Children's Adjustment to Adoption: Developmental and Clinical Issues

154 Pages·1998·7.58 MB·English

by  David Brodzinsky

Children’s
Adjustment
to Adoption
Developmental Clinical Psychology and
Psychiatry Series
Series Editor: Alan E. Kazdin, Yale University
Recent volumes in this series . . .
8: LIFE EVENTS AS STRESSORS IN 25: NEUROLOGICA L BASIS OF
CHILDHOO D AND ADOLESCENC E CHILDHOO D PSYCHOPATHOLOG Y
by James H. Johnson by George W. Hynd and Stephen R. Hooper
9: CONDUCT DISORDERS IN 26: ADOLESCENT SEXUAL BEHAVIOR
CHILDHOO D AND ADOLESCENC E AND CHILDBEARIN G
SECOND EDITION by Laurie Schwab Zabin and Sarah C. Hayward
by Alan E. Kazdin 27: EFFECTS OF PSYCHOTHERAP Y
10: CHILD ABUSE WITH CHILDREN AND
ADOLESCENTS
by David A. Wolfe
by John R. Weisz and Bahr Weiss
11: PREVENTING MALADJUSTMEN T
FROM INFANCY THROUGH 28: BEHAVIOR AND DEVELOPMEN T
ADOLESCENCE IN FRAGILE X SYNDROME
by Elisabeth M. Dykens, Robert M. Hodapp,
by Annette U. Rickel and LaRue Allen
and James F. Leckman
12: TEMPERAMEN T AND CHILD
29: ATTENTION DEFICITS AND
PSYCHOPATHOLOG Y
HYPERACTIVIT Y IN CHILDREN
by William T. Garrison and Felton J. Earls by Stephen P. Hinshaw
13: EMPIRICALL Y BASED 30: LEARNING DISABILITIE S
ASSESSMENT OF CHILD AND by Byron P. Rourke and Jerel E. Del Dotto
ADOLESCENT PSYCHOPATHOLOG Y
31: PEDIATRIC TRAUMATIC BRAIN
SECOND EDITION
INJURY
by Thomas M. Achenbach and
Stephanie H. McConaughy by Jeffrey H. Snow and Stephen R. Hooper
14: MARRIAGE, DIVORCE, AND 32: FAMILIES, CHILDREN, AND THE
CHILDREN’ S ADJUSTMENT DEVELOPMEN T OF DYSFUNCTION
by Robert E. Emery by Mark R. Dadds
15: AUTISM 33: ADOLESCENTS AND THE MEDIA
by Laura Schreibman by Victor C. Strasburger
18: DELINQUENCY IN ADOLESCENCE 34: SCHOOL-BASED PREVENTIO N
by Scott W. Henggeler PROGRAMS FOR CHILDREN AND
19: CHRONIC ILLNESS DURING ADOLESCENTS
CHILDHOO D AND ADOLESCENC E by Joseph A. Durlak
by William T. Garrison and Susan McQuiston 35: CHILDHOO D OBSESSIVE
COMPULSIVE DISORDER
20: ANXIETY DISORDERS IN
CHILDREN by Greta Francis and Rod A. Gragg
by Rachel G. Klein and Cynthia G. Last 36: TREATING CHILDREN AND
21: CHILDREN OF BATTERED WOMEN ADOLESCENTS IN RESIDENTIAL
by Peter G. Jaffe, David A. Wolfe, and AND INPATIENT SETTINGS
Susan Kaye Wilson by Robert D. Lyman and Nancy R. Campbell
22: SUBSTANCE ABUSE IN CHILDREN 37: THE IMPACT OF FAMILY VIOLENCE
AND ADOLESCENT S ON CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENT S
by Steven P. Schinke, Gilbert J. Botvin, and by Javad H. Kashani and Wesley D. Allan
Mario A. Orlandi
23: CHILD PSYCHIATRIC 38: CHILDREN’ S ADJUSTMENT TO
EPIDEMIOLOG Y ADOPTION
by Frank C. Verhulst and Hans M. Koot by David M. Brodzinsky, Daniel W. Smith,
and Anne B. Brodzinsky
24. EATING AND GROWTH
39: MOTOR COORDINATIO N DISORDERS
DISORDERS IN INFANTS
IN CHILDREN
AND CHILDRE N
by David A. Sugden and Helen Wright
by Joseph L. Woolston
Children’s
Adjustment
to Adoption
Developmenta l
and Clinical Issues
David M. Brodzinsk y
Daniel W. Smith
Anne B. Brodzinsk y
Volume 38
Developmental Clinical Psychology and Psychiatry
ig\ SAGE Publication s
(Si International Educational and Professional Publisher
Thousand Oaks London New Delhi
Copyright ' 1998 by Sage Publications, Inc.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any
means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information
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For information:
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E-mail: [email protected] m
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Printed in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Brodzinsky, David.
Children’ s adjustment to adoption: Developmental and clinical
issues / by David M. Brodzinsky, Daniel W. Smith, Anne B.
Brodzinsky.
p. cm. (cid:151) (Developmental clinical psychology and psychiatry ;
v. 38)
Includes bibliographica l references (p.) and index.
ISBN 0-7619-0515-4 (cloth: acid-free paper). - ISBN
0-7619-0516-2 (pbk.: acid-free paper)
1. Adoption(cid:151)Psychological aspects. 2. Adopted children-
-Psychology. 3. Adjustment (Psychology) in children. 4. Child
development. I. Smith, Daniel W. (Daniel William), 1965- .
II. Brodzinsky, Anne Braff, 1940- . III. Title. IV. Series.
HV875.B76 1998
155.44’5~dc21 97-45404
98 99 00 01 02 03 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Acquiring Editor: Jim Nageotte
Editorial Assistant: Fiona Lyon
Production Editor: Diana E. Axelsen
Editorial Assistant: Denise Santoyo
Typesetter/Designer: Rose Tylak
CONTENTS
Introduction to the Series vii
Preface ix
1. Historica l and
Contemporar y Perspective s on Adoption 1
2. Theoretica l Perspective s on Adoption Adjustmen t 10
3. Adoptive Family Life Cycle 21
4. Infant-Place d Adopted Childre n 34
5. Special Needs Adopted Childre n 51
6. Transracia l and Intercountr y Adoption 65
7. Open Adoption 79
8. Clinical Issues and Treatmen t Strategie s 89
9. Conclusion s and Futur e Directions 112
References 117
Author Index 131
Subject Index 136
About the Authors 141

INTRODUCTION
TO THE SERIES
Interest in child development and adjustment is by no means new. Yet, only
recently has the study of children benefited from advances in both clinical
and scientific research. Advances in the social and biological sciences, the
emergence of disciplines and subdisciplines that focus exclusively on child-
hood and adolescence, and greater appreciation of the impact of such influ-
ences as the family, peers, and school have helped accelerate research on
developmental psychopathology. Apart from interest in the study of child
development and adjustment for its own sake, the need to address clinical
problems of adulthood naturally draws one to investigate precursors in
childhood and adolescence.
Within a relatively brief period, the study of psychopathology among
children and adolescents has proliferated considerably. Several different
professional journals, annual book series, and handbooks devoted entirely to
the study of children and adolescents and their adjustment document the
proliferation of work in the field. Nevertheless, there is a paucity of resource
material that presents information in an authoritative, systematic, and dis-
seminable fashion. There is a need within the field to convey the latest
developments and to represent different disciplines, approaches, and concep-
tual views to the topics of childhood and adolescent adjustment and malad-
justment.
The Sage series Developmenta l Clinical Psychology and Psychiatr y
is designed to serve uniquely several needs of the field. The Series encom-
passes individual monographs prepared by experts in the fields of clinical
child psychology, child psychiatry, child development, and related disci-
plines. The primary focus is on developmental psychopathology, which refers
broadly here to the diagnosis, assessment, treatment, and prevention of
problems that arise in the period from infancy through adolescence. A
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viii CHILDREN'S ADJUSTMENT TO ADOPTION
working assumption of the Series is that understanding, identifying, and
treating problems of youth must draw on multiple disciplines and diverse
views within a given discipline.
The task for individual contributors is to present the latest theory and
research on various topics, including specific types of dysfunction, diagnostic
and treatment approaches, and special problem areas that affect adjustment.
Core topics within clinical work are addressed by the Series. Authors are
asked to bridge potential theory, research, and clinical practice, and to outline
the current status and future directions. The goals of the Series and the tasks
presented to individual contributors are demanding. We have been extremely
fortunate in recruiting leaders in the fields, who have been able to translate
their recognized scholarship and expertise into highly readable works on
contemporary topics.
In this book, David M. Brodzinsky, Daniel W. Smith, and Anne B.
Brodzinsky examine Children’s Adjustment to Adoption: Developmental and
Clinical Issues. The authors place adoption in historical context to address
issues that affect both the process and outcome of adoption for children and
their parents. Theoretical perspectives on the adoption process, along with
supportive research, are carefully delineated. Extensive coverage is given to
the research on both the adjustment of children and parents to adoption itself
and the psychological development, including adjustment and maladjust-
ment, over the course of childhood and adolescence. Children whose adop-
tion emerges from such circumstances as child abuse, parental drug abuse,
and parent HIV are also discussed. Adoption across racial and cultural lines
and the circumstances such adoptions raise are also examined. The book is
excellent in its coverage of theory and research on children and families and
the contextual issues pertinent to the adoption process. Clinical vignettes
punctuate key points. Assessment and intervention with children and families
are also covered. The authors have made major research contributions over
the years in understanding the effects of adoption. This book stands as yet
another significant contribution.
Alan E. Kazdin, Ph.D.
PREFACE
Every book has a history. Ours began with a question posed by one of us
(A. B.) to another (D. B.) some 20 years ago: "What does a young child
understand about being adopted, and how does that understanding change
over time?" This simple question became a catalyst for an initial research
project that in turn led to a series of studies altering the course of our careers.
Since the late 1970s, we have been exploring the psychology of adoption,
both from research and clinical perspectives. Although most of our work has
focused on the development and adjustment of adopted children, we have
also studied and worked clinically with adult adoptees, adoptive parents, and
birth parents. Overall, we have nearly 50 years of combined experience in
this area.
As psychologists, we have often experienced a certain isolation from our
colleagues in our study of adoption. In fact, with the exception of behavior
geneticists, who are interested in adoptive families primarily in relation to
questions concerning the heritability of behavior and psychological traits,
only a handful of psychologists in this country are actively pursuing program-
matic research on developmental and clinical issues in adoption. Perhaps this
is because adoptees represent such a small percentage of the population of
children. Perhaps it is because adoption is too closely tied to the field of social
work and social service practice. Maybe it is because adoption is seen as a
solution to a set of problems and not a potential problem itself. Whatever the
reason, relatively few research or clinical articles on adoption appear in
psychological journals each year, and until recently, issues related to adoptive
family life were seldom represented in edited volumes or textbooks on the
psychology of the family.
One of the primary reasons we decided to write this book was to stimulate
interest among developmental and clinical psychologists with regard to the
study of adoption. Although a considerable amount of interesting and very
relevant research has been generated by investigators in other disciplines,
ix