The Disclosure of Foster-Parentage to a Boy

Tarachow, Sidney

doi:10.1176/ajp.94.2.401

Cited by 7 publications

(1 citation statement)

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“…LDAs who are not told about their adoption until later in life must travel through these developmental stages believing one set of facts about their origins, only to have to later revisit these stages with another set of facts about where they come from and who they are. Given the findings presented above (Kenny et al, 2012; Riley, 2008; Tarachow, 1937), evidence suggests that discovering adoption after toddlerhood may lead to psychological and familial discord, but virtually nothing is known about how discovering adoption status during different life stages affects adoptees’ identities and how their coping efforts affect their adjustment.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Delaying Adoption Disclosure: A Survey of Late Discovery Adoptees

Baden

Shadel²,

Morgan

et al. 2019

Journal of Family Issues

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Despite common recommendations from professionals that adoption disclosure should be done at early ages, reports suggest that a sizeable number of adult adoptees do not learn of their adoption status until older ages. The few studies that exist indicate that the late discovery of adoption is linked to psychological distress and feelings of anger, betrayal, depression, and anxiety. In this mixed-method study, 254 adult adoptees completed a survey consisting of the K10 (Kessler Distress Inventory) the World Health Organization Quality of Life Scale–BREF, open-ended prompts, and demographic items. Results indicated that those who learned of their adoptions from age 3 and older reported more distress and lower life satisfaction when controlling for the amount of time adoptees have known of their adoption statuses and their use of coping strategies. Adoptees also indicated a desire for communicative openness and reported that beneficial coping methods included supportive relationships and seeking contact with birth relatives and other adoptees.

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Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%