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Unpacking complexities in ethnic–racial socialization in transracial adoptive families: A process-oriented transactional system

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 May 2021

Ellen E. Pinderhughes Open the ORCID record for Ellen E. Pinderhughes [Opens in a new window] ,
Jessica A. K. Matthews ,
Xian Zhang  and
Judith C. Scott Open the ORCID record for Judith C. Scott [Opens in a new window]
Ellen E. Pinderhughes*
Affiliation:
Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA
Jessica A. K. Matthews
Affiliation:
Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA
Xian Zhang
Affiliation:
Tufts University, Medford, MA, USA
Judith C. Scott
Affiliation:
Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
*
Author for Correspondence: Ellen E. Pinderhughes, Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Study and Human Development, Tufts University, 105 College Avenue, Medford, MA 02155. Email: ellen.pinderhughes@tufts.edu
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Abstract

Over 50% of adoptions are transracial, involving primarily White parents and children of color from different ethnic or racial backgrounds. Transracial adoptive (TRA) parents are tasked with providing ethnic–racial socialization processes (ERS) to support TRA adoptees’ ethnic–racial identity development and prepare them to cope with ethnic–racial discrimination. However, unlike nonadoptive families of color, TRA parents lack shared cultural history with adoptees and have limited experience navigating racial discrimination. Knowledge of ERS among TRA families has centered on unidirectional processes between parenting constructs, ERS processes, and children's functioning. However, ERS processes in this population have complexities and nuances that warrant more sensitive and robust conceptualization. This paper proposes a process-oriented dynamic ecological model of the system of ERS, situating transacting processes in and across multiple family levels (parent, adoptee, family) and incorporating developmental and contextual considerations. With its framing of the complexities in ERS among TRA families, the model offers three contributions: a conceptual organization of parenting constructs related to ERS, a more robust understanding of ERS processes that inform how parents provide ERS, and framing of transacting processes within and between parenting constructs, ERS processes, and children's functioning. Implications for research, policy, and practice are discussed.

Keywords

adoptionadopteesethnic–racial socializationparentingtransracial adoption
Type
Special Issue Article
Information
Development and Psychopathology , Volume 33 , Special Issue 2: Honoring the Legacy of Ed Zigler's Lifetime Contributions to Science, Society, and Child Wellbeing , May 2021 , pp. 493 - 505
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Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press

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