Transcript 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-Report
•Emerging Adults
•Mage = 19.83
4%
Mom
Asian/Pacific
Islander
Black
40%
53%
Hispanic
Dad
Daughter to Mom
Nadopt = 158
Nnonadopt = 117
Daughter to Dad
Nadopt = 155
Nnonadopt = 117
Son to Mom
Nadopt = 114
Nnonadopt = 84
Son to Dad
Nadopt = 112
Nnonadopt = 83
Mom to Daughter
Nadopt = 157
Nnonadopt = 114
Dad to Daughter
Nadopt = 139
Nnonadopt = 97
Mom to Son
Nadopt = 114
Nnonadopt = 85
Dad to Son
Nadopt = 109
Nnonadopt = 73
White
2%
1%
•Mothers Mage = 50.43
•Fathers Mage = 52.69
•97% White
Sample: Observation
•Emerging Adults
•Mage = 19.82
4%
Asian/Pacific
Islander
Black
40%
53%
Hispanic
Parent
Daughter to Parent
Nadopt = 158
Nnonadopt = 117
Son to Parent
Nadopt = 116
Nnonadopt = 84
White
1%
2%
•Parent Mage = 50.14
•98% White
Parent to Daughter
Nadopt = 111
Nnonadopt = 80
Parent to Son
Nadopt = 95
Nnonadopt = 59
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
4
3.8
3.6
3.37*
3.24
3.4
3.2
3.36*
3.21
3.39**
3.18
3.33*
3.16
3
Adopt
Nonadopt
2.8
2.6
2.4
2.2
2
Closeness:
Daughter to
Mom
* = p < .05
** = p < .001
Closeness:
Mom to Son
Conflict: Mom
to Daughter
Conflict: Mom
to Son
Results: Observation
Observed Closeness
6.07*
6
5.46
5
4
Adopted
Nonadopted
3
2
1
Parents to Daughters
* = 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
References
Elkins, 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/s10519007-9142-7
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