Romanian Orphan Studies

Question 1

Define Orphan studies

Answer 1

Involve children who’s parents have died or abandoned them permanently so they are left in institutions

Question 2

Rutter et al orphan study - procedure and results

Answer 2

PROCEDURE - ongoing longitudinal study comparing 165 Romanian orphans who were adopted by UK families with 52 UK adopted children. In Romania 1/3 adopted 0-6 months, 1/3 adopted 6 - 24 months and 1/3 late adoptees at 2-4 years. Levels of functioning assessed in these children.

RESULTS - age 6 - disinhibited attachment most common in late adoptee group (26%). This was extremely rare in UK adoptees and early adopted Romanian children. (4%) age 11 - found disinhibited attachment had persisted and many received help for SEN

Question 3

Rutter et al orphan study - key conclusions

Answer 3

1 some aspects of functioning are impaired in children who failed to form an attachment
2 factors like amount of time without attachment and amount of time spent in good adoptive family determine effects
3 effects of privation are not as global as Bowlby and his critical period suggest

Question 4

What is disinhibited attachment?

Answer 4

Children are equally affectionate and friendly towards people they know well and strangers they have just met. This is highly unusual as securely attached infants still show some stranger anxiety

Question 5

EVALUATION - what are the effects of institutionalisation on children?

Answer 5

Strength - research to support long term effects of institutionalisation - Hodges and Tizard 65 UK children in an institution. By 16 all children had disinhibited attachment showing long lasting impacts and social development was affected. However, deterministic as ignores free will to change this outcome shown in Rutter’s study as the effects were reversed for those adopted before. 6 months so privation can’t be the only factor that determines disinhibited attachment

Limitation. - research to criticise - Czech twins raised in extreme isolation and spent 7 years locked up by stepmother. By age 14 after being placed with aunt they had near functioning social and intellectual development At age 20 they had an above average so affects are not permanent. However it could be argued that the twins had eachothers company and could have formed an attachment to each other and other family members prior to being locked up so privation may be challenged.

Strength - longitudinal study - good for attachment to see effects of maternal deprivation and privation over a long period of time and gather lots of rich data - however may be difficult to analyse