Children's Understanding of Adoption

Brodzinsky, David M.; Singer, Leslie M.; Braff, Anne M.

doi:10.2307/1130138

Cited by 142 publications

(114 citation statements)

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“…Research suggests that same-race and transracially adopted children begin to become aware of racial differences, as well as their adoptive status, as early as 4-5 years of age (Brodzinsky, Singer, & Braff, 1984;Huh & Reid, 2000). As transracial adoptees grow older, Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Richard M. Lee Lee & Quintana, 2005).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cultural socialization in families with internationally adopted children.

Lee¹,

Grotevant²,

Hellerstedt³

et al. 2006

Journal of Family Psychology

155

195

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Cultural socialization attitudes, beliefs, and parenting behaviors were examined in families with internationally adopted children. The authors hypothesized that parents with lower color-blind racial attitudes would be more likely to engage in enculturation and racialization parenting behaviors because they hold stronger beliefs in the value and importance of cultural socialization. Using data from the Minnesota International Adoption Project, the results support this mediation model of cultural socialization. Individual variations in cultural socialization also are discussed in terms of child development and shifting adoption attitudes and practices.Keywords cultural socialization; international adoption; parenting; racial attitudes; transracial International adoption is becoming an increasingly popular means to form a family in the United States. Since 1971, over 330,000 children have been adopted from other countries, and there has been a threefold increase in the annual rate of international adoption, from 7,093 children in 1990 to 22,884 children in 2004 (U.S. Department of State, 2005). The increase in international adoption is attributed to war, poverty, and the lack of social welfare in sending countries and, in the United States, to increased infertility rates, perceived difficulties associated with domestic adoption, preference to adopt infants rather than older children, and a disinclination toward foster care adoption (R. M. Lee, 2003). Today, children-mostly infants and toddlers-are adopted annually from over 100 countries, with approximately 90% of children adopted from just 20 countries and the majority from China, Russia, South Korea, and Guatemala.International adoption also reflects a larger, growing trend toward multiracial and multiethnic families, who face unique challenges in the upbringing of children of different ethnic and racial heritages. Research suggests that same-race and transracially adopted children begin to become aware of racial differences, as well as their adoptive status, as early as 4-5 years of age (Brodzinsky, Singer, & Braff, 1984;Huh & Reid, 2000). As transracial adoptees grow older, Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Richard M. Lee Lee & Quintana, 2005). At the same time, they may begin to experience feelings of loss of birth culture and family history and the growing awareness of racism and discrimination in their everyday lives (Meier, 1999;Powell & Affi, 2005). This feeling of loss, in turn, has been found to be associated with greater depressive symptoms and lower self-worth among domestically and internationally adopted preadolescents (Smith & Brodzinsky, 2002). Similarly, Cederblad, Höök, Irhammer, and Mercke (1999) reported that uncertainty about one's ethnic identity and perceived discrimination are related to greater psychological distress and lower self-esteem among international adoptees. Adoptive parents, most of whom are White and of European descent, likewise are confronted with decisions about when and how to appropri...

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cultural socialization in families with internationally adopted children.

Lee¹,

Grotevant²,

Hellerstedt³

et al. 2006

Journal of Family Psychology

155

195

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A study of egg donation families found slightly higher disclosure rates but still just 29% of couples were definitely planning to tell the child (Murray & Golombok, 2003). In contrast, adopted parents as a rule begin to communicate about the adoption from an early age (Brodzinsky, Smith, & Brodzinsky, 1998). In the last 20 years, there has been growing disquiet about the possible adverse effects of secrecy in gamete donation, particularly on family relationships and the child's psychological well-being (Baran & Pannor, 1993; Daniels & Taylor, 1993).…”

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confidence: 99%

“…Secondly, middle childhood is the stage at which problems in psychological development emerge for some adopted children. It may be that the elevated 6 Embryo donation families: Follow-up rates of difficulties in adoptees are due to adoption-specific characteristics, such as the growing awareness of the relinquishment by birth parents (Singer et al, 1982), or the experience of non-optimal prenatal and preplacement environments (Brodzinsky et al, 1998).If so, embryo donation children would not be expected to show the same increase. On the other hand, if problems of adopted children are directly related to a lack of genetic relationships in the family resulting in lower quality parenting as would be predicted by evolutionary psychology (Bjorklund et al, 2002), similar patterns would be predicted for embryo donation children.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The importance of pre-adoption experiences is supported by the findings from Simmel et al (2001) that increased levels of ADHD symptoms in adoptees are closely associated with factors such as prior abuse and prenatal alcohol exposure. Similar problems do not arise in embryo donation families due to the gestational link; the couple control the prenatal environment, and rear the child from birth.It is also possible that the adjustment problems exhibited by some adopted children are connected to their growing awareness of being adopted, and the understanding of having been relinquished by their birth parents (Brodzinsky et al, 1998). This may not be seen in embryo donation children due to the low levels of disclosure of the child's origins.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Embryo donation families: A follow-up in middle childhood.

MacCallum

Keeley

2008

Journal of Family Psychology

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Couples who conceive using donated embryos rear a child to whom they are genetically unrelated. It has been suggested that this may have negative consequences for parenting and child development. Findings are presented of the second phase of an exploratory study of families with a child conceived through embryo donation. Seventeen embryo donation families with a 5-9 year old child were compared with 24 adoptive families and 28 in vitro fertilisation families. The quality of the mother's parenting, and the child's social and emotional development were assessed using standardised interviews and questionnaires administered to mothers and teachers. Embryo donation children were not at increased risk of psychological problems during middle childhood and the families were generally functioning well. However, higher emotional over-involvement of embryo donation parents was found, along with more reluctance to disclose the method of family creation. These preliminary findings are discussed in terms of implications regarding the importance of genetic and gestational relationships between parents and children.2 Embryo donation families: Follow-up Since the birth of the first IVF baby nearly 30 years ago (Steptoe & Edwards, 1978), the number of couples using assisted reproductive techniques (ARTs) has steadily increased. By 2002, approximately one in every 100 babies born in the US was conceived through ARTs (American Society for Reproductive Medicine, 2008). Furthermore, in the UK in 2004 nearly 30,000 couples attempted fertility treatment, a three-fold increase on the frequency in 1991 (HFEA, 2005). One form of ART is embryo donation, where an embryo created by the gametes of one couple is donated to another couple who then rear the resulting child. Unlike straightforward IVF, embryo donation was developed more recently and is less frequently used, with an average of ~35 embryo donation children born per year in the UK over the last decade (HFEA, personal communication). Concerns have been raised about the potentially adverse psychological consequences of this new method of family formation, but very little research has investigated the experiences of embryo donation families.Conceiving a child using donated embryos results in a family structure where the child is not genetically related to either parent, paralleling that seen in adoptive families.Adoption presents children with specific psychological tasks including coping with the knowledge that they are adopted, and incorporating this awareness into a coherent sense of identity (Triseliotis, Shireman, & Hundleby, 1997). Outcomes for the psychological development of adopted children are mixed. Non-clinical studies of adopted children do not find them to be at risk of problems with temperament or development in infancy and early childhood (Carey, Lipton, & Myers, 1974;Plomin & DeFries, 1985). However, in middle to late childhood, some adoptees exhibit higher levels of psychological maladjustment than nonadoptees (Brand & Brinich, 1999). One possible explanati...

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Parental attitudes regarding carrier testing in children at risk for fragile X syndrome

et al. 1999

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Sixty-five parents of individuals affected by fragile X syndrome who attended the National Fragile X Conference in Portland, Oregon (1996), were asked to complete a survey assessing parental level of concern about carrier testing in children at risk for fragile X syndrome. All subjects completed a 15-item paper and pencil Likert response scale measure that was developed specifically for this study. The items included parental rights and duties, psychological adjustment, adaptation, discrimination, harm, childbearing, and interpersonal relationships. The major concern of the parents was that their children have knowledge of their carrier status prior to becoming sexually active and that their children be able to marry informed of their genetic risk. Mothers were significantly more concerned than fathers about raising their children with the knowledge of their carrier status. A sense of parental right to make the decision regarding carrier testing for children was associated with concerns about (1) behavioral or educational problems, (2) knowledge of carrier status prior to sexual activity or marriage, and (3) adjustment of the children to knowledge of their carrier status. As the sample was drawn from a unique population of parents, the results of this survey should be interpreted with caution. The findings of this study suggest a model of parents providing anticipatory guidance for their children to help them adjust to carrier information and for their children to have this knowledge prior to the possibility of reproduction.

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Children's Understanding of Adoption

Cited by 142 publications

References 0 publications

Cultural socialization in families with internationally adopted children.

Cultural socialization in families with internationally adopted children.

Embryo donation families: A follow-up in middle childhood.

Parental attitudes regarding carrier testing in children at risk for fragile X syndrome

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