Internationally adopted children are known to be at risk for difficulties in a variety of cognitive domains compared to their non-adopted peers. Over the last few decades, many researchers have studied these cognitive outcomes and their predictors, identifying various adverse effects of early deprivation. However, most of these studies are cross-sectional, offering only a snapshot of the develo...

AIMS International adoption medicine is a relatively new specialty in pediatrics that has emerged to address the specific health care needs of internationally adopted children in high-income countries. This study ascertains the seroprotection rate for vaccine-preventable diseases, especially against pneumococcal diseases. PATIENTS AND METHODS We evaluated 67 internationally adopted children t...

Cultural socialization attitudes, beliefs, and parenting behaviors were examined in families with internationally adopted children. The authors hypothesized that parents with lower color-blind racial attitudes would be more likely to engage in enculturation and racialization parenting behaviors because they hold stronger beliefs in the value and importance of cultural socialization. Using data ...

AIM This study sought to examine the effect of environmental enrichment on the motor skills of children adopted from orphanage settings. We investigated balance and bilateral coordination skills in 33 internationally adopted postinstitutionalized children (16 males, 17 females; age range 8 y 5 mo-15 y 10 mo; mean age 10 y 9 mo; SD 2 y 2 mo) and compared them with 34 non-institutionalized childr...

The poor performance of black children on IQ tests and in school has been hypothesized to arise from (a) genetic racial differences or (6) cultural/ environmental disadvantages. To separate genetic factors from rearing conditions, 130 black/interracial children adopted by advantaged white families were studied. The socially classified black adoptees, whose natural parents were educationally ave...

A growing, sizable proportion of school children do not live in conventional family environments. Among these, internationally adopted children have gained increasing visibility in recent years. While other areas of their behavior have been widely explored, little is known about adopted children’s social competence and their integration into peer groups. This study, involving 148 children betwe...

PURPOSE The sharp increase in the number of international adoptions in the United States has prompted a heightened interest in the language development of internationally adopted children. Although recent studies have investigated the early language development of adoptees, little is known about the school-age language and literacy skills of internationally adopted children. The focus of this s...

Developmental attachment theory and research is now beginning to inform practice, particularly in the field of foster care and adoption. A brief outline of attachment theory and the four main patterns of attachment is followed by a review of attachment-based support services and psychotherapies with fostered and adopted children, including infants, preschoolers, school age children, and caregiv...

OBJECTIVE To assess the neurodevelopment of adopted children who had been exposed in utero to cocaine. DESIGN A case-control observational study. PARTICIPANTS Twenty-three children aged 14 months to 6.5 years exposed in utero to cocaine and their adoptive mothers, and 23 age-matched control children not exposed to cocaine and their mothers, matched with the adoptive mothers for IQ and socio...

TOPIC Optimizing caregiving for newly adopted postinstitutionalized children. PURPOSE To consider a template of care for postinstitutionalized children based on experiences that physiological measures suggest are expected by infants postbirth. SOURCES Published literature and clinical experience. CONCLUSION Based on an understanding of physiologically expected care postbirth, special care...