Focus on the Family Denounces Group's Support for Gay Adoption; AAP Recommendation Based on Politics, Not Science

2/2/2002

From: Julie Neils of Focus on the Family, 719-548-4634

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo., Feb. 1 -- Following was released today by Focus on the Family:

In a report to be released on Monday, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) will announce its support for adoption by homosexual couples. The medical organization claims that children with parents who are homosexual have the same advantages as children with heterosexual parents. Focus on the Family denounces this unfounded recommendation.

William J. Maier, Psy.D., a child and family psychologist at Focus on the Family responded to the decision. "It seems clear that the American Academy of Pediatrics has submitted to the will of homosexual activists within its ranks -- at the expense of scientific honesty and the very children it seeks to serve."

While the AAP touts a "considerable body of professional literature" as its basis for the decision, Dr. Maier notes that the research is inconclusive at best.

"Studies on this topic are fraught with methodological flaws, motivated by political agendas and ultimately offer no scientific justification for this hazardous recommendation," said Dr. Maier.

Additionally, in a 2001 comprehensive review of homosexual parenting studies, researchers Robert Lerner and Althea Nagia found no evidence to support that same-sex households are "just like" traditional families. "We conclude that the methods used in these studies are so flawed that these studies prove nothing. Therefore, they should not be used in legal cases to make any argument about 'homosexual vs. heterosexual' parenting. Their claims have no basis."

Dr. Maier observed, "Moreover, this decision defies what decades of research confirm -- that children do best when there is a mother and father, married to one another, in the home. Parenting is more than the random contributions of any configuration of people. Both mothers and fathers provide unique and irreplaceable contributions. Children desperately need this balance-and no amount of political posturing can change that.

"The American Academy of Pediatrics has an obligation to promote what is best for children and society at large. Homosexual couples are no substitute for the unique design of the traditional family. We challenge the AAP to revisit the research, and consider an objective search for truth for the benefit of the next generation," said Dr. Maier.

--- James C. Dobson, Ph.D. is a psychologist, author, radio broadcaster and the president of Focus on the Family. Founded in 1977, Focus on the Family is a non-profit Christian organization committed to strengthening the family in the United States and throughout the world. Focus on the Family's secular and Christian radio and TV broadcasts are heard or seen by 28 million people a week.