Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Public opinion on the family: some opinions aren't changing
A new study shows that Americans are more accepting of families headed by a same-sex couple than they are of families headed by a single mom. And while the numbers on the same-sex couple question have moved dramatically in recent years, the numbers on the single-mom question have not. I'm not convinced that this reflects any illegitimate bias against single moms rather than an acknowledgment of the empirical data that kids raised by single parents do not fare as well on a number of scores as kids raised by two parents. We don't, as far as I'm aware, have similar data suggesting caution about same-sex couples. So maybe we're headed away from the broader "traditional" versus "non-traditional" split in public opinion on family social policy and toward a "two parent" versus "single parent" split?
https://mirrorofjustice.blogs.com/mirrorofjustice/2011/03/public-opinion-on-the-family-some-opinions-arent-changing.html
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I wonder how many people are concerned about sociological or psychological studies, and how many simply know that it takes a lot of time and effort to raise children, and consequently believe two parents are better than one.
The people who oppose same-sex couples raising children don't *need* studies to tell them what to think of same-sex parenting, because (as I have said elsewhere) they would disapprove of gay couples raising children even if studies showed those children were better cared for, more well adjusted, and more successful later in life than children raised by married heterosexuals. That gay couples shouldn't raise children is not a conclusion on the part of most of the people who feel that way. It is a premise.