Between 1991 and 2001, over 125,000 children entered the US as """"""""orphans"""""""" - the visa status given to children adopted internationally. In this same decade the number of those children who were institutionalized prior to adoption also increased, from about 20 to 65%. Although conditions in orphanages vary widely, there is almost always too little staff for children to receive consistent, nurturing care, and thus it is difficult for children to form secure attachments to their orphanage caregivers. Given the importance of attachment for a child's emotional development, adoptive parents are naturally concerned about how their children's pre-adoption experiences will affect their attachment behavior after adoption. To date, there is no research on adoptees' attachment behavior when first placed in the adoptive home or on the emergence of attachment to their new parents. Without this knowledge, parents and healthcare providers are at a loss to know whether a child's developing attachment is following a typical course or if intervention is needed. The purpose of this study is to develop knowledge regarding (a) attachment behavior of internationally adopted children during their first six months post adoption, and (b) factors that may influence their attachment behaviors. ? ? ?
| Niemann, Sandra; Weiss, Sandra (2012) Factors Affecting Attachment in International Adoptees at 6 Months Post Adoption. Child Youth Serv Rev 34:205-212 |
| Niemann, Sandra; Weiss, Sandra (2011) Attachment Behavior of Children Adopted Internationally at Six Months Post Adoption. Adopt Q 14:246-267 |
