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This monograph is concerned with the mid adolescent follow-up of a group of adoptees from Romania and from within the United Kingdom who were first assessed at the age of 4 years (or 6 years in the case of the oldest children). After describing the structure of this monograph, this chapter provides the background as it applied at the time that the study began, and then goes on to outline the overall research strategy and the measures relevant for the first assessment at age 4 years. The research literature with respect to other studies is considered here only in relation to the state of knowledge at the time our research began. Research findings since then are discussed separately in later chapters according to the topics considered in each individual chapter. This chapter then goes on to summarize, briefly, some of the key findings from the follow-ups undertaken up to the age of 11 years. The details of the measures, as relevant for the followup up to age 15 years, are provided in the second chapter.

Forty-eight 1-and 48 2-year-olds were observed in groups of 3, with either a female or a male majority, on 2 consecutive days, 1 day with scarce resources and the other day with ample resources in counterbalanced order. Particular toys were available in duplicate for half the groups on both days. All the experimental variables together influenced spontaneous sharing, but sharing under pressure from peers was affected by age (1-year-olds sharing more often than 2-year-olds) and the relative loss or gain of resources across days.

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Chapter III (Kumsta et al.) presented findings on the designation of deprivation-specific psychological patterns (DSPs) and on the testing of the internal and external validity of the concept of a DSP. The starting point was the meeting of particular criteria at age 6 and persistence of impairment to age 11. In this chapter, we turn to our findings on the developmental course of DSPs. Because the postulate was that the DSP resulted from profound institutional deprivation, it is necessary to begin with findings on what the children were like at the time of leaving institutional care. The evidence is relevant to scientific question about continuities and discontinuities in individual differences in the children's functioning in the institutions and the manifestation of DSPs that persisted at least up to age 11Fsome 71 years after adoption. It is also relevant to the practical question of whether prospective adoptive parents could identify children in the institutions who were likely, or unlikely, to show persisting DSPs postadoption.We next turn to the features of the four postulated DSPs between the ages of 6 and 11 yearsFstarting with quasi-autism (Q-A). The features as shown at age 6 were described in chapter III (Kumsta et al.) and will not, therefore, be repeated here. The emphasis is on both continuities and discontinuities (including change of pattern) over this age period. Chapter III (Kumsta et al.) indicated the criteria used for persistence to age 11, and here, by contrast, we focus on a qualitative description of what the children were like. In the case of the children with Q-A, we were able to use the detailed clinical assessments undertaken by M. R. together with the systematic ADOS and ADI-R findings. In addition, we have detailed findings on mental health and special educational service usage. In order to focus on MONOGRAPHS OF THE SOCIETY FOR RESEARCH IN CHILD DEVELOPMENT n Joint first authorship.79