Young Adults’ Perceptions of Bisexual and Transgender Adoption
Faculty Mentor
One WU mentor: Merry Sleigh, Ph.D.; sleighm@winthrop.edu
College
College of Arts and Sciences
Department
Psychology
Faculty Mentor
Merry Sleigh, Ph.D.
Abstract
Public support for LGBTQ+ rights is at an all-time high; however non-traditional adoptions remain a controversial issue. Previous research examined adopting homosexual parents as a collective group. We focused specifically on bisexual and transgender adoption. We hypothesized that male/female bisexual parents would have higher social approval than a bisexual pair of women, but lower social approval than a male/female straight couple. Participants were 100 adults with a mean age of 19.98 (SD = 1.71). Majority categories were women (70%), African American (45%) and heterosexual (75%). Participants randomly received a vignette that described an adoptive couple comprised of a bisexual woman and male partner, a bisexual woman and female partner, or a straight couple. Participants assessed the couple’s qualifications for adopting and the child’s likely mental and physical health. We also assessed participants’ perceptions of transgender couples adopting and LGBTQ+ rights. We found strong support among young adults for non-traditional parents and perceptions of positive outcomes for non-traditional parents’ adopted children. Women and politically liberal young adults were more supportive of non-heterosexual individuals and their adoption rights. These groups may also have perceived that their beliefs were widely endorsed as they predicted less prejudice for children adopted by non-heterosexual parents. These positive feelings may be restricted to very young adults, as age was correlated with more concerns about prejudice and a belief that sexuality is taught by parents. These findings suggest that society may be moving in a direction of more acceptance of non-traditional adoptions.
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Course Assignment
PSYC 302 – Sleigh
Other Presentations/Performances
SouthEastern Psychological Association Conference, Orlando, FL, March 2021
Recognized with an Award?
Finalist nominated for the CEPO Student Award for Women or Minority Issues at the Annual Meeting of the Southeastern Psychological Association, March 2021
Young Adults’ Perceptions of Bisexual and Transgender Adoption Poster
Young Adults’ Perceptions of Bisexual and Transgender Adoption
Public support for LGBTQ+ rights is at an all-time high; however non-traditional adoptions remain a controversial issue. Previous research examined adopting homosexual parents as a collective group. We focused specifically on bisexual and transgender adoption. We hypothesized that male/female bisexual parents would have higher social approval than a bisexual pair of women, but lower social approval than a male/female straight couple. Participants were 100 adults with a mean age of 19.98 (SD = 1.71). Majority categories were women (70%), African American (45%) and heterosexual (75%). Participants randomly received a vignette that described an adoptive couple comprised of a bisexual woman and male partner, a bisexual woman and female partner, or a straight couple. Participants assessed the couple’s qualifications for adopting and the child’s likely mental and physical health. We also assessed participants’ perceptions of transgender couples adopting and LGBTQ+ rights. We found strong support among young adults for non-traditional parents and perceptions of positive outcomes for non-traditional parents’ adopted children. Women and politically liberal young adults were more supportive of non-heterosexual individuals and their adoption rights. These groups may also have perceived that their beliefs were widely endorsed as they predicted less prejudice for children adopted by non-heterosexual parents. These positive feelings may be restricted to very young adults, as age was correlated with more concerns about prejudice and a belief that sexuality is taught by parents. These findings suggest that society may be moving in a direction of more acceptance of non-traditional adoptions.
