Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2016:2016:2410392.
doi: 10.1155/2016/2410392. Epub 2016 May 29.

Invisible Victims: Delayed Onset Depression among Adults with Same-Sex Parents

D Paul Sullins  1
Affiliations

Invisible Victims: Delayed Onset Depression among Adults with Same-Sex Parents

D Paul Sullins. Depress Res Treat. 2016.

Expression of concern in

Abstract

The relationship of elevated depression risk recently discovered among adult persons raised by same-sex parents with possible precipitating conditions in childhood has not previously been acknowledged. This study tests whether such inattention is supportable. Logistic regression based risk ratios were estimated from longitudinal measures of mental health outcomes observed in three waves (at ages 15, 22, and 28) of the US National Survey of Adolescent to Adult Health (n = 15,701). At age 28, the adults raised by same-sex parents were at over twice the risk of depression (CES-D: risk ratio 2.6, 95% CI 1.4-4.6) as persons raised by man-woman parents. These findings should be interpreted with caution. Elevated risk was associated with imbalanced parental closeness and parental child abuse in family of origin; depression, suicidality, and anxiety at age 15; and stigma and obesity. More research and policy attention to potentially problematic conditions for children with same-sex parents appears warranted.

PubMed Disclaimer

Comment in

References

    1. Regnerus M. How different are the adult children of parents who have same-sex relationships? Findings from the New Family Structures Study. Social Science Research. 2012;41(4):752–770. doi: 10.1016/j.ssresearch.2012.03.009. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Allen D. High school graduation rates among children of same-sex households. Review of Economics of the Household. 2013;11(4):635–658. doi: 10.1007/s11150-013-9220-y. - DOI
    1. Sullins D. P. Emotional problems among children with same-sex parents: difference by definition. British Journal of Education, Society & Behavioural Science. 2015;7(2):99–120. doi: 10.9734/bjesbs/2015/15823. - DOI
    1. Sarantakos S. Children in three contexts: family, education and social development. Children Australia. 1996;21(3):23–30.
    1. Schumm W. R. Sarantakos's research on same-sex parenting in Australia and New Zealand: Importance, substance, and corroboration with research from the United States. Comprehensive Psychology. 2015;4(1):1–16. doi: 10.2466/03.cp.4.1. - DOI

LinkOut - more resources