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from Clinical/Therapeutic Issues
Mothers of Male Homosexuals:
A Study
A recently completed doctoral dissertation by Gregory Dickson, Ph.D. found
statistically significant differences between the
childhood recollections of heterosexual and
homosexual men. The dissertation was entitled, "An
Empirical Study of the MotherSon Dyad in Relation
to the Development of Adult Male Homosexuality: An Object Relations Perspective."
A total of 135 men were surveyed--57 egodystonic homosexuals; 34
egosyntonic homosexuals; and 44 heterosexuals from
various parts of the U.S. Utilizing the
ParentChild Relations Questionnaire (PCR-II; Siegelman
& Roe, 1979), the study found that
heterosexual males recalled a much better relationship
with their mothers. These men reported a significantly more loving, less demanding, and
less rejecting mother than did homosexual males.
The study further found that male homosexuals reported significantly higher levels of
current depression, as well as significantly higher
levels of childhood sexual abuse than their heterosexual peers.
Homosexual Men Experienced
Their Mothers More Negatively
The study's results supported previously published empirical research that homosexuals
and heterosexuals have significantly different recollections of their childhood
motherson relationships.
Going beyond the scope of previous research, the study found that egodystonic
(dissatisfied with their orientation) homosexual males
recalled having experienced a more demanding mother
than egosyntonic (satisfied) homosexual men. Otherwise, no significant
differences in the recollection of the childhood motherson relationships were found
between the two subgroups of homosexual men.
Commenting on the findings, Dr. Dickson stated, "A cursory review of research to
date suggests a lack of uniform findings on the
role of the motherson relationship in the development of male homosexuality. Some authors
have found a close, overly protective
mother, while others have found the
oppositea less loving, more demanding, and more rejecting
mother. While these results are seemingly
contradictory, further investigation reveals an
underlying consistency, in that the homosexual male
has repeatedly reported a significantly different relationship with his mother than that
reported by his heterosexual peers. Whether he
reported her as overly close or distant, a negative
relational pattern is apparent."
He added, "It is reasonable to assume that
either type of relationship (overly close or
distant) may negatively impact the developing
boy's ability to complete the necessary steps
leading toward the accomplishment of the
developmental tasks of individuation and
separation. The overly close and binding relationship with
the mother may prevent the young boy from
"abandoning" her in order to join his father and
his male peers. Likewise, the overly distant relationship may not allow him to feel
secure enough in the mother's love to leave it in
order to explore peer relationships with other boys."
The Homosexual Male Often Had to
"Choose" One Parent Over Another
Findings of this study and of Dickson (1996) also support findings in the literature
which suggest that the adult male homosexual has experienced a greater dissimilarity of
relationships between his mother and father during
his developmental years than did his
heterosexual peers. The current study drew upon
previous literature regarding the healthy early
triangulation in which the boy is able to develop both
a sense of connectedness to, and distance from, both parents. "A lack of this healthy
triangulation," stated Dr. Dickson, "may result in
the developing boy finding himself 'stuck' between parents. He must choose one parent over
the other. It appears that this phenomenon is
present and much more extreme in homosexual development."
While both heterosexual and homosexual groups reported a significantly higher sense
of attachment to mother and a higher sense of love from mother, the study found that the
dissimilarity experienced between parents among the
two groups of men is most apparent in the areas of love, demand, and rejection. Dr. Dickson
stated, "A further complicating factor appears in
that while the motherson relationship demonstrates a negative relational pattern, in comparison
to the fatherson relationship, the homosexual son feels, at the same time, relatively closer
to mother than to father. In other words, compared to the father, the child may consciously
feel closer to the mother, yet unconsciously feel
unsafe with her. That unsafe sense may be triggered by either a
closebinding impingement and/or a lessloving
distance."
He continued, "It appears the process of
growing into a mature masculine identity may be impeded by any of these factors including
the motherson relationship, the fatherson relationship, the dissimilarity between the mother
and father relationship, and/or a combination thereofand this conscious and
unconscious organization may have resulted in the
many
seemingly contradictory retrospective findings reported in the literature."
Gender-Identity Development is Thwarted
by an Unbalanced Parent-Child
Relational Pattern
These findings regarding the motherson relationship, combined with those found by
Dickson (1996) regarding the fatherson
relationship with the same group of participants are
consistent with the object-relations theory of an unhealthy and unbalanced
triangular parentchild relational pattern that may
thwart the boy's gender and identity development
from both the mother's and the father's side,
hindering the accomplishment of developmental
tasks necessary in order to attain and sustain
adult heterosexual relationships.
Furthermore, the study sheds light on the potential relationship of a history of sexual abuse
and the development of adult male homosexuality.
An alarming 49% of homosexual surveyed, compared to less than 2% of
heterosexuals, reported sexual abuse.
Dr. Dickson also found results suggesting that homosexual men are significantly more
depressed than heterosexual men. However, his findings do not support the experience of
sexual abuse alone as an adequate explanation for
the homosexuals' level of current depression. Significant differences in the depression
scores remained in the comparison of nonsexually abused homosexual and heterosexual
participants for current levels of depression.
Childhood Sexual Abuse is
Correlated with Male Homosexuality
Results of this study underscore the importance of a need for increased understanding of
the effects of sexual abuse in the development of adult male homosexuality. Dr. Dickson's
findings are congruent with those of Finkelhor (1984) which found that
boys victimized by older men were four times more likely to
be currently involved in homosexuality than were
nonvictims. All of the respondents in Dr. Dickson's study reported their molestation
as having occurred by a male perpetrator; none reported female abusers. This finding,
perhaps one of the most significant of Dr.
Dickson's study, suggests that sexual abuse should
be considered in evaluating etiologic factors contributing to the development of
adult male homosexuality. He Dickson stated,
"An experience of sexual abuse could possibly contribute to the sexualizing of the unmet
needs for male affection, attention, and connection."
The study's findings do not support the experience of sexual abuse as an adequate
explanation of the difference in the way adult males
experienced their mothers during childhood. The differences in the recollection of
parentchild relations reported by the two groups
remained significant following the removal of all
sexual abuse cases. Nonsexually abused homosexual males continued to report having a less
loving, more demanding, and more rejecting mother than nonsexually abused heterosexuals.
The Relationally Deficient Child
Is Vulnerable to Sexual Abuse
Commenting on the abuse factor, Dr. Dickson stated, "It is possible that the male child
who experiences the negative relational pattern
with his mother along with the less present and negatively perceived father becomes
more susceptible to the perpetrator's advances.
Given the relational deficits experienced by the
male child, it is also possible that the molestation,
as devastating as it may have been emotionally, simultaneously may be experienced by some
of the boys as their first form of adult male
affection, as well as something relational that is
not shared in common with his mother. The abuse could, theoretically, be perceived by the boy as
a facilitation of some form of separationindividuation between himself
and mother."
Dr. Dickson continued, "It is also reasonable
to
assume that the sense of shame, secrecy, violation and anger which may result from
childhood sexual abuse contributes to the development of
a distorted paradigm through which the child views subsequent relationships with self
and others. The duty of the parent to protect the child from all harm, as understood by the
child, may be perceived as having been forsaken.
If the abuse is left unresolved, subsequent
parental behaviors may be experienced in a more
negative way by the child and later, the adult.
Additionally, the established negative relational pattern present in the family may impede
the child's ability to look to his parents for
assistance in resolving the pain resulting from
the molestation."
The multifaceted approach of Dr. Dickson's study helps to clarify some of the
previous literature's apparent contradictions
about potential contributing factors in the
development of male homosexuality. His study underscores the significance of the influence
of multiple environmental factors in the
development of adult male homosexuality. It
further emphasizes the complex, often subliminal,
yet powerful forces of not only the childhood motherson and fatherson relationships, but
the childhood experience of sexual abuse as all of these factors relate to the development of
the child's sense of self, including gender
identification and future relational choices.
Pop culture and political rhetoric suggest that
it is society's lack of acceptance which is
solely responsible for pathology associated with homosexuality. Such a simplistic
conclusion ignores homosexuals' repeated reports
in psychology literature of conflicted
parental relationships, as well as other important
issues such as sexual abuse.
Dr. Dickson stated, "The current study, in concert with past literature, suggests that
the issues surrounding committed adult homosexual identification may be more
core structural and relational, rather than sexual in nature."
He concluded, "Recent investigation of
homosexuality has been hindered by the American Psychological and Psychiatric
Associations' philosophical shift, which fails to consider
the role of environmental factors in the
development of male homosexuality. The clearly complex nature of the issue should not
be oversimplified, nor should scientific exploration be limited by politics."
Copies of the complete dissertation, "An
Empirical Study of the MotherSon Dyad in Relation to the Development of Adult Male
Homosexuality" An Object Relations Perspective,"
by Gregory L. Dickson, Ph.D., are available through UMI, 300 North Zeeb Road, Ann
Arbor, MI 48106-1346, or by telephone at 800-521-3042.
Updated: 8 February 2008
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