Accepting the Unacceptable: Religious Parents and Adult Gay and Lesbian Children

Abstract

The study analyzed parental acceptance of adult gay and lesbian children. The sample (N = 59) included religiously oriented parents who had associated with groups such as Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays and Gays, affirmative parents who attended groups such as Parents, Families and Friends of Gays and Lesbians, and parents who had not affiliated with any support group. Results indicated that differences between groups vis-à-vis acceptance of sexual orientation were significant. Religiously oriented subjects nevertheless accepted their children. Parents in each group stated that the process of learning and speaking to others helped them cope and accept what they could not change. This paradox in acceptance calls assumptions about “anti-gay” groups and organizations into question.