New study suggests specific parents invest the most time in their children

Research, which was born of a desire to confront prejudice against LGBT parents, has suggested that same-sex parents spend more time engaging with their children than heterosexual parents.

The study, which was conduced by the University of Texas, indicated that there existed a pronounced difference between families who had sex-same parents and those who had heterosexual parents.

Findings indicated that families with two mothers spent 40% more time engaging in activities, such as reading, playing and homework tasks, with their children than that of heterosexual couples.

Further to this it was established that families who had two fathers spent the same amount of time with their children as heterosexual mothers which tended to be twice that of heterosexual fathers. 

Researchers stressed that focus was not given to passive activities such as watching television, but specifically child-centred tasks.

Commenting on her work, lead researcher, Dr. Kate Prickett said: "Our study suggests that children with two parents of the same sex received more focused time from their parents – 3.5 hours a day, compared with 2.5 hours by children with different-sex parents."

Suggesting a reason for the disparity that exists between the two, she said: "The ways that same-sex families come about, such as partnering with someone who already has a child, going through insemination or surrogacy, or adoption, suggest a strong desire to be a parent."

The results of the study have been published in the Child and Family Blog.