The process of revealing one's sexual orientation to others, also known as "coming out," is an essential component in the identity integration of lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals (Aranda et al., 2015; Baiocco et al., 2015; Biswas & Chaudhuri, 2018). Coming out to family, especially to parents, is often the biggest challenge for LGB youth. Despite the risk of disapproval and victimization, most young people decide to talk to their parents (Baiocco et al., 2015; Pistella et al., 2016). For parents, this revelation can be difficult to accept due to deeply ingrained social and historical beliefs about "natural" family models, gender roles, and heteronormativity (McConnell et al., 2016; Orcasita et al., 2020; Rosati et al., 2020).

Parents may have different types of reactions to the disclosure that can either facilitate or hinder the acceptance processes of the revelation (Cassar & Grima Sultana, 2016). A negative family reaction to the revelation of a child's LGB sexual orientation can have a harmful impact on the person's physical and psychological health, cause tension in family relationships, and generate interparental conflicts (Baiocco et al., 2015; Orcasita et al., 2020). On the other hand, a positive family reaction can lead to an increase in the self-esteem and mental health of LGB children, and improve their coping and resilience resources (Biswas & Chaudhuri, 2018; McConnell et al., 2016; Solís Zúniga, 2016). Therefore, family acceptance and support become very important elements for the health and well-being of LGB individuals.

Informational support for families and broad support networks sensitive to sexual diversity issues can be crucial tools to help parents understand sexual diversity more deeply in the family and social context, help them recognize and validate their experiences, emotions, fears, and doubts, and prevent their children from experiencing feelings of discomfort, insecurity, and homophobia towards their sexual orientation (Orcasita et al., 2020).

Several studies have investigated the coming out process from the perspective of LGB individuals (Aranda et al., 2015; Baiocco et al., 2015; Baptist & Allen, 2008; Bond et al., 2009; Chan, 2017; Pistella et al., 2016), but few have done so from the parents' point of view. This study proposes a systematic review of studies from the last 10 years (2014-2024) focused on coming out processes from the perspective of parents and other family members to identify the key elements of their experiences and what aspects determine well-being or discomfort within a family with an LGB son or daughter.

The present study conducted a systematic review of the scientific literature using the PRISMA method, focusing on the experiences of parents of LGB children during the coming out process. The research targeted studies that included the perspectives of parents as part of the sample. The search was conducted in July and August 2024 across Scopus, Web of Science (WOS), and ERIC databases. The search terms used were: ("coming out" OR disclosure) AND ("sexual orientation" OR lgb OR lbg) AND (parent* OR family) AND (reaction OR acceptance OR support). The search was limited to articles published from 2014 onwards, yielding 127 results in Scopus, 218 in WOS, and 9 in ERIC. To screen the results, exclusion and inclusion criteria were established, such as the need for articles to contain empirical research (excluding reviews, single case studies, books, manuals, or theses/dissertations), be published between 2014 and 2024, focus on the disclosure processes from the perspective of parents and/or other relatives of LGB individuals, and include sexual orientation within these processes (lesbian, gay, and/or bisexual people). Finally, following specific inclusion and exclusion criteria, 21 articles were analyzed. Most studies were conducted in the United States (9), followed by Italy (3), and Canada (2). Other studies were from Colombia, Cuba, Nicaragua, Venezuela, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Malta, the UK, Israel, and India. The majority of research was published in 2022 and 2015 (4 each), and 2023 (3). Sixteen studies used qualitative methods, primarily semi-structured interviews. Three studies used quantitative methods with questionnaires, and two used mixed methods combining questionnaires and interviews.

The first point to note is to understand that coming out is not only a process of change for LGB children but also an ongoing process that involves self-identification as a family of an LGB person. This process of self-identifying as the family of an LGB person, can be difficult to cope for parents who have a mutable environmental causal attribution regarding homosexuality and bisexuality. That is to say, the more essentialist the causal attributions of parents, understanding their child's sexuality as an intrinsic, natural, and unchangeable element of the person, the more tolerant they are. Conversely, those who believe that homosexuality is the result of environmental causes and is mutable are less tolerant (Belsky, Y. M. A., & Diamond, G. M., 2015). The latter are the ones who tend to have negative reactions to the revelation and adopt harmful coping strategies for their LGB child, such as avoiding the topic, isolating the child from other family members, friends and acquaintances or hiding to them the child's sexual orientation. These are the families where the coming out processes most frequently affect the mental health of both parents and children, causing symptoms of depression and anxiety, among others. Regardless of any initial negative reactions or harmful coping strategies they may have had, over time, most parents end up accepting their children's identity. It is important to highlight that this acceptance is not possible without the parents' efforts to question the heteronormative and homophobic values they had internalized and carried with them, and their courage to challenge these values, decide to learn about the LGBTIQ+ world, educate themselves, and seek support. This process can lead to personal growth and improved family relationships. Ultimately, in some cases, this journey leads them to become active members of activist organizations fighting for LGBTIQ+ rights.

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