What was really learned from Tasker and Golombok's (1995) study of lesbian and single parent mothers?
Limitations of research on gays and family life are discussed, including the low statistical power of small samples, a condition which increases the likelihood of failing to reject null hypotheses. In particular, it is observed that Fitzgerald in 1999 shifted from very tentative arguments in her review of literature to rather conclusive statements in her abstract about outcomes for children of gay parents. Furthermore, an often quoted 1995 article by Tasker and Golombok, upon closer examination, appears to indicate that being raised in a lesbian family increases the odds of a child later adopting a homosexual lifestyle even in the absence of homosexual attractions. For such reasons, scholars and policymakers all should be very cautious in accepting, at face value, at least some of the research being reported on gays and family life.
Schumm
Walter R
WR
School of Family Studies and Human Services, Justin Hall, Kansas State University, 1700 Anderson Avenue, Manhattan, KS 66506-1403, USA. Schumm@Humec.ksu.edu
D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002657:Child Development; D002961:Civil Rights; D005192:Family Health; D005260:Female; D006716:Homosexuality / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D018452:Homosexuality, Female / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008393:Marriage / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D018579:Patient Selection; D012107:Research Design / Q000592:standards; D012494:Sampling Studies; D020954:Single-Parent Family / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data