Are the Parents Alright?: Time in Self-Care in Same-Sex and Different-Sex Two-Parent Families with Children

Abstract

Research on the well-being of children in same-sex families has proliferated over the past decade. Nevertheless, almost no research has focused on the impact that parenthood has on gay and lesbian parents who are raising children. This study aims to provide greater knowledge on the well-being of parents in same-sex families while also stimulating greater research efforts devoted to this important issue. As part of these efforts, we investigate the question of whether the time loss associated with caring for children has a greater impact on the amount of time gay and lesbian parents spend in self-care activities (e.g., sleep, socializing) that are linked to well-being than it does for parents in heterosexual relationships. Using data from the American Time Use Surveys (2003–2015) and a nationally representative sample, we find preliminary evidence that gay fathers suffer greater losses in time in self-care than fathers in heterosexual families, but lesbian mothers suffer fewer losses in self-care than mothers in heterosexual families.

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