Abstract
Purpose: The intergroup contact has been shown to be related to less prejudice. This study investigated the influence of contact experience with lesbians, gay men and same-sex family on the attitudes toward sexual minorities and beliefs on same-sex family parents’ parenting skill and their children’s adjustment of Taiwan kindergarten teachers.Methods: An anonymous online survey was conducted, and the data collection took place between May 2021 and March 2022. The concept of contact experience was measured in three dimensions: quantity of contact with lesbians and gay men (LG), quality of contact with LG and contact experienced with same-sex families. Using CONTACT-2 questionnaire, quantity of contact was rated by 5 items of frequency of contact, and quality of contact was rated by 4 items of satisfaction of contact. Other measurements used in this study include Attitudes Toward Lesbians and Gay Men (ATLG) scale, Belief on Same-Sex Parenting (BOSSP) scale, and Scale on Beliefs about Children’s Adjustment in same-sex family (SBCASSF). Hierarchical multiple regression was used to test association between attitude toward LG, beliefs on same-sex parenting skill and beliefs on same-sex family children’s adjustment and sociodemographic characteristics and contact experiences.
Results: A total of 261 kindergarten teachers completed the questionnaire with a mean age of 38.8 years (range 23-65). Overall mean (SD) of ATLG, BOSSP-mothers subscale, BOSSP-fathers subscale, SBCASSF individual opposition (IO) subscale and SBCASSF normative opposition (NO) subscale were 17.99(8.53), 43.94(10.32), 46.84(9.30), 18.73(6.44) and 18.40(6.02). High quality of contact with LG was associated with lower prejudice toward LG and a positive belief on same-sex parents’ parenting skill and same-sex family children’s adjustment. The contact experience with same-sex family has an association with positive beliefs on same-sex family parents and children.
Conclusion: The findings suggest that the quality of contact experience with LG is an important factor to reduce the rejection of same-sex family. When designing future program of interaction with same-sex family and educators, increasing the frequency of contact is not sufficient; instead, it is necessary to make the interactions positive to promote feelings of closeness.
| Date of Award | 2022 |
|---|---|
| Original language | English |
| Supervisor | Carol Strong (Supervisor) |