title: Same-Sex Adoption as a Welfare Alternative? Conservatism, Neoliberal Values, and Support for Adoption by Same-Sex Couples.
abstract: Despite conservatives' long-term opposition to gay and lesbian parenting, scholars theorize that a strong commitment to neoliberalism may influence conservative Americans to become more tolerant of same-sex adoption as a way to relieve the government from subsidizing poor families. Drawing on national survey data (2010 Baylor Religion Survey), we test whether holding neoliberal values is associated with greater support for same-sex adoption in general and across political or religious conservatives. We find no support for either theory-emphatically the opposite, in fact. Neoliberal values are negatively associated with support for same-sex adoption for Americans in general and among political and religious conservatives. We find little evidence of a tension among conservatives regarding same-sex adoption as both their neoliberal values and moral beliefs incline them to oppose same-sex adoption along with other same-sex family relationships.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Sociology , University of Oklahoma , Norman , Oklahoma , USA.
authors.forename: Samuel L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Perry
authors.affiliation: b Department of Sociology and Anthropology , Clemson University , Clemson , South Carolina , USA.
authors.forename: Andrew L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Whitehead
mesh_terms: D000300:Adoption; D005191:Family Characteristics; D005260:Female; D006716:Homosexuality; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009014:Morals; D011057:Politics; D012067:Religion; D000072339:Sexual and Gender Minorities; D012944:Social Support; D012945:Social Values; D012946:Social Welfare; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States
keywords: attitudes; conservatism; evangelicals; homosexuality; neoliberalism; politics; religion; same-sex adoption