Romanian Orphan Studies: Institutionalisation Flashcards
(25 cards)
What is meant by institutionalisation
A term for the effects of living in an institutionalise setting (e.g orphanages) where children live for a long period of tie with little emotional care provided to them.
What do orphan studies involve
-These concern children who have been placed in care because their parents cannot look after them. Parents may have died or abandoned them
Who conducted a key study on Romanian Orphans
Rutter et al (2011)
What was the aim of Rutter et al’ study (2011)
To find out how early deprivation in Romanian orphanages affected children’s development, and whether being adopted at different ages (before or after 6 months) influenced their recovery.
Procedure of Rutter et al’s study (2011)
-The study was a longitudinal study (part of the English and Romanian Adoptees study
-It involved 165 Romanian orphans who had experienced extreme deprivation in institutions.
-They were adopted into UK families at different ages: before 6 months, between 6 and 24 months, and after 24 months.
-A control group of 52 UK-born adopted children who had not experienced deprivation was also studied.
-The children’s physical, cognitive, and emotional development was assessed at ages 4, 6, 11, and 15, using interviews, observations, and standardised tests.
-Researchers particularly looked at signs of disinhibited attachment, IQ, and other developmental outcomes.
Findings of Rutter et al’s study (2011) -(effects of institutionalisation)
The Romanian orphans showed differential rates of recovery that were related to their age of adoption.
INTELLECTUAL UNDER FUNCTIONING:
The mean IQ of those children adopted…:
-Before the age of 6 months= 102
-Between 6months- 2 years =86
-After 2 years=77
-These differences remained at age 15-16 years
DISINHIBITED ATTACHMENT:
-Those children adopted after they were 6 months showed signs of a particular attachment type called disinhibited attachment (equally friendly and affectionate towards people they know a people they don’t. This is viewed as inappropriate social behaviour. He found that this was because children were cared for by up to 50 carers per day- care was never consistent.
-Symptoms include attention seeking, clinginess and social behaviour directed indiscriminately towards all adults, both familiar and unfamiliar, and struggling to make friends.In contrast those children adopted before the age of six months rarely displayed disinhibited attachment.
Conclusion of Rutter et al’s study (2011)
-Romanian institutional care negatively affected development (intellectual and emotional)
-More time spent in orphanages the higher the likelihood of intellectual under functioning and disinhibted attachment
Further studies into Romanian orphanages and the effects of institutionalisation
-Zeanah et al (2005) - The Bucharest early intervention project
Describe Zeanah et al’s (2005) Bucharest early intervention project study
-The researchers used the ‘Strange situation’ to assess attachment in 95 Romanian children aged 12-31 months who had spent most of their lives in institutional care.
-They were compared to control group of 50 children who had never experienced institutional care.
-Only 19% of the institutionalised group were securely attached (74% controls)
-44% of the institutionalised group had characteristics of disinhibited attachment (20% of the controls)
What are the effects of institutionalisation on infants
-Physical underdevelopment
-Intellectual under functioning
-Disinhibited attachment
-Internal working model
How can institutionalisation affect physical development (physical underdevelopment)
-Restricted growth
-Twisted legs
Can instutionalisation lead to intellectual under functioning
YES
-Rutter found that those adopted before 6months old showed an IQ that is average (102)
-However, those who were adopted after 6 months showed lower IQs. Those adopted between 6 months and 2 years old had an average IQ of 86, which is still average but lower than those adopted before 6 months. And those adopted between 2 years and 4 years old had an average IQ of 77,which is below the average of 85-115.
Can institutionalisation lead to disinhibited attachment
YES
-Rutter found that many of those adopted after 6 months showed signs of disinhibited attachment. They showed indiscriminate social behaviour towards everyone such as attention seeking, clinginess and an indiscriminate need for love from all adults. They also had issues with making friends.
(Due to them experiencing care for up to 50 carers per day)
How can institutionalisation affect an infants internal working model according to Bowlby
-If they did not have a secure attachment to a mother figure during the critical period they would develop a poor internal working model, which could affect their future relationships
What is the context behind Rutter’s research on Romanian orphans
-Romania’s orphan crisis began under the communist rule of Nicolae Ceaușescu (1965–1989), who aimed to increase the population by banning abortion, restricting access to contraception, and encouraging women to have five or more children.
-This policy was enforced during a time of severe food and energy shortages, making it extremely difficult for many families to care for large numbers of children.
-As a result, over 100,000 babies were abandoned and placed in more than 600 under-funded, state-run orphanages.
-In these institutions, children were often left alone in cots, malnourished, and neglected, receiving little or no emotional or physical care.
Evaluation of research into institutionalisation
-Romanian orphan studies have real life application
-Fewer confounding variables
-Affects of institutionalisation are not as permanent as suggested
-Not a typical sample- isn’t representative of other institutional settings
-Ethical issues- socially sensitive research
What real life application do Romanian orphan studies have
-The Romanian orphanage studies have enhanced our understanding of the effects of institutionalisation. -This has led to major improvements in the way that children are cared for in institutions (langton 2006).
-Children’s homes now avoid having large numbers of caregivers for each child. They have one or two ‘key workers’ who play a central role.
-This means that children in institutional care have a chance to develop normal attachments and disinhibited attachment is avoided.
Who’s study countered Rutter’s findings
Hodges and Tizard’s (1989) study
Describe Hodges and Tizard’s study (1989)
-Followed the development of 65 children who had been in residential nurseries from only a few months old where carers were discouraged from forming attachments with the children
-At four years old, none of the institutionalised children had formed attachments, but by eight years of age, those who were adopted formed food attachments.
-Their social and intellectual development was better than that of children who had returned to their own families
-Contradicts Rutter’s findings- children did not suffer from a low IQ or disinhibited attachment if not adopted before 6 months- suggests that high quality care can reverse the effects of institutionalisation
How does Hodges and Tizard’s (1989) findings contradict Rutter’s effects of institutionalisation
-Contradicts Rutter’s findings- children did not suffer from a low IQ or disinhibited attachment if not adopted before 6 months- suggests that high quality care can reverse the effects of institutionalisation
What ethical issues does research into Romanian orphan studies arise
It’s is a socially sensitive topic
Why is research into Romanian orphans socially sensitive
-Because they demonstrate that late adopted children typically had poor developmental outcomes.
-Late adopted children’s ere shown to have a low IQ. This may then affect how they are treated by parents, teachers etc, potentially creating a self fulfilling prophecy- internalising with these assumptions.
Why may the potential benefits of research into romanian orphan studies outweigh the fact that it is socially sensitive
-Much has been learnt from the Romanian orphan studies that may benefit future institutionalised children.
-Therefore, the potential benefits of the studies probably outweigh their social sensitivity
Why are there fewer confounding variables in Rutter’s study compared to other earlier orphan studies
-E.G. previous studies of children in care often involved those who had already experienced loss or trauma, such as separation from parents due to illness or death, making it hard to isolate the effects of institutionalisation itself.
-However, in Rutter’s study, many of the children had been placed in Romanian orphanages from birth, meaning that researchers could more clearly examine the direct effects of institutional care on development.
-This increases the internal validity of the findings, as it allows stronger conclusions to be drawn about how institutionalisation impacts attachment and long-term development.
