Romanian orphan study Flashcards
What researcher conducted the study
Rutter
What was the procedure of the study
Followed 165 Romanian orphans adopted in Britain to test extent good care could make up for poor early experiences in institutions. 111 were adopted by 2 years old, and a further 54 by age 4. Physical, cognitive and emotional development has been assessed at ages 4, 6, 11 and 15 years. Control group: 52 British children adopted around the same time
What type of study was the Romanian orphan study
Longitudinal
What were the findings of the study
age 6, 70.4% of those adopted after 6 months showed signs of disinhibited attachment (attention seeking, clinginess and indiscriminate attachment behaviours) compared to only 46.7% of Romanian children adopted before 6 months, 47.6% of the Romanian non-institutionalised adoptees and 59.6% of the control group of UK adoptees. 45% of those measured as showing disinhibited attachments at 6, continued to show this behaviour at 11 and were more likely than the other groups to be receiving help for special educational needs or mental health problems. At the time of adoption, over half of the Romanian children showed evidence of severe malnourishment and were in the bottom third of the population for weight and head circumference.
They also showed signs of mental retardation: a factor that was NOT shown in the control group.
By the age of 4, many had caught up with their peers in terms of physical development.
By the age of 11, the Romanian children showed differences in recovery related to the age of adoption:
Adopted before 6 months : Mean IQ 102
Adopted between 6 months and 2 years: Mean IQ 86
Adopted after 2 years : Mean IQ 77
What were 2 other studies related to Rutters
Zeanah et al (2005), Le Mare & Audet (2006)
What was Le Mare & Audet’s (2006) study
Longitudinal study of 36 Romanian orphans adopted in Canada. DV = physical growth and health.
The adopted orphans were physically smaller than a matched control group at age 4.5 years, but this difference had disappeared by 10.5 years.
Therefore, recovery from the effects of institutionalisation on physical development is possible.
What was Zeanah et al’s (2005) study
Assessed attachment in 95 children aged 12-31 months who had spent most of their life in institutional care (90% on average), compared to a control group of 50 children never in care.
Attachment type was measured using the Strange Situation and carers were asked about unusual social behaviour (i.e. disinhibited attachment)
Found 74% of control group were securely attached compared to 19% of the institutional care children. 65% were classified with disorganised attachment. Disinhibited attachment applied to 44% institutional children compared to under 20% control group
What are the effects of institutionalisation
Disinhibited attachment, mental retardation, deprivation dwarfism
What is disinhibited attachment
A form of insecure attachment where children do not discriminate between people they choose as attachment figures – they are over-friendly and attention-seeking towards strangers and people they know well
What is developmental retardation
Children raised in institutions often have delayed development (e.g. language) and have a lower IQ on average than their peers. For example, In Rutters (2007) research children who spent over 2 years within an orphanage had an average IQ of 77. This seems to be a long lasting effect
What is deprivation dwarfism
Children who are institutionalised are usually smaller.
Lack of emotional care could affect growth hormones causing underdevelopment. (Gardner, 1972)
Gardner studied the case of an 8 month girl who had to be fed through a tube due to a malformation. Her mum would never cuddle her for fear of dislodging the tube.
8 months old = she was withdrawn and physically stunted and she was admitted to hospital.
With attention of hospital staff, she thrived off the attention and returned to normal.
Therefore emotional disturbances may affect the production of growth hormones, aka ‘deprivation dwarfism’
What are positive evaluation points for the Romanian Orphan study
Practical applications: enhanced understanding of the possible negative effects of being raised in an institution (e.g.disinhibited attachment) - led to changes of children home institutions e.g. key workers
Research support:
- kids in Rutters research made progress with physical development
- the shorter stays in instit made great progress intellectually
- many of the kids emotional development (attachments) had recovered by age 11
What are negative evaluation points for the Romanian Orphan study
Generalisation: standards of care were particularly poor in these institutions so the effects of being raised in these places may not be representative of living in all institutions of this type
Theory: some of the long term effects of institutionalisation may not be clear until adulthood (e.g. effects on parenting capabilities) - relates to Bowlby’s IWM
