New study: How stressed are adopted children and their parents?

Adopted children are at greater risk of developmental and attachment disorders than unadopted children. This is the result of a new study by the German Youth Institute in Munich. In addition, there are too few counseling services for affected families.

Fewer and fewer people in Germany are adopting a child. The numbers have halved in recent years. In 2020, for example, 3,600 children were adopted, two thirds of them are stepchildren or children further away, only one third are strangers' children.

Nobody knows exactly why the numbers are declining. It is assumed that it is due to the ever-improving reproductive medicine that couples are still able to fulfill their desire to have children. In addition, there are high hurdles for couples who would like to adopt a child. So far there has been little research on the subject of adoptive families in Germany.

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Largest survey of German adoptive families to date

It is known from international studies that adopted children have a higher psychological burden than non-adopted children. The German Youth Institute Munich (dji) has now presented a large longitudinal study for the first time. 257 adoptive families were asked about their well-being and stress – once two years after the adoption and once five years later. It is the largest survey of adoptive families in Germany to date.

Symptoms of reactive attachment disorders

The scientists around Ina Bovenschen from the dji presented the adoptive parents with questionnaires and had them write diaries about the children's behavior. There were also interviews on various areas. One focus was on the children's emotional and behavioral problems : For example, if they withdrew socially, had problems with their peers, perhaps became more aggressive or found it difficult to concentrate on something.

The second focus of observation was the children's attachment behavior. After the first survey, 10 to 13 percent of the children showed symptoms of reactive attachment disorders: for example, if children could not accept comfort when they were feeling bad and instead withdrew.

traumatized children

Another 15 percent of the children showed symptoms indicative of trauma when first questioned. These include trouble sleeping, nightmares, self-harming behavior, or abnormal eating. In younger children, these symptoms may indicate trauma that they were unable to process adequately, says study leader Ina Bovenschen.

Children from abroad more burdened

The study also showed that children who were adopted from abroad are more stressed than children who came from Germany. And that the children's difficulties increased significantly over the years. The reason for this is therefore the previous experiences that the child has had: neglect, physical abuse, but also changing caregivers or the stress of the mother during pregnancy. With these experiences, the child comes into the adoptive families.

Adoptive parents need early support if they have problems

According to Bovenschen, it is possible to identify very early on which children are at risk of being affected in the long term. This suggests that offers of help can be started very early.

Because, as the researchers found out, the burden on the children also leads to a burden on the parents. This means that if you recognize difficulties early on, you can support and accompany the families much better. Through psychological counseling, for example.

Overall, the study by the German Youth Institute shows that the majority of children succeed in developing positively. However, the support offered to date is not sufficient for the children who are affected.

Too few offers of help for adoptive families

So far there have been too few offers for affected adoptive families across Germany, says psychologist Kerstin Haury, who advises parents and children in her practice and has written a book about adoption.

In her practice, she finds that adopted children often have difficulties with so-called transitions: For example, when they start school, the new tasks tend to be more of a challenge for them than for non-adopted children. And when puberty begins, adopted children also have to deal intensively with their own history. And that means bigger conflicts for the children, also in the family, says the psychologist.

In her own smaller study, Kerstin Haury also found in 2020 that adopted children tended to have behavioral problems more than non-adopted children.

Research on German adoptions needed

Research into German conditions in particular is important because international work cannot simply be transferred. In the US, for example, there are many adopted children from China, unlike in Germany, says Haury. Because in this country more adoptive children come from Germany.

Haury also says that adopted children from abroad have a greater risk of developing mental health problems, because they often experienced significantly greater deprivation because they were not fed enough or had to live in a children's home where they were not looked after as well as, for example in a family. In addition, adoption practices vary from country to country. In the USA, for example, foster care is often converted into adoption, which is rare in Germany, says Haury.

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