This longitudinal study provides insight into the factors that contribute to the development of self-esteem in international adoptees. The focus was on the role of early maternal sensitivity and...Show moreThis longitudinal study provides insight into the factors that contribute to the development of self-esteem in international adoptees. The focus was on the role of early maternal sensitivity and the experience of the adoptive status. The sample consisted of 128 Dutch adoptive families with a child from Sri Lanka, Korea or Colombia. A random group of 41 mothers received a video feedback intervention of three sessions aimed at promoting sensitivity. This intervention took place at home when the child was between 6 and 9 months old. The control group received a dummy intervention. Sensitivity was observed when the child was 12, 18, and 30 months. When the child was 7 years old the mother was interviewed about the child’s expressions of the wish to be white and the wish to be born from the adoptive mother rather than being adopted. The child reported on self-esteem at the age of 16. The results show that mothers who had received the video feedback intervention were more sensitive than mothers in the control group. There was no long-term effect of the intervention on self-esteem. There was neither a direct long-term relation between sensitivity and self-esteem nor a mediation by the experience of the adoptive status: there was no relation between sensitivity and the wishes and no relation between the wishes and self-esteem. A possible explanation for the lack of a relation is the long period between the measurements. Finally, we investigated whether sensitivity and the experience of adoptive status in interaction with the child’s gender or a shy temperament may predict self-esteem. There was a main effect of gender: boys had a significantly higher level of self-esteem than girls. Another trend effect was that early sensitivity of the mother and self-esteem in adolescents were positively related for girls, but negative for boys. The role of a sensitive adoptive mother may be different for sons and daughters, but this will have to be investigated in further research.Show less
