Assisted Reproduction Donor Gametes and Surrogacy
RRM Academy Synopsis
Donor-conceived teens told before 7 had better family relationships
Among 56 disclosing families, teens told before age 7 had better family relationships. This longitudinal study assessed 87 families formed by reproductive donation at age 14. A comparison group had 54 families with naturally conceived children. Families that told, families that did not and natural conception families showed no overall differences.
Key Findings
- Measures from mothers showed no significant differences between 56 disclosing, 31 nondisclosing and 54 natural conception families on parenting quality, mother-child relationships, family functioning or adolescent adjustment.
- Among the 56 disclosing families, 21 (37%) told their child by age 3, 25 (45%) between ages 4 and 6, and 10 (18%) between ages 7 and 14.
- Family relationship scores indicated more positive relationships when disclosure came before age 7 than at 7 or older, by mothers' ratings (p < .001) and adolescents' ratings (p = .027).
- Adolescents told before age 7 reported higher wellbeing than those told at age 7 or older (p = .027); the three-group test showed a nonsignificant trend (p = .069).
- In a path analysis, earlier disclosure predicted more positive family relationships as adolescents saw them, which predicted higher wellbeing (indirect effect β = −.158, p = .039, 95% CI −.309 to −.008).
Interpretation
The study recorded when parents chose to disclose, so the results are associations. The authors cannot rule out that surrogacy families, which tended to disclose earlier, had more positive relationships to begin with. Only 10 families disclosed at age 7 or older, and the authors name the small sample as a limitation. Adolescents who had not been told could not be asked, so that comparison rests on mothers' reports. The authors suggest that parents should be advised to begin talking to children about their origins in the preschool years.
RRM Context
Egg donation, sperm donation and surrogacy bypass infertility. The cause stays unresolved. A third party enters the child's genetic or gestational origins, and parents face the disclosure question this study examines. Restorative reproductive medicine looks for the cause of infertility in both partners and treats it.
Abstract
The question of whether children should be told of their biological origins is one of the most controversial issues regarding the birth of children through donated eggs, sperm, embryos or surrogacy. In the sixth phase of this longitudinal study when the children were aged 14 years, family relationships and adolescent adjustment were examined in 87 families created through reproductive donation and 54 natural conception families. The quality of family relationships was assessed by standardised interview with mothers and by standardised questionnaires and an observational measure with mothers and adolescents. Adolescent adjustment was assessed using standardised questionnaires. Systematic information on whether and when parents had told children about their biological origins was obtained at earlier phases of the study. There were no overall differences between disclosing families and either nondisclosing or natural conception families. However, within the disclosing families, more positive family relationships and higher levels of adolescent wellbeing were found for adolescents who had been told about their biological origins before age 7. The earlier children born through reproductive donation are told about their biological origins, the more positive are the outcomes in terms of the quality of family relationships and psychological wellbeing at adolescence.
