One of the challenges of contemporary family studies is to understand the arrangements constituted by socio affective ties, as in adoption, in same sex parents or mothers. This study aimed to investigate the national scientific literature on adoptive homoparenthood, understanding it as part of new paradigms related to the family and gender. A sistematic review was conducted in LILACS, PEPSIC, SciELO and Portal Nacional BVS Brasil em Saúde databases, in the period of 2000 to 2010. The results evidenced that the studies challenge the traditional descriptions of the family, highlighting the need an expansion of the meanings of family arrangement beyond heteronormative tradition. These considerations may open space for critical intervention of professionals in the context of adoption by homosexual couples, promoting a rigorous examination of theories which are still insufficient to account for the profound changes processed in families.
homoparenthood; adoption; parental roles; family
