How to create a family? Decision making in lesbian couples using donor sperm.
OBJECTIVE
To describe the decisions lesbian couples make when creating a family through donor insemination [DI] and to explore the negotiations between the biological and the non-biological mother.


METHODS
We included 18 lesbian parents (9 biological and 9 non-biological mothers) with at least one child (7-10 years old) conceived through anonymous DI. We conducted in-depth semi-structured couple interviews at the participants' homes or at the Department of Reproductive Medicine of Ghent University Hospital (Belgium) where participants were treated in the past. The data were analysed using step-by-step inductive thematic analysis based on Braun and Clarke.


RESULTS
Lesbian couples were confronted with decisions related to two themes: (1) the fertility treatment and (2) the organisation of the family. In this paper we focused on three particular decisions: whether or not to go through treatment together, the acceptance of an anonymous sperm donor, and the celebration of Mother's and Father's Days. Several decisions were linked to the heteronormative social context. The lesbian couples seemed to want to adapt as much as possible to this frame.


CONCLUSIONS
Heteronormativity and the genetic link between parent and child influenced the decision making in lesbian couples creating a family through DI.
Department of Reproductive Medicine, Ghent University Hospital, De Pintelaan 185, 9000 Gent, Belgium. Electronic address: Sara.Somers@uzgent.be.
Sara
S
Somers
Department of Experimental-Clinical and Health Psychology, Ghent University, Henri Dunantlaan 2, 9000 Gent, Belgium.
Hanna
H
Van Parys
Bioethics Institute Ghent (BIG), Department of Philosophy and Moral Sciences, Ghent University, Blandijnberg 2, 9000 Gent, Belgium.
Veerle
V
Provoost
Department of Experimental-Clinical and Health Psychology, Ghent University, Henri Dunantlaan 2, 9000 Gent, Belgium.
Ann
A
Buysse
Bioethics Institute Ghent (BIG), Department of Philosophy and Moral Sciences, Ghent University, Blandijnberg 2, 9000 Gent, Belgium.
Guido
G
Pennings
Department of Reproductive Medicine, Ghent University Hospital, De Pintelaan 185, 9000 Gent, Belgium.
Petra
P
De Sutter
D001530:Belgium; D002648:Child; D003657:Decision Making; D005190:Family; D005191:Family Characteristics; D005220:Fathers; D005260:Female; D018452:Homosexuality, Female; D006801:Humans; D007315:Insemination, Artificial; D008297:Male; D009035:Mothers; D000072339:Sexual and Gender Minorities; D066262:Social Norms; D012944:Social Support; D013094:Spermatozoa; D014019:Tissue Donors
Assisted reproductive techniques; Donor conception; Female homosexuality; Qualitative research; Reproductive decision making; Social and genetic parenthood