Related Experiment Videos
Adoption and adaptation
The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease
|August 1, 1982
Summary
Adoptees are not generally overrepresented in psychiatric samples, though they may appear more frequently in child psychiatry clinics. Adoption itself is not inherently pathogenic, but can be a focus for psychopathology in some cases.
Area of Science:
- Psychiatry
- Psychology
- Sociology
Background:
- Adoption is a significant social and familial factor.
- Previous assumptions suggested higher rates of psychiatric issues among adoptees.
- Understanding the psychiatric representation of adoptees is crucial for clinical practice.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the representation of adopted individuals in psychiatric services.
- To compare psychiatric diagnoses between adopted and non-adopted patients.
- To determine if adoption is a pathogenic factor in mental health.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective review of 5135 patients at Langley Porter Psychiatric Institute (1969-1978).
- Identified 113 adopted patients.
- Compared adoptee representation in child and adult services against population rates.
Main Results:
- Adoptees represented 5% of child psychiatric patients (expected 2.2%) but 1.6% of adult patients (expected 2.2%).
- Two-thirds of child adoptees were placed by age 1.
- No significant differences in psychiatric diagnoses between adopted and non-adopted patients were found.
Conclusions:
- Adoptees are not generally overrepresented in psychiatric samples.
- Adoptees may be seen more frequently in child psychiatry clinics.
- Adoption is not inherently pathogenic but can be a focus for psychopathology.