conducts targeted
research projects to address the nation’s most
pressing LGBT public policy concerns. •
info: www.rockwayinstitute.org
Starring
BREYANNAH ALLURE, CANDIS COX.
ALEXIS CARTIER and JASMINE JAMES
WEDNESDAY MAY 28™
POP DIVAS SHOW
From Charlotte VALARIE ROCKWELL
with DAPHINE STARR, KIMORA LEE BROOKS
and MYSTI KOLE
www.cc-raleigh.com
MAY 17.2008 • Q-NOTES 19
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