Psychosocial Adjustment, School Outcomes, and Romantic Relationships of Adolescents With Same-Sex Parents Jennifer L. Wainright, Stephen T. Russell, and Charlotte J. Patterson This study examined associations among family type (same-sex vs. opposite-sex parents); family and rela- tionship variables; and the psychosocial adjustment, school outcomes, and romantic attractions and behaviors of adolescents. Participants included 44 12- to 18-year-old adolescents parented by same-sex couples and 44 same-aged adolescents parented by opposite-sex couples, matched on demographic characteristics and drawn from a national sample. Normative analyses indicated that, on measures of psychosocial adjustment and school outcomes, adolescents were functioning well, and their adjustment was not generally associated with family type. Assessments of romantic relationships and sexual behavior were not associated with family type. Re- gardless of family type, adolescents whose parents described closer relationships with them reported better school adjustment. Does parental sexual orientation have an impact on children’s development? The issue of parental sexual orientation has received a great deal of attention re- cently from a variety of sources, including the pop- ular press, the research community (Stacey & Biblarz, 2001), and the medical profession (Perrin, 1998). This topic is important both because of its implications for theories of socialization (Golombok, 1999; Golombok & Tasker, 1994) and because of its relevance to recent controversies in law and social policy, both in the United States and abroad (Go- lombok, 2002; Patterson, Fulcher, & Wainright, 2002; Patterson & Redding, 1996; Perrin & Committee on Psychosocial Aspects of Child and Family Health, 2002). Thus, it is not surprising that a growing body of empirical research has examined psychosocial outcomes among children who are raised by parents who have same-sex partners. Varied theoretical predictions about the develop- ment of children with lesbian mothers can be drawn from the psychological literature (Golombok et al., 2003). Some authors have suggested that parental sexual orientation might have an important influ- ence on development during childhood and adoles- cence (e.g., Baumrind, 1995). Others have argued that the qualities of family relationships and inter- actions are likely to be more important influences than parental sexual orientation (e.g., Chan, Raboy, & Patterson, 1998). A growing number of studies have sought to evaluate these expectations by exploring linkages between parental sexual orientation, on the one hand, and children’s development, on the other. Research has identified few associations between parental sexual orientation and young children’s well-being (Patterson, 2000), but it has suggested that processes within the family such as parents’ division of labor (Chan, Raboy, et al., 1998; Patterson, 1995) may be associated with child adjustment. Re- search has focused on children who were born to or adopted by lesbian mothers (e.g., Brewaeys, Po- njaert, Van Hall, & Golombok, 1997; Chan, Brooks, Raboy, & Patterson, 1998; Chan, Raboy, et al., 1998; Flaks, Ficher, Masterpasqua, & Joseph, 1995; Go- lombok, Tasker, & Murray, 1997; Patterson, 1994) or who were born in the context of a heterosexual re- lationship (e.g., Golombok, Spencer, & Rutter, 1983; Green, 1978; Green, Mandel, Hotvedt, Gray, & Smith, 1986; Kirkpatrick, Smith, & Roy, 1981). Results of these studies suggest that children’s development is similar in many respects, whether they are raised by lesbian or by heterosexual parents. r 2004 by the Society for Research in Child Development, Inc. All rights reserved. 0009-3920/2004/7506-0018 Jennifer L. Wainright, Department of Psychology, University of Virginia; Stephen T. Russell, Department of Family Studies and Human Development, University of Arizona; Charlotte J. Patter- son, Department of Psychology, University of Virginia. This research uses data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), a program project designed by J. Richard Udry, Peter S. Bearman, and Kathleen Mullan Harris, and funded by Grant P01-HD31921 from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, with cooperative funding from 17 other agencies. Special acknowledgment is due Ronald R. Rindfuss and Barbara Entwisle for assistance in the original de- sign. Persons interested in obtaining data files from Add Health should contact Add Health, Carolina Population Center, 123 W. Franklin Street, Chapel Hill, NC 27516-2524 (www.cpc.unc.edu/ addhealth/contract.html). Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Charlotte J. Patterson, Department of Psychology, P.O. Box 400400, University of Virginia, Charlottesville VA 22904-0400. Electronic mail may be sent to cjp@virginia.edu. Child Development, November/December 2004, Volume 75, Number 6, Pages 1886 – 1898