Adaptation to Parenthood During the Post-Adoption Period: A Review of the Literature

McKay, Katherine; Ross, Lori E.; Goldberg, Abbie E.

doi:10.1080/10926755.2010.481040

Cited by 71 publications

(57 citation statements)

References 44 publications

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“…The data provided by the literature so far differ on the nature and the extent of parenting stress within adoptive families (McKay et al 2010). According to some studies, adoptive parents report higher levels of stress than biological ones (McGlone et al 2002;Paley et al 2006;Rijk et al 2006); other studies, however, have reported lower levels of stress in adoptive parents than those found in the normative population (Bird et al 2002;Ceballo et al 2004;Judge 2003;LevyShiff et al 1990;Palacios and Sanchez-Sandoval 2006).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 72%

Predictors of Parenting Stress During Early Adoptive Parenthood

et al. 2017

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Parenting stress has a crucial influence on the parent-child relationship, the functioning of the family, and the development of children. Few studies have examined parenting stress in adoptive families during early parenthood, and fewer still have considered this issue in association with the quality of both couple and social relationships. The current study was intended to investigate predictors of parenting stress in a community sample of 56 adoptive parents from Italy, for a total of 112 participants. Our goals were to: 1) evaluate parenting stress among adoptive parents during the first postadoption year, and 2) identify whether and to what extent parenting stress can be predicted by certain characteristics of the child (gender, age at adoption, years of institutionalisation, presence/absence of disease on arrival, emotional and behavioural difficulties), of parents' individual well-being (e.g., the presence of depressive symptoms), of relationships within the couple (sexual satisfaction, tenderness between partners, quarrelling) and with the social context (real and potential social support). In the analyses parents' gender effect and intercorrelations between the partners were taken into account. Results of multiple regression analysis and relative weight analysis highlighted the great importance of children's age at adoption and their emotional and behavioural difficulties in predicting both mothers' and fathers' stress, but also the contribution of the couple relationship quality as a protective factor that could reduce the level of parenting stress.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 72%

Predictors of Parenting Stress During Early Adoptive Parenthood

et al. 2017

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“…Whilst the adoptive process has been extensively researched, some aspects of this complex and delicate phenomenon nonetheless require ongoing attention. Studies of adoption have often been centrally concerned with mental health issues and development patterns in adopted children, the impact on child pre-adoption experiences on later adjustment, and the implications of adoptive parenthood on adults (McKay, Ross, & Goldberg, 2010). Less attention, however, has been paid to examining psychological and relational status among adoptive parents, who can greatly differ from nonadoptive parents, particularly in their route to become parents (Fontenot, 2007;LevyShiff, Goldschmidt, & Har-Even, 1991).…”

mentioning

confidence: 97%

Perceptions of parental bonding, adult attachment, and marital adjustment in prospective adoptive parents. An empirical study in the pre-adoptive period

Calvo

Palmieri

Codamo

et al. 2015

Sexual and Relationship Therapy

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Adoptive parents face unique developmental and family challenges during the transition to adoptive parenthood. The study reported in this paper investigated the first transitional phase of parenthood, namely the early preadoptive period. We compared 60 prospective adoptive parents (30 couples) with a control group of 30 childless couples of prospective nonadoptive parents. Participants were evaluated by specific measures mainly from the attachment theory viewpoint, such as PBI, ECR, and DAS questionnaires. Results showed that prospective adoptive parents clearly reported more positive perceived parental characteristics of their own parents (i.e., more maternal and parental care), more adult attachment security (i.e., low anxiety and low avoidance), and higher levels of marital adjustment (i.e., higher levels of dyadic adjustment, dyadic consensus, dyadic cohesion, and affective expression) than prospective nonadoptive parents. Our findings were discussed in light of the literature in this field of the past 50 years

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“…Although research into the experiences of adoptive parents over the transition to parenthood is "sparse" (McKay, Ross, & Goldberg, 2010), there is good reason to believe that this adjustment may be especially difficult for adoptive parents. Adoptive parents undergo an intrusive and highly variable adoption process, face stigma around their adoptive status, and lack role models (Brodzinsky & Huffman, 1988).…”

Section: Review Of Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Further, children adopted from foster care enter their adoptive homes having already experienced a host of biological and environment risk factors such as prenatal substance exposure, prematurity, history of abuse and/or neglect, and multiple placements, which can impact their psychological well-being over time (e.g., Simmel, 2007). Given these challenges, it is not surprising that postadoption depression is common among a subset of adoptive parents (McKay et al, 2010), and as many as one in four report viewing the adoption more negatively over time (Groze, 1996).…”

Section: Review Of Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Thus, we provided a multifaceted examination of how gay and lesbian adoptive parents of high-risk children fared over time relative to heterosexual adoptive parents. We also examined correlations across domains of functioning at each time point, thereby providing greater insight into the associations between the demands of parenting (e.g., parenting stress), facilitating factors (e.g., social support), and parents' adjustment (e.g., adoption satisfaction, depressive symptoms; McKay et al, 2010).…”

Section: The Current Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

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Parent adjustment over time in gay, lesbian, and heterosexual parent families adopting from foster care.

Lavner¹,

Waterman

Peplau

2014

American Journal of Orthopsychiatry

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Although increasing numbers of gay and lesbian individuals and couples are adopting children, gay men and lesbian women continue to face increased scrutiny and legal obstacles from the child welfare system. To date, little research has compared the experiences of gay or lesbian and heterosexual adoptive parents over time, limiting conceptual understandings of the similarities they share and the unique challenges that gay and lesbian adoptive parents may face. This study compared the adoption satisfaction, depressive symptoms, parenting stress, and social support at 2, 12, and 24 months postplacement of 82 parents (60 heterosexual, 15 gay, 7 lesbian) adopting children from foster care in Los Angeles County. Few differences were found between heterosexual and gay or lesbian parents at any of the assessments or in their patterns of change over time. On average, parents in both household types reported significant increases in adoption satisfaction and maintained low, nonclinical levels of depressive symptoms and parenting stress over time. Across all family types, greater parenting stress was associated with more depressive symptoms and lower adoption satisfaction. Results indicated many similarities between gay or lesbian and heterosexual adoptive parents, and highlight a need for services to support adoptive parents throughout the transition to parenthood to promote their well-being.

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Adaptation to Parenthood During the Post-Adoption Period: A Review of the Literature

Cited by 71 publications

References 44 publications

Predictors of Parenting Stress During Early Adoptive Parenthood

Predictors of Parenting Stress During Early Adoptive Parenthood

Perceptions of parental bonding, adult attachment, and marital adjustment in prospective adoptive parents. An empirical study in the pre-adoptive period

Parent adjustment over time in gay, lesbian, and heterosexual parent families adopting from foster care.

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