Successful Adoption of Children with Down Syndrome and Other Developmental Disabilities

Abstract

Children with many types of developmental disabilities have been successfully adopted. Nonetheless, there appears to be a belief among both adopters and some adoption workers that children with Down syndrome are especially easy to rear. The current paper uses different methodological strategies, including case-by-case matching and regression techniques, to test hypotheses relating to better outcomes for parents and families who have adopted children with Down syndrome in comparison to children with other developmental disabilities. The results demonstrated successful functioning for parents and families on a variety of measures, regardless of whether the adopted children had Down syndrome or other developmental disabilities. The positive stereotype for Down syndrome was not supported.     

Transracial Adoption of Children with Developmental Disabilities

ABSTRACT

This study investigated the transracial adoption of children with developmental disabilities. Thirty-four families who had adopted a child transracially were compared with 63 families who had adopted a child inracially; additionally, we compared adoptions in 13 families who had adopted both transracially and inracially. The adjustment of mothers and fathers was gauged separately at three time points using measures of depression, stress, family strengths, and subjective well-being. Results indicated few differences in functioning between transracial and inracial adoptive parents. Mothers in both conditions maintained low depression scores and comparable means on all other outcome variables. Fathers also revealed similar adjustment patterns despite adoption type. Thus, parents experience both short- and long-term positive outcomes from the transracial adoption of children with developmental disabilities.     

The Postadoption Needs of Adoptive Parents of Children With Disabilities

Adoptions of children with disabilities are considered special needs, due to the higher level of support needed pre- and postadoption by families and children for adoptions to succeed. Despite this fact, very few studies examine the specific postadoption experiences of families with children with disabilities. Using secondary analysis of a national survey of adoptive parents, as well as interviews and a focus group with adoptive parents in one state, this study examines families’ with adopted children with disabilities challenges and unmet needs after adoption, as well as the postadoption needs and experiences of adoptive families with children with developmental and intellectual disabilities and adoptive families of children with emotional, behavioral, and mental health disabilities. Findings indicate that families with children with disabilities do report higher rates of challenges and barriers to service access, and that this is particularly true in families with adopted children with emotional, behavioral, and mental health disabilities. Implications for research and practice are discussed.     

Blue-Ribbon Babies and Labors of Love: Race,Class, and Gender in U.S. Adoption Practice by Christine Ward Gailey

ABSTRACT

We investigated the adjustment of differing sized adoptive families rearing children with developmental disabilities. Families of 5 or more children (large: n = 54) were compared with families of 4 or fewer children (conventional: n = 69) on a variety of demographic and outcome variables measuring family strengths, family disharmony, marital adjustment, and adjustment to the adopted child. Analyses of covariance on the outcome variables demonstrated that parents of large families were functioning as well or better than parents of conventional-sized families. We concluded that adoption placement practice should not exhibit bias against the placement of multiple children with developmental disabilities in the same family.     

Adoptive parents to children with severe developmental disabilities: A profile

A sample of 16 women and men who accompanied their adopted children with severe developmental disabilities to a medical appointment at Henry Ford Hospital's Multidisciplinary Care Clinic during the one-year period beginning July 1, 1988 are described in the context of their parental role vis-a-vis these children. Results of the study are presented through use of a six-part organizational scheme: demographic and social traits of the parents and their adopted children, the adopted children in family context, life satisfactions of the parents, adoption motives, adoption satisfactions, and humanization of the children.     

Developmentally disabled children can be adopted

People have often thought that developmentally disabled children were hard to place and poor risks in adoption. However, this research shows that a large number of children of all ages and disabilities were placed for adoption with few disruptions. In light of these findings, agencies may well put more effort into identifying developmentally disabled children as suitable candidates for adoption services.     

A Functional Analysis of Gestural Behaviors Emitted by Young Children With Severe Developmental Disabilities

Many children with severe developmental disabilities emit idiosyncratic gestures that may function as verbal operants (Sigafoos et al., 2000). This study examined the effectiveness of a functional analysis methodology to identify the variables responsible for gestures emitted by 2 young children with severe developmental disabilities. Potential verbal operants for each participant were functionally analyzed using a multi-element design. Results indicate that gestures were maintained by access to tangible items or the delivery of information about novel stimuli. This study extends the use of functional analysis to identify conditions under which children with developmental disabilities emit gestural verbal behavior.     

A qualitative analysis of child protective services practice with children with developmental disabilities

The purpose of this study was to examine Child Protection System (CPS) practice with children with developmental disabilities. This study used an emergent design, ethnographic interviews, purposive sampling, inductive data analysis, and grounded theory building. Ethnographic interviews were conducted with foster families, administrators, intake screeners, special investigators, and workers in one local CPS office. Participants expressed concern about the ability to identify disabilities, placement options, services to meet complex needs of children with disabilities, training and support for families, collaborative arrangements with other agencies, and disability training for CPS workers. Findings suggest strategies for improving CPS practice for children with developmental disabilities.     

Children with developmental disabilities in the child welfare system: a national survey

A survey of state agencies responsible for developmental disabilities/mental retardation and child welfare investigated the coordination of services for children with developmental disabilities. Recommendations are offered with regard to further research and model program development.     

A RATIONALE FOR FAMILY THERAPY SPECIALIZATION IN EARLY INTERVENTION

Over the past two decades, professionals providing intervention to families with children with disabilities have witnessed a philosophical shift from individually oriented care to family-centered care. Although the relevance of family therapy to these families has been formally acknowledged through the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), the integration of the fields of family therapy and developmental disabilities has not yet occurred to any signigicant degree. Awareness of critical issues associated with developmental disabilities and the potential impact on the family system is vital to the process of family-centered intervention. In this paper we address the need for family specialists to become knowledgeable about early intervention considerations relevant to young children with disabilities and their families.     

Prevalence of children with disabilities in the child welfare system and out of home placement: An examination of administrative records

This article explores the prevalence and characteristics of children with disabilities within the child welfare system using administrative data from the State of Minnesota. This study finds that more than a fifth (22%) of children with substantiated maltreatment are labeled in administrative records as having a disability, and more than one quarter of children (27.9%) over age five. The most common type of disability among children with substantiated maltreatment was emotional disturbance, while other common disabilities included intellectual and developmental disabilities and learning disabilities. Using logistic regression, this study finds that children with substantiated maltreatment with disabilities were about two times more likely to be in out of home placement than children with substantiated maltreatment without disabilities.     

Quality of Life for Children and Adolescents with Developmental Disabilities: review of conceptual and methodological issues relevant to public policy

The construct of quality of life has great potential for guiding development and evaluation of policies for children with developmental disabilities. However, there are many different definitions and models of quality of life, and not all of them are equally appropriate for developing policies that would meaningfully address the needs of children with develop mental disabilities. Accordingly, the purpose of this article is to review major approaches to quality of life and discuss three models specific to children with respect to their relevance to public policy for children with developmental disabilities. Review of these models includes a discussion of quality of life definitions and conceptual issues, as well as analysis of major measurement characteristics of the instrument(s) associated with each model. Potential of each model for guiding development and evaluation of policy is also considered.     

Cultural sensitivity in the delivery of disability services to children: A case study of Japanese education and socialization

This ethnographic study examined beliefs about disability and related socialization and educational practices at a Japanese elementary school. Disability is a universal issue affecting child welfare and educational systems around the world. Yet, relatively little sociocultural research has focused on non-Western children with disabilities. This limitation restricts our understanding of the extent to which and how cultures vary in their responses to disability, and the impact of these variations on children's development. Public schools in Japan recently implemented formal special education services for children with “developmental disabilities,” a new category used by educators to refer to “milder” difficulties in children's acquisition of social and academic skills, for example, learning disabilities, ADHD and Asperger's syndrome. This transition created a dilemma for educators: blending new requirements of providing individualized support with traditional Japanese socialization and educational practices of raising and educating children within peer groups. Participant observation, in-depth interviews, and longitudinal case studies of children with developmental disabilities addressed culturally- and developmentally-sensitive practices employed by educators. Educators were sensitive to stigma, involved peers in supporting one another, created home-like classrooms, guided children towards voluntary cooperation, and provided support and guidance to parents. Broad implications for the design of culturally-sensitive disability services are discussed.     

Maltreatment of children with developmental disabilities: An ecological systems analysis

The purpose of this review is to understand the risk factors for maltreatment of children with developmental disabilities. Using the Bronfrenbrenner's (1976, 1977) ecological systems framework, the authors examine how socio-demographic characteristics (age, gender, and special education), micro- (parent-child relationship and domestic violence), exo- (parenting stress, parents' social support, and area of residence), and macrosystems level (culturally defined parenting practices) factors influence or inhibit maltreatment of children with disabilities. The authors highlight major implications for practice and policy for maltreated children with disabilities.     

Culture and the Learning and Cognitive Development of Children with Severe Disabilities—Continuities and Discontinuities with Children without Disabilities

The dominant approach to children with disabilities is grounded in a biomedical model that assumes a direct relationship between the biological defect and the disability. From a cultural-historical point of view, this approach fails to notice how a child with a biological defect has to act in social institutions adapted to typical children. The aim of this article is to show how impairments arise from a developmental dynamic that includes both neurobiological and social conditions. Through empirical examples, the participation of children with severe disabilities is analyzed in relation to different practices and how they afford and develop particular cognitive activities, creating developmental possibilities or constraints that feed back on the child's learning. Distinguishing the different perspectives of children and professional adults increases our awareness of how conflicts between the participants' motives affect both participation and developmental conditions in practice. It is concluded that the learning problems of children with severe neurobiological impairments must be understood in terms of their social moderation and mediation.     

Integrating special-needs adoption with residential treatment.

Current estimates indicate that 76% of Iowa children whose parents' rights have been terminated and who are listed on the adoption exchange are older children with emotional/behavioral disabilities. Residential treatment can play a significant role in preparing difficult-to-place children (e.g., seven- to 14-year-olds with moderate to severe emotional or behavioral problems) for adoptive placement [Powers and Powell 1982]. The SATT model offers the opportunity to effectively manage the risks in adoptive placement for these children.     

Recruiting adoptive parents for children with developmental disabilities

One agency describes a systematic approach to recruitment of prospective adoptive families for children with developmental disabilities. The recruitment methodology, preliminary conclusions, and implications for future recruitment of families are presented.     

Making sense in conversations about learning disabilities

This article describes an integrative, multisystem clinical approach to the psychological and relational problems that develop around learning disabilities. Positioned in relationships with children, families, and schools, the therapist addresses the emotions, interpersonal conflicts, and problematic beliefs that contribute to problems. Using clinical skills to contain and relieve painful emotions, the therapist soothes "inflammation at the boundaries" of relationships among children, families, and schools, depolarizing conflicts within and between systems. Familiar with developmental and educational psychology and developmental neurobiology, the therapist makes this specialized knowledge intelligible to children, families, and teachers. This article describes two specific methods, the chart of strengths and weaknesses and the map of learning functions, which facilitate communication of specialized knowledge about children with learning disabilities. The therapist uses expert knowledge to help members of the treatment system transform blaming, helpless, or hopeless interpretations of the problem into more hopeful constructions, which support healthy development.     

Whose responsibility? Resilience in families of children with developmental disabilities

Families with children with disabilities are at higher risk of stress, financial disadvantage and breakdown. In recent decades, research and policy have shifted focus from these problems to a strengths-based approach, using concepts such as family resilience. By definition, resilience is the ability to cope in adverse circumstances, suggesting a reliance on the individual. If this is the case, then to what extent does ‘family resilience’ place another burden of responsibility onto families? Whose responsibility is family resilience? This paper begins to answer this question using interviews with parents of children with developmental disabilities based in New South Wales, Australia.     

Measuring outcomes for children late placed for adoption

Selecting appropriate measures to assess the outcomes of permanent placement across a broad range of developmental dimensions is problematic. The Maudsley team are adapting and developing a package of instruments designed to identify the key influences on developmental recovery for a longitudinal sample of children late placed for adoption.