CNDV 5301 Assignment 2
CNDV 5301: HUMAN GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT
STUDENT NAME: _Erika Francis SECTION NUMBER: C06
ASSIGNMENT #2: The Early Years
Activity 2: Attachment and Adoption
Question #1: As noted in the reading, Marcovitch et al. (1997) found relatively low rates of secure attachment among children adopted from Romanian orphanages and their adoptive mothers. Specifically, they found that 30% of the adopted children were securely attached, compared to 42% of a comparison sample of biologically related (raised at home) mother−child pairs. [Full reference: Marcovitch, S. G., Gold, A., Washington, J., Wasson, C., Krekewich, K., & Handley-Derry, M. (1997). Determinants of behavioral problems in Romanian children adopted in Ontario. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 20(1), 17–31.] Note, however, that the authors do not provide a comparison sample of children adopted at birth (i.e., noninstitutionalized). Does this finding reflect something about adoption in general, or does it reflect something about institutionalization of infants?
Use this finding as an opportunity to reflect on your own beliefs and biases. Would you expect that adoptive children and their mothers would show different attachment patterns than children raised at home with their biological parents, assuming other variables (e.g., age and socioeconomic status of parents) are held constant? Would you predict adoptive parents to be more responsive to their children, less responsive, or equally responsive? After you consider and record your own beliefs, you may want to do a search of the literature on this topic to review some empirical data.
Reflectively thinking about the findings of Marcovitch et al. (1997), I can understand how and why the secure attachment percentages differ. There is a natural bond formed between a mother and child through the birthing process. This is often missing when adoption is chosen. Adoptive parents can achieve this bondage with time. As a mother I would predict adoptive
STUDENT NAME: _Erika Francis SECTION NUMBER: C06
ASSIGNMENT #2: The Early Years
Activity 2: Attachment and Adoption
Question #1: As noted in the reading, Marcovitch et al. (1997) found relatively low rates of secure attachment among children adopted from Romanian orphanages and their adoptive mothers. Specifically, they found that 30% of the adopted children were securely attached, compared to 42% of a comparison sample of biologically related (raised at home) mother−child pairs. [Full reference: Marcovitch, S. G., Gold, A., Washington, J., Wasson, C., Krekewich, K., & Handley-Derry, M. (1997). Determinants of behavioral problems in Romanian children adopted in Ontario. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 20(1), 17–31.] Note, however, that the authors do not provide a comparison sample of children adopted at birth (i.e., noninstitutionalized). Does this finding reflect something about adoption in general, or does it reflect something about institutionalization of infants?
Use this finding as an opportunity to reflect on your own beliefs and biases. Would you expect that adoptive children and their mothers would show different attachment patterns than children raised at home with their biological parents, assuming other variables (e.g., age and socioeconomic status of parents) are held constant? Would you predict adoptive parents to be more responsive to their children, less responsive, or equally responsive? After you consider and record your own beliefs, you may want to do a search of the literature on this topic to review some empirical data.
Reflectively thinking about the findings of Marcovitch et al. (1997), I can understand how and why the secure attachment percentages differ. There is a natural bond formed between a mother and child through the birthing process. This is often missing when adoption is chosen. Adoptive parents can achieve this bondage with time. As a mother I would predict adoptive
References: Marcovitch, S. G., Gold, A., Washington, J., Wasson, C., Krekewich, K., & Handley-Derry, M. (1997). Broderick, P., & Blewitt, P. (2015). The Life Span: Human Development for Helping Professionals (4th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson. Greenough WT., Black JE. Wallace CS., Experience and Brain Development: Child Development. (1987); 58:539–559. Chisholm, K., Carter, M., Ames, E. W., & Morison, S. J. (1995).