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Objective: This mixed-methods exploratory study sought to address the experiences of 89 adoptive parents (heterosexual, lesbian, and gay) in the United States with school-age children in relation to the transition to remote schooling and their children's mental health during the early part of the COVID-19 pandemic., Background: The transition to remote schooling and associated confinement during the COVID-19 pandemic presents challenges for families, particularly when children are struggling with mental health and learning challenges., Methods: Data were collected via an online survey between May and June 2020. Before the pandemic, almost half of the children received special education services., Results: Findings revealed that although a minority of children were doing well with remote schooling, the majority were struggling due to lack of motivation and an inability to work independently. Some parents voiced challenges with teacher communication and inconsistencies across classes and were overwhelmed by the demands of their new role as proctor/teacher. Some were dissatisfied with how children's school services had been implemented and noted difficulties with the online format of various services (e.g., therapy was less engaging). Regarding children's mental health, half of parents said it had stayed the same, one third said it had worsened, and the remainder said it had improved. The mental health of children adopted via foster care seemed to have benefited from the additional time spent at home. Yet most children were described as struggling in part due to social isolation and loss of routine, which manifested in a variety of ways, including anxiety, schoolwork avoidance, and boundary testing. Most parents tried to show patience, tolerance, and reassurance, but more than one third reported stress and frustration associated with not knowing how to best support their children., Conclusion: The transition to remote schooling during COVID-19 may be especially challenging for adoptive families and other families whose children have higher levels of need., Implications: Findings have implications for parents, teachers, school social workers and psychologists, and other professionals who work with children and families., (© 2021 National Council on Family Relations.)

The current qualitative study of 35 pre-adoptive gay male couples (70 men) examined gay men's motivations to parent and their reasons for pursuing parenthood at the current time. Similar to heterosexual couples, gay men described a range of psychologically-oriented reasons as shaping their decision to become parents. Some of these (e.g., desire to teach a child tolerance) may have been uniquely shaped by their sexual minority status, and others (e.g., desire to give a child a good home) in part reflect their adoptive status. Men named age, finances, and relationship factors, as well as unique contextual factors such as the need to find and move to gay-friendly neighborhoods, as influencing their readiness to pursue parenthood at the current time. Gay men's motivations to parent echo normative life course decision-making processes, but also reflect concerns that are uniquely informed by their sexual minority status.

In seeking to adopt, lesbians and gay men may confront various barriers and obstacles. Ideally they have access to a variety of support resources that can help to buffer the negative effects of these barriers. However, lesbians and gay men living in small-metropolitan communities may have limited access to support resources. The current qualitative study examined the perceptions of 37 same-sex couples who were pursuing adoption while living outside of large metropolitan cities, with attention to the barriers these couples encountered during the adoption process, and the resources they drew upon to cope with such challenges. Findings indicated that same sex couples living in small-metropolitan areas confronted several major barriers in the adoption process, such as a lack of geographically accessible gay-friendly adoption agencies. Despite limited access to support, participants showed evidence of notable resourcefulness. For example, participants with limited access to formal support groups sought out informal supports instead.

This article examines how the work hours, work schedules, and role overload of working-class couples are related to depressive symptoms and relationship conflict across the transition to parenthood. Data are from 132 dual-earner couples interviewed 5 times across the transition. Multilevel modeling analyses revealed that working evening or night shifts, as opposed to day shifts, was related to higher levels of depressive symptoms. For mothers only, working rotating shifts predicted relationship conflict. Increases in role overload were positively related to both depression and conflict; working a nonday shift explained variance in depression and conflict above and beyond role overload. Results suggest that for new parents, working nonday shifts may be a risk factor for depressive symptoms and relationship conflict.