Romanian Orphan Studies: Institutionalisation

Question 1

who were the researchers involved in the Romanian Orphan Studies?

Answer 1

• Rotter et al
• Zeanah et al

Question 2

what was Rutter et al’s procedure?

Answer 2

• followed a group of 165 Romanian orphans for many years as a part of the English and Romanian adoptee study (ERA)
• orphans were adopted by families in the UK
• aim of ERA = investigate the extent to which good care could make up for poor early experiences in institutions
• physical, cognitive and emotional development has been assessed at ages 4,6,11,15 and 22-25 years
• a group of 52 children from the UK adopted at the same time served as a control group

Question 3

what were the findings of Rutter et al’s research?

Answer 3

• children first arrived in UK = half adoptees showed signs of delayed intellectual development and the majority were severely undernourished

Question 4

what was Rutter et al’s findings at age 11?

Answer 4

• adopted children showed differential rates of recovery that were related to their age of adoption

Question 5

what was the mean IQ of those adopted by before the age of 6 months?

Answer 5

102

Question 6

what was the mean IQ of those adopted between 6 months and 2 years?

Answer 6

86

Question 7

what was the mean IQ of those adopted after 2 years?

Answer 7

77

Question 8

how long did the difference in IQ remain?

Answer 8

until the age of 16

Question 9

who found that the differences in IQ remained until x?

Answer 9

Beckett et al

Question 10

who found what age groups ADHD was most common in?

Answer 10

Kennedy et al

Question 11

what ages are most common for ADHD?

Answer 11

15 and 22 to 25 year olds

Question 12

who developed an attachment type called disinhibited attachment?

Answer 12

those adopted after six months

Question 13

what are symptoms of disinhibited attachment?

Answer 13

• attention-seeking
• clinginess
• social behaviour directed indiscriminately towards all adults, both familiar and unfamiliar

Question 14

what was Zeanah et al’s procedure?

Answer 14

• conducted the Bucharest early intervention (BEI) assessing attachment in 95 Romanian children aged 12-31 months who spent most of their time in institutional care (90% on average)
• compared to group of 50 children who never lived in an institution
• attachment type measured using Strange Situation
• carers we’re asked about unusual social behaviour including clingy, attention-seeking behaviour directed inappropriately to all adults(disinhibited attachment)

Question 15

what were the findings of Zeanah et al?

Answer 15

• 74% of control group were classed as securely attached
• 19% of institutional group were securely attached
• description of disinhibited attachment applied to 44% of institutionalised children as opposed to 20% for controls

Question 16

how did Rutter explain disinhibited attachment?

Answer 16

• adaptation to living with multiple caregivers during the sensitive period from attachment formation
• poor quality institutions like Romania where a child has 50 careers and doesn’t spend enough time with any of them to form a secure attachment

Question 17

what does Rutter’s study tell us about intellectual disability?

Answer 17

• most children showed signs of intellectual disability when they arrived in Britain
• most of those adopted before they were six months old caught up with control group by age 4

Question 18

how can intellectual development be recovered?

Answer 18

adoption before the age of six months - age at which attachments form