Adoption of children by homosexual couples

Valeria Pantoja

The tastes and preferences of society evolve as time passes. In this sense, this

days society is characterized by having a more open thinking, that is, that currently is

tolerated situations that were previously seen as immoral. One such situation is same-

sex marriage, which has become a right in some countries[ CITATION Sch16 \l 12298 ].

In other words, the union between same-sex couples is a situation that is justified

because there is the feeling of love that motivates the couple to formalize their

relationship and acquire the same social rights as a straight couple has. Considering this,

homosexual couples have been asking to the entities that administer justice for the

authorization for the adoption of children in order to formalize a family.

However, adoption of children by homosexual couples has become an

uncomfortable topic for society because involves the contrast of ethics and practicums

beliefs. For this reason, this essay propose three reasons to reject the adoption for same

sex couples: the infant may feel confused when comparing the structure of their family

with ordinary families and as a result there are stress problems, there is increased the

risk of bullying and finally the statistics show that homosexual unions are characterized

by the instability of couples, who usually end their relationship in the short or medium

term.

First, the most important psychological problem experienced by infant adopted

by same sex couples is known as "Misbalance", which occurs when the child

experiences more stress than he or she can endure, producing: depression problems,

anxiety, behavioral and emotional disorders (Diaz, 2016). This situation would be

worsened when the infant comes to live in an area where traditional families coexist.
 Indeed, the structure and lifestyle of a homosexual couple exposes adopted

children to a level of stress much greater than that experienced in a heterosexual family.

As is well known, children given up for adoption are much more vulnerable to stress, as

they usually come from broken families. Additionally, there are other causes of stress

that a child undergoes: separation of biological parents and siblings, affective

deprivation, physical and emotional abuse, sexual abuse, death of the parents, a new

home, a new neighborhood, and a new school. For all these situations, between 50%

and 80% of these children have psychological and mental problems[ CITATION

Sch16 \l 12298 ].

On the other hand, it is known that the frequency of depression, suicidal

thoughts, behavioral alterations and alcohol and drug abuse is much more frequent

among homosexual couples than heterosexual couples[ CITATION Ste15 \l 12298 ]. As

a consequence, adoption by homosexuals would worsen the stress of children who are

already more susceptible to psychological problems than other children of their age.

The second reason to reject the idea of same sex couples adopting children is

that situation contributes to increases the risk of bullying. Statistics of the Department

of Education of the Unites States says that 4 of 5 adopted boys have been bullied at least

one time during the last year before the date of survey[ CITATION Dia16 \l 12298 ].

The consequences of bulling in the life of the children are various, all of that are

negatives and contribute to generate important social problems as scholar desertion,

domestic violence, inclusive delinquency in the long term.

Actually, bulling is a serious problem that is becoming out of control of the

authorities and families. For example, boys and girls attack each others with offensive

words and physically without concerns what they fells. Consequently, the offensive
child and the insulted suffer negative effects. This is: the former becomes an aggressive

person who insults and attacks physically, while the latter becomes a shy, repressed and

insecure person who can react violently to circumstances of stress[ CITATION Ken03 \l

12298 ].

According with Diaz, (2016), a person who has suffered bullying during

childhood becomes an adult full of insecurities; moreover, that persona can become

unproductive to society, inclusive, can develop criminal attitudes and generate social

problems that adversely affect life in society. For this reason, is important to avoid

whatever situation that contributes to generate bullying, however, is complicated when

an infant is involved into a homosexual relation. Although it would be appropriate for

boys and girls in schools to be educated in order to respect the decisions of homosexual

couples, this task becomes a complicated situation because it involves education from

homes, which cannot be possible in families who are against the unions between

homosexual couples.

And finally, a powerful reason to reject the initiative of adoption by homosexual

couples is related with the statistics that show that homosexual unions are characterized

by the instability of couples, who usually end their relationship in the short or medium

term[ CITATION Ken03 \l 12298 ]. In view of this, studies estimated an average

duration of eighteen months to a homosexual union, which does not guarantee the

stability necessary for the well-being of the minor. In this sense, there is high risk for

children to pass hard moments as a consequence of the actions that involves a

separation, moments that become more complicated if the possibility of bullying in

school is added.
 Homosexual couples also suffer discrimination; therefore, they cannot express

their feelings freely as heterosexual couples do. For this reason, internal insecurities are

generated on fidelity, love and compression, which complicates family coexistence and

consequently there are discussions, fights, among other actions that mistreat adopted

children. In addition, same sex unions are much more unstable and shorter than

heterosexual unions, so it would be much more frequent to stop adopting or fail. It is

known that changes from one family or home to another, affect children adopted greatly,

who suffer psychologically.

It is necessary to be clear that the main reason to adopt a child is to provide a

home full of love, in which a child growth as person and become a productive

professional for society. However, this does happened in homosexual families, mainly

because there three factors that negatively affect adopted children: situations of stress,

intimidation in schools, and homosexual homes are not stable.

The adoption of children by homosexual couples should not be supported

because they do not generate a positive impact. In many cases, children are negatively

affected psychologically because the current society is not prepared for such situations.
Bibliography
Brodzsky, D. (2002). Adoption Agency Perspectives on Lesbian and Gay Prospective Parents.
Journal of Adoption Quaterly, 5 - 23.

Diaz, L. (2016). Do schools discriminate against homosexual parents? Evidence from a

randomized correspondence experiment. Economics of Education Review, 16 - 26.

Kenyo, G., Chong, K.-A., & Enkoff-Sage, M. (2003). Public Adoption by Gay and Lesbian Parents
in North Carolina: Policy a... The Journal of Contemporary Social Services, 102-143.

Pustilnik, A. (2015). Private Ordering, Legal Ordering, and the Getting of Children: A
Counterhistory of Adoption Law. Yale Law & Policy Review, 102-117.

Schumm, W. (2016). A Review and Critique of Research on Same-Sex Parenting and Adoption.
Psychological Reports, 38-49.

Steffens, M., Jonas, K., & Scali, T. (2015). Putting prejudice into perspective: Does perceived
suitability for adoption depend on sexual orientation more than on other applicant
features? Sensoria: A JOURNAL OF MIND, BRAIN, AND CULTURE., 43-63.