Openly communicate about adoption: The role of parents' attachment and reflective functioning
Year: 2025
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: ABSTRACT Objective This study explored the relationship between communicative openness (CO) and adoptive parents' attachment styles and reflective functioning. Background CO involves addressing adoption‐related issues within the family. Few studies have examined the connection between parental characteristics and CO. Method Two hundred seventeen adoptive parents (158 women) completed the Communication About Adoption Within the Family Questionnaire, the Parental Bonding Instrument, the Parental Reflective Functioning Questionnaire, and the Experiences in Close Relationships—Revised. Path model analyses were conducted. Results Parents' avoidant attachment (β = −.19, p = .008), maternal overprotection (β = −.19, p = .031), and prementalizing modes (β = −.41, p = .002; β = −.37, p = .001; β = −.45, p < .001, respectively) were linked to lower, less emotionally attuned, and unsatisfying CO. In turn, paternal overprotection (β = .21, p = .008) and certainty about the children's mental states (β = .20, p = .012; β = .33, p < .001; β = .26, p = .010, respectively) were related to more frequent, emotionally attuned, and satisfying CO. Conclusion These findings highlight the role of parents' attachment styles and reflective functioning in shaping CO. Implications Health care professionals should consider parents' attachment styles and reflective capacities to support CO in adoptive families.
Source: Family Relations
DOI: 10.1111/fare.70052
Authors: Laura Gorla, Chiara Fusco, Alessandra Santona
Institutions: Duke University, University of Milano-Bicocca
Language: English
Subfield: Social Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $3,590
OpenAlex ID: W4414552108