Cologne wants to know: How are rainbow families doing in the cathedral city? A study is to provide answers to this question. Anyone living in a rainbow family in Cologne can complete the questionnaire online
Father, mother, child - it hasn't been that simple for a long time. Families today come in very different constellations. And more and more children are growing up in so-called rainbow families, for example with two gay fathers or two lesbian mothers.
The city of Cologne now wants to know how the city's rainbow families are doing. Do they feel comfortable in Cologne? Have they experienced discrimination? Do they need support? A study is to provide answers to these questions. It is based on a questionnaire that members of Cologne's rainbow families can currently answer online. Title: "We are parents!"
The study is being carried out by a team of scientists led by psychologist Dominic Frohn (known for the "Out in the office?!" survey). In addition to the City of Cologne, the Rubicon advice centre and the Lesbian and Gay Association in Germany (LSVD). The study is part of the EU-funded project AHEAD (Against Homaophobia. European local Administration Devices).
The programme is aimed at lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transsexuals. "By rainbow families, we mean all constellations where the decision to have a child was made after coming out," says Dominic Frohn. So this study is not about families whose children come from a previous heterosexual relationship of one parent.
"Alternative family models are generally becoming more common in the western world," emphasises Frohn. "We want to find out how they differ from conventional family constellations and where the special features of the family structure lie."
But it is also about very specific everyday questions: What experiences do rainbow families have when dealing with the authorities? How do the children get on at nursery and school? Are the parents accepted there with their way of life? And how does the gay world react to the decision of gays and lesbians to live with children?
The data is collected completely anonymously using an online survey. The first part of the questionnaire takes five minutes. Those who wish can then continue and complete the long version, which takes around 25 minutes. Over 100 people have already taken part.
To the online questionnaire
A big hit on YouTube: Young Terence talks about his family life with two fathers: