Suicide, psychiatric illness, and social maladjustment in intercountry adoptees in Sweden: a cohort study

Hjern, Anders; Lindblad, Frank; Vinnerljung, Bo

doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(02)09674-5

Cited by 266 publications

(243 citation statements)

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“…Also, compared with their non-adopted siblings, adoptees' behavioral adjustment was worse in late adolescence (Weinberg, Waldman, van Dulmen, & Scarr, 2004). Adoptees have also been shown to be overrepresented in the mental health population (Hjern, Lindblad, & Vinnerljung, 2002;Weiss, 1985). In sum, the results from many comparative studies have led to the conclusion that adoptees tend to be less well-adjusted than controls.…”

Section: Adopted Adolescents Follow a Different Pathway To Behavioralmentioning

confidence: 99%

Is there a common pathway to maladjustment for internationally adopted and non-adopted adolescents?

Roskam¹,

Stiévenart²

2014

Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology

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The main purpose of the research was to test whether cumulative effects represent a common pathway to behavioral maladjustment for internationally adopted adolescents and controls. The findings of previous comparison and follow-up studies have been contradictory. The hypothesis was tested in an original multi-informant study with 74 adolescents: 40 adoptees and 34 controls. The analyses of the data provided arguments in favor of the existence of a common pathway for adoptees and controls. The accumulation of risk factors in the current characteristics of the adolescents and their family was significantly associated with behavioral outcomes of both adoptees and controls. Implications for research, policy and practice are discussed. The main purpose of the research was to test whether cumulative effects represent a common pathway to behavioral maladjustment for internationally adopted adolescents and controls. The findings of previous comparison and follow-up studies have been contradictory. The hypothesis was tested in an original multi-informant study with 74 adolescents: 40 adoptees and 34 controls. The analyses of the data provided arguments in favor of the existence of a common pathway for adoptees and controls. The accumulation of risk factors in the current characteristics of the adolescents and their family was significantly associated with behavioral outcomes of both adoptees and controls. Implications for research, policy and practice are discussed.© 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.The literature on adoption is vast and rich. One of the major lines of research is comparison studies in which adopted participants are compared with control participants. In this set of studies, the fact of being adopted is considered as a risk factor per se that can lead to significant developmental differences in favor of the control participants. Another major line of research is follow-up studies analyzing the influence of deprivation severity (e.g., age of adoption, pre-adoption abuse or neglect) and other key-risk factors (e.g., age of the biological mother, low birth weight, drug exposure) on behavioral outcomes in adoptees. Because adoption research has been more concerned with outcomes than processes (Palacios, Román, Moreno, & León, 2009), we found in these two sets of studies contradictory arguments with regard to the main question of the current research, i.e. is there a common pathway to behavioral maladjustment for internationally adopted and nonadopted adolescents? In particular, do cumulative effects constitute a common pathway for this issue? The cumulative effect hypothesis is tested here as a well-known pathway in developmental psychopathology (Cicchetti & Rogosch, 1996), by considering current adolescent and family factors, i.e. IQ, attachment and parenting, and their cumulative effect on behavioral maladjustment. After a presentation of the cumulative effect hypothesis, arguments in favor of a negative answer to the main question will be presented first before others supporting a positive a...

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Section: Adopted Adolescents Follow a Different Pathway To Behavioralmentioning

confidence: 99%

Is there a common pathway to maladjustment for internationally adopted and non-adopted adolescents?

Roskam¹,

Stiévenart²

2014

Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology

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“…This subsample was drawn from the same age cohort group that served as the basis for the larger epidemiological study conducted by Hjern et al (2002), which suggested that race and discrimination may explain the higher rates of psychiatric and social maladjustment among transracial adoptees and immigrants. The two studies together provide preliminary evidence that negative racial and ethnic experiences can have serious psychological consequences for transracial adoptees and their families.…”

Section: Cultural Socialization Outcome Studiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, there is a need to study how adoptees personally negotiate their identities and sense of place in society (Grotevant et al, 2000;Meier, 1999). Similarly, it is important tostudy ways in which transracial adoptees and parents manage to cope with discrimination and racism in a healthy and adaptive manner (Freundlich & Lieberthal, 2000;Hjern et al, 2002).…”

Section: Adoptees As Agents Of Changementioning

confidence: 99%

“…54% of adoptees explored ethnic heritage growing up, but only 33% reported parents helped them establish a positive ethnic identity. Hjern, Lindblad, & Vinnerljung (2002) Included 11,320 (6,984 F/4,336 M) international adoptees; Average age between 16 and 25 years old (born between 1970 and 1979); Adopted from primarily Korea, India, and Colombia; 74% adopted at age 0 to 1 years, 16% at age 2 to 3 years, and 9% at age 4 to 6 years; Compared with 2,343 nonadopted siblings, 4,006 nonEuropean immigrants, and 853,419 native-born Swedes.…”

Section: Samplementioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The Transracial Adoption Paradox

Lee

2003

The Counseling Psychologist

288

137

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The number of transracial adoptions in the United States, particularly international adoptions, is increasing annually. Counseling psychology as a profession, however, is a relatively silent voice in the research on and practice of transracial adoption. This article presents an overview of the history and research on transracial adoption to inform counseling psychologists of the set of racial and ethnic challenges and opportunities that transracial adoptive families face in everyday living. Particular attention is given to emergent theory and research on the cultural socialization process within these families.The older I get, the more I realize I can't avoid being Korean. Every time I look into the mirror, I am Korean. When I look at family pictures, I feel that I stand out. I guess it shouldn't bother me, but sometimes it does. Even though I may seem very American ...I want to be distinctly Korean. I know I'm not in terms of having all the Korean traditions, but I don't want people to see me and say, "Because she grew up in a Caucasian family, and because she is very Americanized, she's white." That's not what I want anymore.Janine Bishop (1996, p. 309) The opening passage by Janine Bishop (1996), a 20-year-old Korean adoptee college student, illustrates the transracial adoption paradox that confronts racial/ethnic minority children who are adopted by White parents. Namely, adoptees are racial/ethnic minorities in society, but they are perceived and treated by others, and sometimes themselves, as if they are members of the majority culture (i.e., racially White and ethnically European) due to adoption into a White family. This set of contradictory experiences that are nevertheless true has been of particular interest to adoptive families, adoption professionals, and researchers in the United States and Europe over the past 50 years (Fanshel, 1972;McRoy & Zurcher, 1983;Simon & Altstein, 2000;Tizard, 1991).The purpose of this article is to address some of the psychological and cultural questions raised by the transracial adoption paradox: What are the psychological consequences of growing up in a transracial adoptive family? How do the unique experiences of transracial adoptees shape racial/ethnic identity development? Do parents' and children's efforts to overcome racial and ethnic differences relate to psychological adjustment? A brief review of the history and controversies surrounding transracial adoption in the United States is presented and followed by a selective review of the empirical literature on transracial adoption. Drawing on the reviewed research, a cultural socialization framework is proposed to understand the psychological and cultural dynamics pertinent to transracial adoptive families. The article concludes with ways in which counseling psychology can contribute to the improvement of transracial adoption research and practice. MODERN HISTORY OF TRANSRACIAL ADOPTIONTransracial adoption is defined as "the joining of racially different parents and children together in adoptive familie...

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“…A follow-up study (n = 1.484), using a standardized psychiatric interview procedure-found that international adoptees had higher risks of severe mental health problems than non-adopted peers [2]. A Swedish register study from 2002 (11.320 international adoptees and several comparison groups including majority population peers) reported higher risks for suicide (OR 3.6), suicide attempt (OR 3.6) and psychiatric hospital care (OR 3.2) after adjustment for major socio-demographic confounders [3]. A recent meta-analysis concludes that international adoptees are referred more often to mental health services than comparisons [4].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

School performance of international adoptees better than expected from cognitive test results

Lindblad

Dalen

Rasmussen

et al. 2009

Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry

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Objective: To investigate school performance of international adoptees in relation to their cognitive competence. Method: From the population of all male Swedish residents born 1973–1976, registered in the census 1985 and with complete test scores from military conscription, the following study groups were identified: Korean adoptees (n = 320), non-Korean adoptees (n = 1,125), siblings (children born by adoptive parents, n = 190) and Swedish majority comparisons (n = 142,024). Global scores from intelligence tests at conscription were compared with grade points from the last compulsory school year (year 9). Linear and logistic regression was applied in statistical analyses. Results: The mean grade points in theoretical subjects were lower in non-Korean adoptees than in the majority population, but when global test scores from military conscription were adjusted for, outcomes were significantly better, equal for physics, than in the majority population. The grade points of Korean adoptees were higher than in the majority population and the same held true after adjusting for global test scores. When SES was taken into account, the risk of poor school performance (only completed lower subject levels) increased in non-Korean adoptees compared to models only adjusted for age and sex. Conclusion: Male international adoptees generally perform better in school than expected by their cognitive competence. A cognitive evaluation is important in the assessment of adoptees with learning difficulties

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Suicide, psychiatric illness, and social maladjustment in intercountry adoptees in Sweden: a cohort study

Cited by 266 publications

References 21 publications

Is there a common pathway to maladjustment for internationally adopted and non-adopted adolescents?

Is there a common pathway to maladjustment for internationally adopted and non-adopted adolescents?

The Transracial Adoption Paradox

School performance of international adoptees better than expected from cognitive test results

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