Meaning in Life Among Middle-Aged and Older Gay and Heterosexual Fathers

This study explored differences in meaning-in-life indicators, namely purpose in life and personal growth, among 76 community-dwelling middle-aged and older Israeli gay men, who had become fathers through a heterosexual relationship (mean age = 59.42, SD = 6.15, range: 50-78), 110 gay men that were not fathers (mean age = 60.37, SD = 9.69, range: 50-84), and 114 heterosexual fathers (mean age = 62.27, SD = 8.09, range: 50-87). As hypothesized, after controlling for 10 sociodemographic characteristics, personal growth was higher among middle-aged and older gay fathers compared with heterosexual fathers. No difference emerged for purpose in life. In line with a second hypothesis, both purpose in life and personal growth were higher among middle-aged and older gay fathers compared with middle-aged and older gay men that were not fathers. The findings emphasize the possible strengths, manifested by elevated levels of meaning in life, which fatherhood embodies for gay men.