Research That Matters (January 17 - 20, 2008)

Background and significance: Children who are adopted are often exposed to prenatal and pre-adoptive stressors—such as prenatal substance exposure, child abuse or neglect, and multiple out-of-home placements—that increase their risks for psychosocial maladjustment. Yet many adopted children with pre-adoptive risk factors exhibit healthy functioning. While the importance of family environment in the development and outcomes of children is well-established, little empirical knowledge exists on the role of adoptive family environment in shaping the outcomes of and promoting resilience in at-risk adoptees. In response to this gap, the current study examines the impact of adoptive family environment on adopted children's psychosocial functioning beyond the effects of pre-adoptive risk. Methods: Subjects are adoptive families participating in the California Long Range Adoption Study. Mailed questionnaires were used to collect data on various aspects of adoptive families, including adoptee and family characteristics, pre-adoptive risk and protective factors, family environment, and adoptee development. For purposes of this presentation, we studied a subsample of adoptees aged 19 and under (N=385). Among the standardized measures used to assess family and child well-being were the Family Coherence Scale (Antonovsky, 1988), the Behavior Problem Index (Center for Human Resource Research, 2000), and the Depression and Anxiety in Youth Scale (Newcomer et al., 1994). Structural Equation Modeling analyses were performed to test the relationships between and among risk, family environment, and child psychosocial functioning. Results: The first model we tested included only pre-adoptive risk factors; the model provided a good fit to the data (CFI=.97, RMSEA=.04, Close fit=.82). Results reveal significant relationships between maltreatment history and later depressive symptoms (Beta=.14), and between age at adoption and behavioral problems (Beta=.15). However, the model explained only 6.4% of the variance in depressive symptoms and 4.7% of the variance in behavioral problems. Our second model included both family environment (i.e., family coherence) and pre-adoptive risk factors. This model provided an excellent fit to the data (CFI=.99, RMSEA=.04, Close fit=.95). Although there were still significant effects of age at adoption on depressive symptoms and effects of maltreatment history on behavioral problems, the level of family coherence was found to have a greater impact on both children's depressive symptoms and problem behavior than the risk factors. Adoptees residing in families with higher family coherence had significantly lower levels of depressive symptoms (Beta= -.49) and behavioral problem (beta= -.58). The second model explained 30% of the variance in depressive symptoms and 38% of the variance in behavioral problems. Implications: Results clearly demonstrate the significant impact of adoptive family environment on adoptees' internalizing and externalizing behaviors and problems, and the considerably less significant role of pre-adoptive risk factors. Research and practice implications with respect to the role of family environment and family strengthening in promoting resilience in adoptees, particularly for those with pre-adoptive risk, are considered.