Patriots: For over 26 years, your generosity has made it possible to offer The Patriot Post without a subscription fee to military personnel, students, and those with limited means. Please support the 2024 Year-End Campaign today.

March 9, 2023

Family Outcomes: Facts and Data vs. Bias

A “new study” finds that kids of same-sex parents are as well or better off than heterosexual ones.

A meta analysis study conducted by BMJ Global Health found that children who are raised by sexual minorities (i.e., gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, etc.) had just as good or better family outcomes as heterosexual ones. By family outcomes, the study used several measures of comparison such as children’s physical health, adherence to gender roles, sexual orientation, educational outcomes, and inter-relational workings.

But once one digs deeper into each individual subsection of the outcomes, it increasingly becomes clear that the data was probably skewed. Many had disclaimers saying four of their research sources leaned one way and four the other. In other words, try as these researches might, their findings are probably not very accurate. In explaining their own limitations of the study, they admit, “Overall pooled estimates may be overestimated” because “the studies were limited to regions where same-sex relationships were legalised (sic).” They also didn’t have much research on transgender- or bisexual parent-specific households.

The conclusion was that family outcomes were similar for both sexual groups (heterosexual and LGBTQ+) and that children with LGBTQ+ parents were better psychologically adjusted, at least by preschool age. In other words, the studies probably weren’t objective, but reported by the parents. The researchers suggest this is because these children are prepared for the bias that comes with having sexual minority parents. Beyond that, however, for sexual minority families, “there are significant risk factors often associated with the sexual minority experience and family functioning, such as stigma, poor social support and parenting styles.”

This meta study is supposedly an observance of the data it synthesized; however, it leaves readers with many questions. What is meant by parenting styles? Is “social support” a euphemism for social welfare or for a strong family support system? Why was this study conducted in the first place? Were all the studies collected based on parental reporting?

Alas, it is unclear.

One study the BMJ researchers deem controversial and “moderately risky of bias” is the New Family Structures Study led by University of Texas at Austin’s Dr. Mark Regnerus. Conducted in 2012, this study used a random sample of 18- to 39-year-olds, almost 3,000 of them from all over the U.S. Its findings are startling and shattered the claim that children raised in gay and lesbian households were just as well off as those raised in intact heterosexual ones. (Bear in mind that other sexual minorities were not as prevalent as in our current era.) It is deeply important that this study questions the experiences of children within these homes as adults because most other studies of this type relied on parental reporting. So of course they’re going to be biased in favor of their own parenting choices.

The family outcomes that were measured in this study included instances of drug use, breaking the law, public welfare, suicide, mental illness, sexual abuse by parents, educational achievements, commitment in adult relationships, and so on. In almost every outcome, kids raised in an intact stable heterosexual family had better outcomes than those raised by alternative family structures.

It is particularly sad the number of children who reported that they were sexually abused by their gay or lesbian parent. Of course the BMJ analysts would deem the study controversial because it blew the lid off the theory that non-traditional families were just as likely as traditional ones to produce stable and productive kids.

Of the U.S. population, 7.2% now identify as LGBTQ+, which is a drastic increase in just a few years. Ergo, there is an increased likelihood that there will be more families of the sexual minority cohort.

The timing of the BMJ study also seems suspicious and appears to affirm a narrative — that regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity, any family is good for kids. It could be interpreted as a green light by LGBTQ+ activists to continue their grooming of all children in public schools and public libraries. It is further suspect that it calls the one study by Dr. Regnerus “controversial” without saying what was controversial about it, which says a lot about the particular biases of the researchers.

A stable, committed marriage between a man and a woman is the foundation for the future. Homosexual ones will not create children. All the other sexual and gender ideologies are fraught with confusion and plagued with mental illness and are not the best environment for the prospering of children and family.

Who We Are

The Patriot Post is a highly acclaimed weekday digest of news analysis, policy and opinion written from the heartland — as opposed to the MSM’s ubiquitous Beltway echo chambers — for grassroots leaders nationwide. More

What We Offer

On the Web

We provide solid conservative perspective on the most important issues, including analysis, opinion columns, headline summaries, memes, cartoons and much more.

Via Email

Choose our full-length Digest or our quick-reading Snapshot for a summary of important news. We also offer Cartoons & Memes on Monday and Alexander’s column on Wednesday.

Our Mission

The Patriot Post is steadfast in our mission to extend the endowment of Liberty to the next generation by advocating for individual rights and responsibilities, supporting the restoration of constitutional limits on government and the judiciary, and promoting free enterprise, national defense and traditional American values. We are a rock-solid conservative touchstone for the expanding ranks of grassroots Americans Patriots from all walks of life. Our mission and operation budgets are not financed by any political or special interest groups, and to protect our editorial integrity, we accept no advertising. We are sustained solely by you. Please support The Patriot Fund today!


The Patriot Post and Patriot Foundation Trust, in keeping with our Military Mission of Service to our uniformed service members and veterans, are proud to support and promote the National Medal of Honor Heritage Center, the Congressional Medal of Honor Society, both the Honoring the Sacrifice and Warrior Freedom Service Dogs aiding wounded veterans, the National Veterans Entrepreneurship Program, the Folds of Honor outreach, and Officer Christian Fellowship, the Air University Foundation, and Naval War College Foundation, and the Naval Aviation Museum Foundation. "Greater love has no one than this, to lay down one's life for his friends." (John 15:13)

★ PUBLIUS ★

“Our cause is noble; it is the cause of mankind!” —George Washington

Please join us in prayer for our nation — that righteous leaders would rise and prevail and we would be united as Americans. Pray also for the protection of our Military Patriots, Veterans, First Responders, and their families. Please lift up your Patriot team and our mission to support and defend our Republic's Founding Principle of Liberty, that the fires of freedom would be ignited in the hearts and minds of our countrymen.

The Patriot Post is protected speech, as enumerated in the First Amendment and enforced by the Second Amendment of the Constitution of the United States of America, in accordance with the endowed and unalienable Rights of All Mankind.

Copyright © 2024 The Patriot Post. All Rights Reserved.

The Patriot Post does not support Internet Explorer. We recommend installing the latest version of Microsoft Edge, Mozilla Firefox, or Google Chrome.