Romanian Orphan Studies - Institutionalisation

    Cards (26)

    • What does institutionalisation refer to?
      Living outside family home
    • What are the effects of institutionalisation?
      Apathy, loss of identity, and dependence
    • What caused the Romanian orphan crisis in the 1990s?
      Overpopulation and poverty
    • What were the conditions like in Romanian orphanages during the crisis?
      Poor orphanage conditions
    • Who adopted many Romanian orphans?
      British parents
    • What was the aim of the Rutter et al (2011) study?
      Impact of care on recovery from institutionalisation
    • How many Romanian orphans were assessed in the Rutter et al (2011) study?
      165 Romanian orphans
    • At what ages were the Romanian orphans assessed in the study?
      Ages 4, 6, 11, and 15
    • How many British adoptees were compared with the Romanian orphans in the study?
      52 British adoptees
    • What was a key finding regarding development at adoption?
      Development lag at adoption
    • How does recovery from institutionalisation depend on age at adoption?
      Recovery varies with age at adoption
    • What was the mean IQ for children adopted before 6 months?
      Mean IQ 102
    • What was the mean IQ for children adopted between 6 months and 2 years?
      Mean IQ 86
    • What was the mean IQ for children adopted after 2 years?
      Mean IQ 77
    • What type of attachment was observed in late adoptees?
      Disinhibited attachment
    • What behaviors characterize disinhibited attachment?
      Overfriendly with strangers, clinginess, attention-seeking
    • What was the sample size of the Bucharest Early Intervention Project?
      95 institutionalised children
    • What age range did the children in the Bucharest study fall into?
      Age 12-31 months
    • How many never-institutionalised children were compared in the Bucharest study?
      50 never-institutionalised children
    • What methods were used in the Bucharest study?
      Strange Situation and caregiver reports
    • What percentage of the institutionalised group had secure attachment?
      19% of institutionalised group
    • What percentage of the control group had secure attachment?
      74% of control group
    • What percentage of the institutionalised group had disorganised attachment?
      65% of institutionalised group
    • What type of attachment was more common in institutionalised children?
      Disinhibited attachment
    • What are the limitations of the Romanian orphan studies?
      • Romanian orphans not typical: poorer care standards
      • Limited generalisation to other institutions
      • Lack of adult data: study stopped at age 15
      • Unclear long-term effects on relationships and employment
    • What are the strengths of the Romanian orphan studies?
      • Real-life application: changes in orphanage policies
      • Use of key workers to foster attachments
      • Fewer extraneous variables, higher internal validity