Family and Social Relationships and Psychosocial Well-Being in Italian Families With Internationally Adopted and Non-Adopted Children

Rosnati, Rosa; Ranieri, Sonia; Barni, Daniela

doi:10.1080/10926755.2012.731030

Cited by 33 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…These encourage an increase in awareness regarding the relevant role that pre-adoption experiences play in adult lives, especially when becoming parents by birth and rearing their own children. Adoptive parents must be trained in how to talk with their children about adoption issues in order to co-construct the adoption history (Rosnati, Ranieri, & Barni, 2013). But as life goes on, the adopted person has a pivotal role: He/she can choose with whom and what of his/her past to share.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Adult Adoptees as Partners and Parents: The Joint Task of Revisiting the Adoption History

2014

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Adoption is unanimously considered a lifelong process, but adulthood and parenthood are life cycle stages that up to now have been explored only marginally. The principal aim of the present study is twofold: first, to analyze whether and how parenthood might lead the adoptee and his/her partner to reinterpret the adoption history and, second, to verify whether the attitudes of the two partners concerning adoption are similar or complementary. Thirty-four couples consisting of one adopted and one non-adopted partner, now parents, were interviewed and a graphic instrument, the Double Moon Test, was administered. Results revealed that most couples showed a shared attitude in valorizing both the origin background and the adoptive family. However, in a number of cases a divergent position emerged, highlighting the crucial role of the non-adopted partner in encouraging the adoptee to revisit his/her adoption history. Overall, the practical relevance of the research findings is discussed and future direction of research are suggested.Adoption cannot be considered a single life event, as it has to be properly viewed as a lifelong process (Brodzinsky, Schechter, & Marantz Henig, 1992): Each specific turning point allows for a reinterpretation of the adoption history and personal identity and a negotiation of the family relational network.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Adult Adoptees as Partners and Parents: The Joint Task of Revisiting the Adoption History

2014

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“…Moreover, it is worth noting that in most studies the perception of only one parent was considered, but research on the general population had revealed that maternal and paternal perceptions of parenting stress may be significantly different and show differential prediction patterns (Saisto et al 2008). In line with previous studies that have highlighted similarities, as well as differences within adoptive couples (Ferrari et al 2015;Rosnati et al 2008;Rosnati et al 2013), both the mother and the father for each family should be considered to deeper understand the nature of parenting stress in this particular family transition. Furthermore, according to a family relational perspective (Cigoli and Scabini 2006), mothers and fathers are in constant interaction and their perceptions are reciprocally influenced.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 81%

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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“…The job of social workers is to find a family with the skills and resources to deal with, for example, sibling groups, disabled children, minority ethnic children, or children exposed to drugs or alcohol (Thomas, 2013). Recognising the increasingly challenging aspects of the adoptive parent role, existing literature has highlighted the influence of friends and family support on adoptive parents' well-being (Rosnati, Ranieri and Barni, 2013), while also stressing the importance of taking into account societal attitudes and their impact on mental health and family functioning (Miall, 1996). Yet little is known about the relationship between societal attitudes towards adoption as perceived by adoptive parents and their experiences of social support.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Adoptive parents’ experiences of social support and attitudes towards adoption

Weistra

Luke

2017

Adoption & Fostering

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The internalisation of stigma by adoptive parents has been related to depressive symptoms (Goldberg, Kinkler, and Hines, 2011) and dysfunctional family behaviour (Walsh, 2003). The current study investigated stigma internalisation and perception, and their relationships with social support from family, friends, and the broader community. The goal was to determine the extent to which adoptive parents felt societal attitudes were stigmatising, and how social support influenced stigma. Data were collected using an online survey (n = 43) and semi-structured interviews (n = 7). Participants reported that the motivation to adopt and the nature of the adoptive family are not understood by non-adopters and that the media portrays parents in an unrealistic manner, as either 'heroes' or 'desperate'. Living area was found to predict stigma perception, with people living in cities perceiving lower stigma than people in towns, suburbs, and rural areas. Social support came from an extended 'family', made up of close friends, other adopters, and often the religious community. The findings point to a need for more extensive education on adoption in school and regular media; for increased support services in less urbanised areas; and for earlier support for parents adopting from outside their local authority.

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Family and Social Relationships and Psychosocial Well-Being in Italian Families With Internationally Adopted and Non-Adopted Children

Cited by 33 publications

References 33 publications

Adult Adoptees as Partners and Parents: The Joint Task of Revisiting the Adoption History

Adult Adoptees as Partners and Parents: The Joint Task of Revisiting the Adoption History

Predictors of Parenting Stress During Early Adoptive Parenthood

Adoptive parents’ experiences of social support and attitudes towards adoption

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