IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jscscx/v12y2023i3p128-d1079792.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Same-Sex Parenting Competence Evaluation: The Role of Gender Essentialism, Political Orientation, and Attribution of Conflict

Author

Listed:
  • Chiara Ballone

    (Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, University of Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy)

  • Maria Giuseppina Pacilli

    (Department of Political Science, University of Perugia, 06123 Perugia, Italy)

  • Manuel Teresi

    (Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, University of Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy)

  • Alessandro Taurino

    (Department of Education, Psychology and Communication, University of Bari, 70121 Bari, Italy)

  • Daniele Paolini

    (Department of Human Science, Italian University Line, 50122 Florence, Italy)

  • Stefano Pagliaro

    (Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, University of Chieti-Pescara, 66100 Chieti, Italy)

Abstract

Many countries are discussing LGBT rights, such as the right to wed and create a family. Despite research indicating that there is no reason to deny same-sex couples the right to be parents, negative attitudes persist concerning the quality of parenting by gay and lesbian individuals. The purpose of this study ( N = 436) was to explore the relationship between the attribution of conflict in same-sex couples and the attribution of lower parenting competencies. We examined the attribution of conflict within heterosexual vs. same-sex couples in order to determine if the alleged conflict attributed to the latter can be used in a strategic manner to justify reduced same-sex parenting competence. Results showed a positive association between the attribution of conflict and lower parenting competence, especially in the same-sex couple evaluation. Furthermore, the attribution of conflict appears to be associated with a conservative political stance, gender essentialist beliefs, and homonegativity. A moderated mediation model confirmed our prediction, revealing that right-wing (vs. center and left-wing) participants considered same-sex couples to be less competent as parents due to the attribution of conflict within the couple. Results might be useful to foster the dissemination of reliable information about same-sex parent families.

Suggested Citation

  • Chiara Ballone & Maria Giuseppina Pacilli & Manuel Teresi & Alessandro Taurino & Daniele Paolini & Stefano Pagliaro, 2023. "Same-Sex Parenting Competence Evaluation: The Role of Gender Essentialism, Political Orientation, and Attribution of Conflict," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 12(3), pages 1-11, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jscscx:v:12:y:2023:i:3:p:128-:d:1079792
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/12/3/128/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/12/3/128/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Luke Gahan, 2018. "Separated Same-Sex Parents: Troubling the Same-Sex Parented Family," Sociological Research Online, , vol. 23(1), pages 245-261, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.

      Corrections

      All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jscscx:v:12:y:2023:i:3:p:128-:d:1079792. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

      If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

      If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

      If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

      For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

      Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

      IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.