Race and bicultural socialization in the Netherlands, Norway, and the United States of America in the adoptions of children from India.

A cross-national sample of 622 internationally adopted children from India with White parents in The Netherlands (n = 409), Norway (n = 146), and the United States (n = 67) was used to contrast country-specific bicultural socialization (BCS) practices among families of transracial intercountry adoption. The 3 countries vary in their degrees of minority (US > Netherlands > Norway) and Indian populations (US > Norway > Netherlands). The current study examined parental survey trends among BCS practices, children's negative encounters about adoption, racial and positive discrimination, and parental worry about these issues. Country-specific differences were revealed: The United States and Norway (greatest Indian populations) reported the greatest similarity in BCS practices, classmates being a source of negative reactions/racial discrimination, and parental worry. The American sample encountered greater negative reactions to adoption from others; Dutch children experienced the least negative reactions from others overall, yet as in the United States (samples with the greatest minority heterogeneity) they still noted significant experiences of racial discrimination. Country-specific sociopolitical perceptions about adoption, ethnicity/race, and immigration are considered as factors that may have been used to inform parenting practices that facilitate children's biculturalism into family life (i.e., adoptive family stigma, percentages of Indian/minority populations, immigration policy trends). Concluding, cross-national research such as the current study may help intercountry adoption policymakers and practitioners to better understand and inform BCS practices in adoptive families.

Adoption policy and evidence-based domestic adoption practice: a comparison of Romania, Ukraine, India, Guatemala, and Ethiopia.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989), The Hague Convention on the Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption (The Hague Permanent Bureau, 1993), and the Guidelines for the Alternative Care of Children (2009) have provided a comprehensive, rights-based framework and guidance for developing domestic adoption and alternative, family based care programs. Domestic adoption is a critical component of any child-protection system and a core part of the range of alternative care options that the United Nations and other international organizations recommend be developed, resourced, and made accessible to children without parental care. This article uses data collected from adoptive parents' postadoption and governmental data in Romania, Ukraine, India, Guatemala, and Ethiopia to focus on domestic adoption in each of these countries. The article highlights both promising practices in domestic adoption as well as policies and practices that require additional research.

Parent-reported executive functioning in postinstitutionalized children: a follow-up study.

This study compared parent-rated executive functioning (EF) in 6- to 18-year-old children adopted from psychosocially depriving institutions to that in children adopted from severely or "globally" depriving institutions. Individual continuity in EF over 2 years was examined in children adopted from psychosocially depriving institutions. There were 471 children adopted from psychosocially depriving Russian institutions that provided adequate physical resources but failed to provide a consistent set of responsive caregivers. There were 111 children adopted in the early 1990s from globally depriving Romanian institutions that were characterized by physical deprivation as well as profound psychosocial neglect. Adoptive parents completed a background questionnaire and the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF). Children adopted from globally depriving institutions had significantly higher levels of EF difficulties than children adopted from psychosocially depriving institutions. For both groups, adoption after 18 months of age was associated with higher levels of EF difficulties. Children adopted from globally depriving institutions had higher levels of EF difficulties than the BRIEF standardization sample at younger ages at adoption. There was moderate to strong continuity in EF difficulties over 2 years in children adopted from psychosocially depriving institutions. These findings suggest that more severe early deprivation may lead to a higher risk of later EF difficulties, which may persist over time.

A comparison of adoptive parents' perceptions of their child's behavior among Indian children adopted to Norway, the United States, and within country: implications for adoption policy.

The Hague Convention on the Protection of Children suggests that intercountry adoption be considered as a permanent care option only after other solutions within the child's country of origin have been exhausted. Data from the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) were examined for 478 Indian children ages 4-18 adopted domestically, adopted to Norway, and adopted to the United States. The CBCL has a reported reliability of .9 (Achenbach, 1991; Achenbach & Edelbrock, 1983) and contains five subscales assessing internalizing problems plus a summative Internalizing Scale, and three subscales assessing externalizing problems plus a summative Externalizing Scale. Perceptions of Norwegian, American, and Indian adoptive parents regarding their child's functioning were compared. Children adopted to Norway and the United States were perceived by their parents to be functioning significantly better behaviorally than children adopted within country, while controlling for age of child and gender of adoptive parent completing the CBCL. Policymakers should examine the evidence prioritizing within country adoption over intercountry adoption.

Pre-adoption stress and its association with child behavior in domestic special needs and international adoptions.

This article presents data from studies of children adopted through the United States public child welfare system and children adopted internationally from Romania. The article summarizes the data on: a). behavior problems as they relate to Romanian adoptees from a cross-sectional study, b). behavior problems for a sample of children adopted through the United States public child welfare system from a cross-sectional study, and c). a comparison of children's behavior for these two groups. Results indicate that the most significant predictor of children's behavior is a negative pre-adoptive history of abuse or institutionalization and the current parent-child relationship. In addition, the domestic and international adoptees' behavior is more similar than it is different. The study highlights the importance of helping families understand how early negative experiences are associated with behavior difficulties. Results suggest that families may have similar need for social and medical services, regardless of the country of origin of adoption.

Coming out of the closet: opening agencies to gay and lesbian adoptive parents.

Gay men and lesbians often encounter barriers when they pursue adoption. Adoption workers are expected to make decisions regarding child placement using the best interest standard. However, this decision-making model does not adequately consider intrapersonal, interpersonal, and organizational factors that affect the use of the standard. This article examines the best interest standard and makes practice recommendations to increase the accessibility of adoptions for gay and lesbian applicants.

Institutionalization, behavior and international adoption: predictors of behavior problems.

Since the mid-1990s, over 10,0000 children have immigrated to the United States annually via international adoption. These children bring to their families unique strengths, as well as the possibility, for some, of physical, emotional and behavioral health risks, and challenges. This article presents predictive models on behavioral health problems for one group of international adoptees from Romania (n = 216). It is a companion piece to an earlier article that described behavior issues and compared the international adoptees to a group of children adopted through the public child welfare system using a cross-sectional approach. This article illustrates that a history of institutionalization had minimal long-term adverse effects on a child's behavioral health. The parent-child relationship was a strong resource for parents at both time periods. However, there was a strong relationship between parental negative reports with the relationship and child behavior problems.