Familiar Fears: The Assessment of Lesbian and Gay Fostering and Adoption Applicants

摘要: This thesis considers how local authority social workers go about assessing the suitability of lesbians and gay men to foster or adopt children. It also asks far a stated lesbian sexuality is problematic within this process. A constructionist approach enquiry used, data being generated by interviews with workers, as well case study couple?s adoption application. Dorothy Smith?s ?institutional ethnography? employed examine ?relations ruling? that structure such assessments.A continuum assessment models proposed in order show dominance ?on merit? approaches which prioritise child care skills over issues. The demonstrates presence arguments supposed ?risks? children posed men. notion ?discrimination? assessments analysed, are attempts some challenge discrimination, it argued small-scale anti-discriminatory measures inadequate.Constructions categories ?lesbian? ?gay? discussed relation ?good carer children?, proposes two versions: lesbian? ?maternal man?. thesisargues merit: prioritisation skills? model relies upon heteronormative ideas, looks at contested meanings given category gendered raced.The sees knowledge, work ?making sense? activity versions these produced. Such everyday practices problematised thesis, discourse, (black) feminist queer theories used analyse site for production knowledges sexuality.