This study is a post-adoption follow-up of social–emotional interventions in St. Petersburg, Russian Federation Baby Homes (BHs). Children previously resided in BHs and received Care as Usual (CAU, N = 220), Training Only (TO, N = 94), or Training plus Structural Changes (T + SC, N = 45). This study examined intervention effects 0–6.5 years post-adoption to the United States, at age 9 months to 7 years old. Adoptive parents completed questionnaires on their child’s social and behavioral development. Intervention graduates had better attachment security, less indiscriminate friendliness, and fewer behavior problems than CAU graduates. Children who had longer exposure to intervention conditions had better attachment security, but poorer executive function, externalizing and internalizing problems, and competence. Thus, although postinstitutionalized children were generally functioning in the normal range in early childhood and effect sizes were small, a social–emotional intervention in institutions is associated with modest benefits to attachment and behavior problems and apparent decrements to executive function.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)273-293
Number of pages20
JournalApplied Developmental Science
Volume23
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - 3 Jul 2019

    Scopus subject areas

  • Developmental and Educational Psychology
  • Life-span and Life-course Studies
  • Applied Psychology

    Research areas

  • MASSIVE CATCH-UP, BEHAVIOR PROBLEMS, EARLY-CHILDHOOD, EARLY DEPRIVATION, YOUNG-CHILDREN, FOSTER-CARE, INTERNATIONAL ADOPTEES, METAANALYTIC EVIDENCE, EXECUTIVE FUNCTION, EARLY ADVERSITY

ID: 37161150