Members of Binghamton University&rsquo;s Interdisciplinary Research Group for the Study of Sexuality and Gender conducted a study of people&rsquo;s reactions to the parenting behaviors of gay and straight parents. Their results showed a clear pattern of negative reactions from study participants towards a gay couple engaging in exactly the same negative parenting behaviors as a straight couple. Research Associate Professor Sean Massey and Instructor Ann Merriwether of Binghamton, and Justin Garcia from The Kinsey Institute at Indiana University, &ldquo;We noted that when parents displayed favorable parenting behaviors like comforting an upset child, gay and straight parents were judged in a similar, positive manner,&rdquo; Research Associate Professor Sean Massey said. <img alt="Sex and relationships, Gay parents judged more harshly as compared to straight parents" src="http://images.mid-day.com/2013/mar/gay-parents.jpg" style="width: 500px; height: 381px;" /> Representational picture &ldquo;However, if parents got frustrated - raised their voice or slapped their child on the hand, the gay parents were judged more negatively than the straight parents,&rdquo; he said. Massey said that this marked difference in the study groups&rsquo; reactions is significant. While no parent is perfect, the researchers believe that holding gay parents to a different standard adds additional stress to the already stressful job of parenthood. It can also negatively affect their chances of adopting or becoming foster parents. &ldquo;We feel that it is very important for social workers and adoption counselors to be made aware of the effects of modern anti-gay prejudices and they need to educate themselves and develop policies that help protect against these potential biases,&rdquo; Massey said. There is a serious shortage of people stepping up to foster or adopt the hundreds of thousands of children who are in the system waiting to find a new foster family or adopted family. The gay community is a resource for many of these children but this study indicates that if judged more harshly than their straight counterparts, gay parents are at a disadvantage. The findings are published in the Journal of GLBT Family Studies.

Gay parents are being judged more harshly than straight parents, a new study has revealed

Gay parents judged more harshly as compared to straight parents

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Gay parents judged more harshly as compared to straight parents

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