Open Search
Open Navigation

Professor Emeritus Dr. Robert-Jay Green on "Same-Sex Couples May Have More Egalitarian Relationships"

Alliant International University
Alliant
Alliant International University
Published 01/08/2015
2 minutes read
The content of this page is only for informational purposes and is not intended, expressly or by implication, as a guarantee of employment or salary, which vary based on many factors including but not limited to education, credentials, and experience. Alliant International University explicitly makes no representations or guarantees about the accuracy of the information provided by any prospective employer or any other website. Salary information available on the internet may not reflect the typical experience of Alliant graduates. Alliant does not guarantee that any graduate will be placed with a particular employer or in any specific employment position.

On December 29, 2014 Dr. Robert-Jay Green was interviewed on NPR by Lourdes Garcia-Navarro about his research on LGBT relationships. Specifically, looking at about how people behave in same-sex marriage compared with heterosexual marriage.

"A little more than 10 years ago gay marriage was not an option for same-sex couples anywhere in the U.S. Now it's legal in the majority of the country, and so we wondered what research can tell us about these couples and their marriages. Robert-Jay Green is the founder of the Rockway Institute for Research in LGBT Psychology, and he's been studying same-sex couples since 1975."

An excerpt from the transcript: 

GREEN: Well, this was a study of 976 couples who, in 2008, were registered domestic partners in California. We followed them over a five-year period to look at which ones of them got married, which ones of them stayed together, unmarried, and which ones of them broke up.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: And what did you find out? I mean, does marriage matter?

GREEN: Well, what we found out was that for those who married, they showed much better mental health at the follow-up time period than those who stayed together unmarried. And we feel this is an answer to the question of do same-sex couples need marriage rights, in addition to access to civil unions and domestic registered partnerships? And the answer is yes, it improves their mental health.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: So they're happier, essentially?

GREEN: Yes, happier, less depression, better mental health.

GARCIA-NAVARRO: In that sense, are same-sex marriages different than heterosexual marriages? Do you have the same sorts of power dynamics, for example?

GREEN: Well, what we found consistently in our research is that same-sex couples tend to be much more egalitarian in their relationships. They share decision-making more equally, finances more equally, housework more equally, childcare more equally. Basically every dimension we looked at, same-sex couples are dramatically more equal in the way they function together as a couple compared to heterosexual couples.

Congratulations Dr. Green on the great research and interview! 

To read the full transcript and listen to the interview click here

You might also like

Back to Blog
Learn More
group of women on video meeting

Dr. Concannon in Health.com: Zoom Fatigue: Why Video Chat Is Exhausting You Right Now, and What to Do About It

Dr. Concannon spoke to Health.com about what zoom fatigue is, why we’re feeling it, and how we can combat it. According to Dr...

Learn More
woman staring out window

Dr. Davis in Huffington Post: 15 Things Therapists Do When They're Worried About The Future

Dr. Sean Davis spoke to the Huffington Post about dealing with the anxiety brought on by the uncertainty we face amidst the...

Learn More
boy studying at desk

How First-Time Students Will Be Affected By New Coronavirus Procedures, According To Experts

California School of Education (CSOE) Professor Dr. Stephen Cochrane speaks to Romper about the educational experience for first...

Request Information

  • 1
    Current Select Interests
  • 2
    Provide Information