Dobson's FOF Distorts Research, Says NYU Sociology Professor

Church & State, Sep 2006

A professor of sociology at New York University says she's tired of James Dobson's Focus on the Family (FOF) distorting her research on parenting and has demanded that the group stop doing so.

Judith Stacey says FOF distorted her work to make it appear that gays do not make good parents. In fact, Stacey said, her research merely shows that children do better in two-parent households as opposed to single-parent homes.

Stacey accused FOF of hijacking her research to promote a political agenda.

"Whenever you hear Focus on the Family, legislators or lawyers say, 'Studies prove that children do better in families with a mother and a father,' they are referring to studies which compare two-parent heterosexual households to single-parent households," Stacey said. "The studies they are talking about do not cite research on families headed by gay and lesbian couples."

Added Stacey. "The bottom line is there is no research-based reason to deny rights to same-sex couples and their children. We should be passing laws and making policies that make life easier tor all families - not harder."