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Theorizing Lesbian and Gay Parenting: Past, Present, and Future Scholarship
Author(s) -
Berkowitz Dana
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
journal of family theory and review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.454
H-Index - 17
eISSN - 1756-2589
pISSN - 1756-2570
DOI - 10.1111/j.1756-2589.2009.00017.x
Subject(s) - lesbian , scholarship , queer , gender studies , queer theory , sexual identity , human sexuality , identity (music) , negotiation , sociology , hegemony , heteronormativity , sexual orientation , rubric , psychology , social science , political science , aesthetics , pedagogy , law , philosophy , politics
Research on lesbian and gay parenting has stimulated theoretical advancement in family studies. Subjective understandings of lesbian and gay parents offer scholars a novel lens through which to view identity construction, management, and negotiation. Triggered by a recent queer shift in family research, however, some lesbian and gay parenting scholarship has begun to critique identity theories as constructing hegemony around the identity “gay” or “lesbian” in that they assume a uniform subject. Queer theory challenges the foundations of identity scholarship; unpacks the assumptions that underlie research on families, gender, and sexualities; and deconstructs how the rubric of difference has framed and limited existing knowledge. I conclude with suggestions for complicating and expanding queer theory.