Impact of sperm donor information on parents and children

Abstract

Parents who use sperm donation to have a family must consider whether or not to be open about the donor and the details of the child's donor origins. Current research suggests that when children learn at a young age, such as when pre-schoolers or pre-adolescents, they do not have negative responses to learning about their donor origins. As children grow, however, many are curious about their donors and want information that will help give them a sense of who the donors are. In turn, this donor information may help adolescents complete their own identities. With parental disclosure becoming more common, donor insemination programs are responding by providing more information about donors—a move that is likely to help both parents and their children.