Longitudinal studies and cross-sectional investigations of children of lesbian mothers who used sperm donation have consistently shown that they do not differ from children of heterosexual parent families in terms of psychological adjustment (Fedewa et al., 2015; Patterson, 2017). Difficulties experienced by these children appear to be associated with stigmatization by the outside world (Bos, Gartrell, 2010). Controlled studies of children of gay fathers were initiated following the millennium and largely focused on adoptive gay father families (Golombok et al., 2014), as the creation of gay father families by surrogacy is such a recent phenomenon that there is little research on children born in this way. To the best of our knowledge, the present study is one of the first to obtain in-depth data on gay father families created by surrogacy: (a) from multiple sources of information (parents, teachers, and children); (b) and through multiple methods (questionnaires, standardized interviews, and observational measurements). Participants were 40 Italian gay father families with a child born by surrogacy and egg donation and a comparison group of 40 Italian lesbian mother families with a child born by sperm donation. The two groups of families were matched for children's demographic variables, and number of children in the family. Multiple recruitment strategies were used through Rainbow Families Association, same-sex parent social groups, and snowballing. The following hypothesis were tested: (1) gay father families created by surrogacy experience greater difficulties in terms of stigmatization, parenting, and child adjustment than a comparison group of lesbian mother families created by sperm donation due to the additional challenges faced by gay father families formed in this way (Golombok et al., 2017); (2) stigmatization and quality of parenting were more strongly associated with children's adjustment than was family type (Bos, Gartrell, 2010).
To the best of our knowledge, the present investigation is one of the first to obtain in-depth data on gay father families created by surrogacy and egg donation from multiple sources of information (parents, teachers, and children themselves) and through multiple methods (questionnaires, standardized interviews, and observational measurements), contributing to the emergent literature on same-sex parent families using assisted reproduction (Golombok, 2015).
Research on gay father families formed through surrogacy is of interest in its own right as it is important to understand the psychological consequences for children of being conceived using the egg of a donor, born to a surrogate, and raised by two fathers, one of whom lacks a genetic connection to the child.
However, this research is also of broader theoretical interest. By controlling for the presence of two parents in the family and the use of assisted reproduction, the study enables the influence of parental gender on child development to be examined.
With regard to the specific cultural context, the present investigation fills a gap within Italian scientific research on gay father families and lesbian mother families, a research area that is becoming important for its social, legal, and psychological implications. Although Italian legislation does not recognize same-sex marriage and gay and lesbian parenthood, this has not interfered with the growing number of same-sex families. Findings inform social policies and educational programs in order to reduce societal stigmatizaion against those families who undertake unconventional parenting decisions (e.g., unmarried couples, single men and women, and non-heterosexual people) (Lingiardi et al., 2015).