Dyadic Sex Differences in Adoptive and Nonadoptive Family Relationships during Emerging Adulthood
description
Transcript of Dyadic Sex Differences in Adoptive and Nonadoptive Family Relationships during Emerging Adulthood
Dyadic Sex Differences in Adoptive and Nonadoptive Family Relationships
during Emerging Adulthood
Amy Walkner-Spaan, M.S.W., L.I.S.W.Martha Rueter, Ph.D.
What do we know about adoptive families in emerging adulthood?• Retrospectively, adoptees, their siblings, and their
parents reported a general level of family closeness (Loehlin, Horn, & Ernst, 2010)
• Adoptive families reported less warm, supportive communication and increased conflict (Rueter, Keyes, Iacono, & McGue, 2009)
• Adopted adolescents were observed to have greater conflictual behavior towards their parents (Rueter et al., 2009)
Purpose
• This descriptive research explored relationship differences between adoptive and nonadoptive parent-emerging adult dyads by parent and emerging adult biological sex.
Sample• Sibling Interaction and Behavior Study
(SIBS; McGue, et al., 2007; Rueter et al., 2009)
– Families had at least two children– At least one adopted child in the adoptive
families• For this study:
– Eligible emerging adults were 18.50 – 22.49 years old
– Eligible mothers and fathers had one child 18.50 – 22.49 years old
Sample: Self-ReportMom
Daughter to MomNadopt = 158
Nnonadopt = 117
Son to MomNadopt = 114Nnonadopt = 84
Mom to DaughterNadopt = 157
Nnonadopt = 114
Mom to SonNadopt = 114
Nnonadopt = 85
Dad
Daughter to DadNadopt = 155
Nnonadopt = 117
Son to DadNadopt = 112Nnonadopt = 83
Dad to DaughterNadopt = 139Nnonadopt = 97
Dad to SonNadopt = 109Nnonadopt = 73
• Emerging Adults• Mage = 19.83
40%
1%
2%
53%
4%Asian/Pacific IslanderBlackHispanicWhiteOther/Mixed
• Mothers Mage = 50.43• Fathers Mage = 52.69• 97% White
Sample: Observation Parent
Daughter to ParentNadopt = 158
Nnonadopt = 117
Son to ParentNadopt = 116Nnonadopt = 84
Parent to DaughterNadopt = 111
Nnonadopt = 80
Parent to SonNadopt = 95
Nnonadopt = 59
• Emerging Adults• Mage = 19.82
40%
1%
2%
53%
4%Asian/Pacific IslanderBlackHispanicWhiteOther/Mixed
• Parent Mage = 50.14• 98% White
Self-Report Measures Parental Environment Questionnaire (PEQ; Elkins, McGue, & Iacono, 1997)
• Conflict (12 items)– “My child and I often get into arguments.”– “My parent and I often get into arguments.”
• Closeness (12 items)– “My child doesn’t seem to feel very close to me.”– “I don’t feel very close to my parent.”
• Four dyadic relationship indicators:
• E.A. - Mother• E.A. - Father
• Mother - E.A.• Father - E.A.
Independent Observations • SIBS Rating Scores (Rueter et al., 2009)
• Conflict– Hostility scale
• Closeness– Warmth/Support– Listener Responsiveness– Communication – Prosocial
• Two dyadic relationship indicators
• E.A. - Parent• Parent – E.A.
Results: Self-Report
Closeness: Daughter to
Mom
Closeness: Mom to Son
Conflict: Mom to Daughter
Conflict: Mom to Son
22.22.42.62.8
33.23.43.63.8
4
3.24 3.21 3.18 3.16
3.37* 3.36* 3.39** 3.33*
AdoptNonadopt
* = p < .05** = p < .001
Results: Observation
Parents to Daughters1
2
3
4
5
66.07*
5.46
Observed Closeness
AdoptedNonadopted
* = p < .001
Discussion & Future Directions
• Extends research on adoptive family relationships into emerging adulthood
• Individuation might affect adopted emerging adults differently
• Investigate the influence of adoption-specific variables on parent-emerging adult relationships
ReferencesElkins, I. J., McGue, M., & Iacono, W. G. (1997). Genetic and environmental
influences on parent-son relationships: Evidence for increasing genetic influence during adolescence. Developmental Psychology, 33(2), 351-363.
Loehlin, J. C., Horn, J. M., & Ernst, J. L. (2010). Parent-child closeness studied in adoptive families. Personality and Individual Differences, 48(2), 149-154. doi: 10.1016/j.paid.2009.09.012
McGue, M., Keyes, M., Sharma, A., Elkins, I., Legrand, L., Johnson, W., & Iacono, W. (2007). The environments of adopted and non-adopted youth: Evidence on range restriction from the Sibling Interaction and Behavior Study (SIBS). Behavioral Genetics, 37(3), 449-462. doi: 10.1007/s10519-007-9142-7
Rueter, M. A., Keyes, M. A., Iacono, W. G., & McGue, M. (2009). Family interactions in adoptive compared to nonadoptive families. Journal of Family Psychology, 23(1), 58-66. doi: 10.1037/a0014091