Psychology

Monosexual and nonmonosexual women in samesex couples’ relationship quality during the first five years of parenthood

Document Type

Article

Abstract

Research on relationship quality in same-sex couples has rarely focused on (1) couples who are parents, or (2) couples in which partners differ in sexual identity. Insomuch as nonmonosexual women (i.e., women with non-exclusive sexual orientations) experience unique challenges due to monosexism, relationship quality may be influenced by whether partners share a monosexual or nonmonosexual identity. The current study is a longitudinal, dyadic analysis of 118 female parents within 63 same-sex couples whose relationship quality (relationship maintenance, conflict, love, ambivalence) was assessed at five time points across the first 5 years of adoptive parenthood. Monosexual women were those who identified as exclusively lesbian/gay (n = 68); nonmonosexual women were those who identified as mostly lesbian/gay, bisexual, queer, pansexual, or mostly heterosexual (n = 50). Analyses revealed both actor and partner effects on maintenance and conflict, such that nonmonosexual women reported more maintenance and conflict than monosexual women, and women with nonmonosexual partners reported more maintenance and conflict than women with monosexual partners. Depression was related to greater conflict and ambivalence and less love; internalized sexual stigma was related to greater conflict and ambivalence. Maintenance and love declined over time whereas ambivalence increased during early parenthood.

Publication Title

Sexual and Relationship Therapy

Publication Date

2018

Volume

33

Issue

1-2

First Page

190

Last Page

212

ISSN

1468-1994

DOI

10.1080/14681994.2017.1419561

Keywords

mixed orientation, monosexual, nonmonosexual, parents, plurisexual, relationship quality, same-sex

Link to Full Text

Share

COinS