Growing up in foster families or institutions: Attachment representation and psychological adjustment of young adults

Abstract

This study considers whether type of placement (foster care versus institutional care) is related to patterns of attachment representation and the quality of psychological adjustment in a sample of 48 young adults, who grew up either in foster care or in institutions. The subjects were interviewed using the Adult Attachment Interview (George, Kaplan, & Main, 1996, [2001]) and their psychological adjustment was assessed by using the Brief Symptom Inventory (Derogatis, 1993; German version by Franke, 2000). The results show significantly more positive effects of foster care when compared with institutional upbringing. These findings support the possibility of a beneficial effect of an alternative stable (foster) family relationship for children's psychological development. Implications for assessing placement options for children following severe traumatization are discussed.

Keywords:

• attachment representation
• foster families
• institutions
• psychological adjustment

Acknowledgements

This research was supported by the Foundation “Stiftung zum Wohl des Pflegekindes”, Holzminden, Germany, and the Koehler Foundation, Munich, Germany.

Notes

1. The original German sentence was also grammatically incorrect.