Beyond the rainbow : lesbians’ and gay Men’s perceptions of same-sex parenting in Malta : implications for counsellors

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore the way individuals, who identify as lesbian or gay, perceive same-sex parenting in Malta. Seven participants contributed to this study by sharing their perceptions revolving around issues related to same-sex parenting within the local context. A phenomenological approach was adopted to capture the salient themes. A thematic analysis approach was implemented to process the data elicited through semistructured, one-to-one, in-depth interviews. After the initial coding and clustering, interpretive coding was used to identify emerging themes. The themes identified include the participants‘ perceptions about the implications tied with the possibility of becoming parents in a legally recognized setting; the need for normalisation of same-sex parenting and the way this can take place; implications tied to the possible reproductive technologies, including adoption and fostering; key aspects in terms of parenting style and roles; and the participants‘ perceptions on their expectation form the counsellor and counselling service. A major implication of this study highlights the participants‘ need for themselves and their children to belong, this across the various societal systems within which one interacts, in particular the school environment, the socio-religious context and the counselling context. Recommendations as elicited from the data address further research, policy and implementation. This might include studies about the impact of the socio-religious context on these families, policies that address training of professionals to aid inclusion of these families and practices to aid normalization such as same-sex parenting exposure in local media.