S3E5: Parenting While Bi+ with Ellen Davenport-Pleasance

Welcome back to Bisexual Killjoy! In this episode, we explore the intersection of bi+ identity and parenting, a topic many of our listeners have been eager for us to dig into. To help us navigate this conversation, Dr. Ellen Davenport-Pleasance, a leading researcher on bi+ parenting and director of the Bisexual Research Group, joins us. Together, we unpack how bi+ parents experience minority stress, family dynamics, and cultural socialization, and why bi+ people are both more likely to be parents and yet remain underrepresented in queer narratives. We also talk about how bi+ parents can foster affirming environments for their kids, the role community plays as a protective factor, and what bi+ parents should keep in mind when building supportive networks. Whether you're a bi+ parent, thinking about parenthood, or just curious about the unique intersections of bi+ identity and family life, this episode is for you.

Ellen Davenport-Pleasance is a bisexual researcher who recently finished her PhD at University College London. Her PhD focused on families with bisexual+ mothers, and explored minority stress, mental health, and family functioning, using a mixture of qualitative and quantitative methods. Prior to her PhD, she completed an MPhil in Psychology at the University of Cambridge, during which she conducted a qualitative study of bisexual+ mothers, focusing on how they came out to their children and their queer socialization practices. As well as conducting research, Ellen has taught social science/ psychology at four universities in the UK and is the director of the Bisexual Research Group.

Hosted by bi+ academics, writers, and advocates Bailey Merlin and Jace Rios Rivera, Bisexual Killjoy talks all things bisexual (pansexual, omnisexual, plurisexual, and overall bi+ness) because bisexuality isn’t a phase; it’s a phenomenon. 

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Resources

• Davenport-Pleasance, E. (2024). “Bi-Invisibility in Academia; the Intentional and Accidental Erasure of Bi + Parents in Research and Recommendations for Future Research.” Journal of Bisexuality, 24(4), 534–573. https://doi.org/10.1080/15299716.2024.2361340
• Davenport-Pleasance, E., & Imrie, S. (2022). “How Do Bi+ Mothers Talk with Their Children about (Their) Bisexuality+?” LGBTQ+ Family: An Interdisciplinary Journal, 18(4), 319–338. https://doi.org/10.1080/27703371.2022.2091073 
• Irving, A.J., illustrated by Cynthia Alonso. The Bi Book. Random House. 2025.

Where to find Ellen Davenport-Pleasance

• Website: https://www.bisexualresearch.com/
• IG: @bisexualresearch