Search

The search for connections with first family members is considered a normative part of adoptee development and not a reflection of adoptive family conflict or individual psychopathology. Knowledge about one's first family, with consideration for the potential of ongoing relationships, can be of psychological importance to the adopted person. The implications for first family members in the context of international contact/reunions have not been extensively studied. There are many complexities in navigating contact/relationships across the cultural, linguistic, and national differences inherent in intercountry adoption. This paper will review the extant literature and include clinical experiences of two adoption professionals who have facilitated first family contact/meetings following intercountry adoption. Content includes preparation for search, contact/meeting considerations, and supporting psychological integration for the adopted person, even when contact/meeting is not possible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study brings together written and visual evidence of an imposing religious event in the Vallabha sampradāy history: a liturgical performance known as the Festival of the Seven Svarūps. Officiated at the Śrī Nāthjī temple of Nathdwara in 1739–40, it was attended by priests, royalty, and devotees to launch a new period of prosperity and well-being after challenging historical times. This study integrates diverse materials to create a vivid picture of the sumptuous festivity, its organizer (Tilkāyat Govardhanesh, b. 1707), its sponsor (Maharao Durjan Sal of Kota, r. 1723–56), and its sacred participants, the svarūps – the most treasured Krishna icons of the sect. A detailed analysis of the sources will reveal important elements, such as the intertwined network, the Rajput political allies, and the relevance and range of action of the sampradāy in the eighteenth century. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of the repetition compulsion has spawned reams of professional literature about its role in intimate relationships. In this article, the author briefly outlines some of this literature before presenting her own view of the health-producing potential of the compulsion to repeat. In her work with adult partners in treatment, she views them as continually accessing historically dissociated affects through their repetitive conflicts, making these affects more available for metabolizing. The author sees this repetition as an inevitable and useful path to healing previously unmetabolized wounds, traumas and losses. The article illustrates this perspective of repetition compulsion through the description of the treatment of shame in couple therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Foster caring, for both foster and kinship caregivers, can be a challenging and rewarding endeavor. Both prospective and current foster carers have information needs. This article explores the concerns expressed in an open forum social media site (Reddit) by current and prospective foster caregivers. The study examines posts over a three-month span in 2021 and identifies nine key themes of users. Chi-Square analysis is combined with content analysis to better understand the differing needs of active foster caregivers and those who are considering fostering in the future. Prospective foster caregivers want to know about requirements, guidelines, and basic information before making any commitment to an agency. Current foster care providers frequently seek information about how best to help the child in their care and parenting issues. Suggestions are made relative to potential foster parent training improvements and support that might address some of the themes identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Family communication scholarship on transnational adoption has privileged adoptive family communication, in part, because only a fraction of transnational adoptees have been able to locate birth relatives. Given increased global access to DNA testing and more advanced technologies, reunions between transnational adoptees and birth families are increasing. Informed by our positionalities as an adoptive mother of a child born in China and a Korean adult adoptee in reunion with her birth family, we set an agenda for family communication research in the context of transnational adoption birth family search and reunion. We raise three questions for consideration in future family communication research on this topic: (a) Whose history is this?, (b) Whose search is this?, and (c) Whose culture is this? This agenda privileges theories and constructs promising for answering these questions, including communication privacy management theory, family communication patterns theory, adoptive identity, ambiguous loss, and culture and communication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Today, in the field of hereditary colorectal cancer in Denmark, more than 40,000 identified healthy individuals with an increased risk of cancer are enrolled in a surveillance program aimed at preventing cancer from developing, with numbers still growing. What this group of healthy individuals has in common is lifelong regular interaction with a healthcare system that has traditionally been geared towards treating the acutely and chronically ill. In this article, we explore how people living with an inherited elevated risk of colorectal cancer orient themselves towards their families' and their own predispositions as well as the lifelong surveillance trajectories that they have embarked upon – what we call surveillance life. Unlike prior critiques of predictive genetic testing as generative of 'pre-patients' or 'pre-symptomatically ill', we suggest that for those enrolled in lifelong surveillance programmes in welfare state Denmark, the relevance of risk fluctuates according to certain moments in life, e.g. at family reunions, when a close relative falls ill, in the time leading up to a surveillance colonoscopy or when enduring the procedures themselves. As such, rather than characterising surveillance life in terms of 'living with chronic risk' we show how 'genetically at risk' chronicities take shape as persons come to terms with a disease that possibly awaits them leading them to recalibrate familial bonds and responsibilities while leading lives punctuated by regular medical check-ups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Discordant malformation between monochorionic twins is a rare and unknown phenomenon.Objectives: To estimate the incidence of discordant monochorionic twins and to describe their characteristics.Study design: A retrospective multicenter cohort of pregnancies between 2002 and 2015 in La Reunion Island was analyzed, thanks to a population-based register. Only monochorionic pregnancies were included in order to analyze specifically monozygotic twins. We defined as discordant twin pairs those in which different malformations were identified for each twin and those with only one fetus showing a malformation.Results: During the study period, 203,807 births occurred, including 410 monochorionic twin pairs. Congenital anomalies rate for monochorionic twin pairs was 10.7%. We included 38 monochorionic twin pairs with discordant phenotypes, which represent 9.3% of monochorionic twin pairs and 86.4% of monochorionic twin pairs affected by congenital anomalies. Among them, both twins were affected by different congenital anomalies in 7 pairs (18.4%), and only one twin was affected in 31 pairs (81.6%). We identified 20 congenital heart anomalies (44.4%), 5 brain anomalies (11.1%), 5 genital anomalies (11.1%), 4 axial bones and skull anomalies (8.9%), 4 limb anomalies (8.9%), 4 facial anomalies (8.9%), 3 urological anomalies (6.6%), 2 thoracic anomalies (4.4%), 1 bile duct anomaly (2,2%), 1 abdominal parietal defect (2.2%), and 1 aneuploidy (2.2%). Among them, 3 (6.6%) fetuses had an association of malformations. Among the 45 fetuses with malformations, 37 fetuses (82.2%) were born alive and 21 (46.6%) had postnatal surgery.Conclusions: Despite a supposed identical genome, discordant congenital anomalies in monochorionic twin pregnancies are not exceptional and related to genetic and epigenetic mechanisms. Sonographers and pediatricians should know that in monochorionic twin a pair, the occurrence of discordant phenotypes is high (9.3%). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The COVID-19 pandemic and resulting cancellation of medical student clinical rotations pose unique challenges to students' educations, the impact of which has not yet been explored. This cross-sectional survey study collected responses from 13 April 2020 until 30 April 2020. Students at US allopathic medical schools completed the survey online. 1,668 responses were analyzed. A total of 337 (20.2%) respondents thought the pandemic would affect their choice of specialty, with differences across class years: 15.2% (53) of first-years (MS1s), 26.4% (92) of second-years (MS2s), 23.7% (162) of third-years (MS3s), and 9.7% (22) of fourth-years (MS4s) (p < 0.0001). Among all classes, the most common reason chosen was inability to explore specialties of interest (244, 72.4%), and the second was inability to bolster their residency application (162, 48.1%). Out of the MS3s who chose the latter, the majority were concerned about recommendation letters (68, 81.0%) and away rotations (62, 73.8%). As high as 17.4% (119) of MS3s said they were more likely to take an extra year during medical school as a result of the pandemic. Region of the US, number of local COVID cases, and number of local COVID deaths had no effect on whether respondents thought the pandemic would affect their specialty choice. Our study found that about one-fifth of surveyed medical students currently believe that the COVID-19 pandemic will affect their choice of specialty, with many of these citing concerns that they cannot explore specialties or obtain recommendation letters. With prolonged suspension of clinical rotations, targeted efforts by medical schools to address these concerns through enhanced virtual curriculum development and advising strategies will become increasingly important. Further study is needed to explore whether these cross-sectional student perspectives will manifest as changes in upcoming National Residency Matching Program data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One hundred and twenty licensed mental health professionals were surveyed about their work conducting court-ordered reunification therapy with moderate to severe cases of children's rejection of a parent. Four issues were examined in particular: assessment/screening of alienation VS. estrangement, development of treatment goals, definition and measurement of treatment success, and barriers to successful treatment. Predictors of successful treatment were also examined. Results indicate that how success was defined, whether joint sessions are offered, number of barriers, and percent of cases perceived to be hybrids all predicted percent of successful cases. Findings offer many opportunities for refining and enhancing this very challenging work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To identify if there is a specific neonatal morbidity/mortality among second twins relative to first twins.Study design: A 17-year (2001-2017) population-based observational cohort of all twin newborns born in the South of Reunion island after 21 weeks.Results: Among 1062 dichorionic (DTP) and 281 monochorionic twin pregnancies (2686 newborns), twin 2 have a doubled risk to be in breech presentation and a bad Apgar at 1 mn (≤6) in vaginal deliveries. Specific to dichorionic pregnancies, twin 2 were lighter by 50-60 g than twin 1, had higher rates of intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR), OR 1.33, p = .007, a doubled risk to have congenital abnormalities OR 2.1, p = .006.Conclusion: In dichorionic twin pregnancies, second twins having a doubled prevalence of severe congenital abnormalities are not completely elucidated and deserves further research. (1) We propose that twin 2 presenting higher risks of being IUGR and much higher risks of severe malformations suggest that during pregnancy, the less mobile of the two twins is "relegated" to the back of the uterus. (2) For interventions in the delivery room, systematically the most experimented neonatologist should plan to manage the second twin because significantly twin 2 presents higher problems than twin 1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This narrative will detail our first experience co-facilitating a group for male adolescents who have sexually harmed. We believe it is socially unjust for adolescents who sexually harm to simply be labelled as deviant and predatory. We see group work as a path that may allow these young people to take responsibility for their actions, acknowledge their harmful behavior, make amends in some way, and for them to be teens again. We believe that aspiring to and accomplishing this is a profound act of social justice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

People can be moved and overwhelmed, a phenomenon typically accompanied by goose-bumps and tears. We argue that these feelings of being moved are not limited to situations that are appraised as pro-social but elicited when someone surpasses an internal standard. In line with these predictions, people were moved by relationships and success (Study 1), by reunion, separation, success and failure (Study 2) and by social, environmental and sports achievements (Study 3). In all three studies, the elicitation of these feelings was partially mediated by appraisals of surpassing social or achievement standards. In line with this, ratings of meaningfulness were closely associated with feelings of being moved and moving stimuli elicited behavioural intentions such as spending time with family and friends, helping others and/or achieving something in life. Thus, moving situations may remind us about what we perceive as meaningful and thereby help us to act accordingly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we present findings from the filmed observations of 12 1-year-old toddlers in 10 different Norwegian childcare centres during separations and reunions with their mothers. Separations and reunions are sensitive situations, especially around the age of one, when separation anxiety normally peaks. The observations were conducted when the toddlers were between 13 and 15 months old and had been attending childcare for 1 month. The video recordings were analysed in light of attachment theory, emphasizing expressions of protest, despair and detachment among the children. Findings indicate that all the toddlers struggled with separation anxiety in different phases during the observed transitions. Few employees present in the early mornings and late afternoons often made the transitions more difficult. Implications of the findings are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prior reentry research illustrates the challenges former prisoners face during reentry. However, the challenges their family members experience are understudied. This study investigates the strain the family members of released prisoners experience. In addition, it examines the crossover of negative emotions between released prisoners and their family members. We use a dyadic data set that captures the experiences of both former prisoners and their family members during reentry. Our results reveal a reciprocal transmission of negative emotion between the two parties. The negative emotions released prisoners and their family members experience are significantly associated with their respective drinking behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the marketization of design review in England, a tool of design governance that prior to 2011 had almost exclusively been within the purview of the state. This is no longer the case, but neither is it the case that the involvement of the market in the delivery of such services has inevitably undermined their public interest raison d'etre. The processes revealed in this paper, and its structure, draws evidence from three discrete research projects involving extensive stakeholder interviews (notably in London), 'reunion' workshops and a national survey of local planning authorities. It offers insight into a rare, and, according to those involved, ultimately successful example of marketization in design governance services, albeit one with potentially limited application unless the right conditions for such a market occur. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this case study, five international adoptees from Finland were interviewed about their search and reunion experiences to find out what meanings they ascribed to their identities and family relations. The thematic analysis yielded three themes: search and reunion in significant periods of life, meaning of reunion for identity, and belonging and relatedness within family. The first theme was characterized by the changing interest in birth family from the inability in childhood to fully understand the meaning of adoption and the growing interest in adolescence to adulthood where participants' own parenthood intensified their interest. The second theme was characterized by the sense of coherence and sense of continuity that the adoptees, despite the conflicting emotions of reunion, felt they had achieved through reunion. In the third theme, reunion with their birth family appeared significant, even though belonging to a family was interpreted more as an outcome of attachment and nurture than biology. Particular for all themes was the meaning of communicating about adoption-related issues for the adoptee–adoptive parent relationship. Future research is needed to concentrate in more detail on the broad themes and to investigate how the meanings of the birth family for adoptive identity change over life courses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article centres on a reunion held at the National Football Museum in 2018 of women football players active before 1993, particularly the England team for the unofficial Women's World Cup in 1971. After outlining the organisation of the tournament, the experience of the three youngest England players is articulated using oral history case studies. Finally the argument suggests that social strategies, such as reunions, enable a degree of reminiscence therapy and provide museum and archives with potential material, currently in the private domain, to build contemporary collections, provided that players are willing to gift or loan their items. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The adoption of children from out-of-home care is uncommon in Australia and rarely occurs in the state of Victoria. This paper reports on how professionals involved in making decisions about the permanent placement of children explain the current rates of adoption from out-of-home care in Victoria. Interviews were conducted with eight child welfare specialists, eight adoption and permanent care specialists and five judicial officers. The current low rates of adoption were attributed to the effect of current legislation, the impact of past adoption practices and the establishment of a culture in Victoria in which adoption is now rarely considered an option for children in out-of-home care. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Courtesy The Estate of Luchita Hurtado and Hauser & Wirth. The butter passed, potatoes passed, and peas; the roast, the salad. Stepping back, she holds that fragile droplet close - I I know you, I i I was there - i and guards it, silently, the way an open palm protects a candle's flame from snow and rain, and from unruly winds. [Extracted from the article]

Maternal substance use disorders (SUDs) are a known risk factor for poor child welfare outcomes. Efforts to expose the mechanism of this disparity typically focus on the mother’s addiction treatment experiences. However, treatment completion rates are typically higher than reunification rates and current theory does little to explain why some mothers reunify and others do not. This article aims to widen the lens on this area of research through application of a social determinants of health framework. A systematic review of the literature pertinent to mothers with SUDs seeking reunification identifies existing gaps and makes recommendations for practice, policy, and future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This ethnographic study examines the forms and functions of ritualizing in migrant families, using Chinese rural-urban migrant workers’ annual Spring Festival family reunions as a case study. In-depth interviews with migrant workers and participant observations of family reunions in rural China reveal that both celebratory and non-celebratory family activities are ritualized. In particular, the study suggests that the Spring Festival family reunion has transformed into a meta-ritual comprised of five categories of ritual activities: festival rituals, reunion rituals, patterned interactions, reunions with friends, and communal rituals. These rituals constitute both the internal and external identities of migrant families, but may also remind them of the traumatic reality of family separation or trigger hidden tensions within the family. Implications for studying family communication in times of mobility and family diversity are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes a mixed method survey that was administered to a group of Australian palliative care social workers (n = 27). Specifically, it aimed to investigate the ways that social workers understood and worked with clients who were estranged from family at the end of life. Respondents suggested that estrangement potentially impacted clients emotionally, practically, and existentially. They were challenged to make clear assessments, provide emotional support, encourage news ways of thinking about estrangement, to manage practical issues, work with the client’s family, and monitor their own professional role. Theories and models of intervention and levels of training are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Health and social welfare policy proposals put forth by the Trump administration and Republican-controlled Congress could have huge impacts on low-income groups. This paper focuses on older Hispanics, with an emphasis on the Mexican-origin population who form the largest Hispanic subgroup. A demographic portrait is presented that indicates that Mexican-origin individuals have less wealth and lower incomes than do non-Hispanic Whites. Given rising health care costs, lower use of nursing homes, and greater propensity to live with grown children, prevailing economic disadvantage has serious consequences for this population. More restrictive immigration policies aimed at limiting family reunification could have intergenerational caregiving consequences. In addition, because of labor-force disadvantages, low-income Mexican-origin adults are less likely to have private insurance compared to non-Hispanic Whites as they approach retirement. Consequently, Mexican-origin older adults tend to rely on Medicaid when eligible; in contrast, late-life migrants—who do not qualify for federally funded benefits for at least five years—and unauthorized migrants—who are excluded from federally funded benefits—have extremely limited access to safety net provisions. The potential effects of proposed cutbacks in health care financing on older Hispanics are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Foster care involvement due to parental substance use is a common problem with many challenges associated with service delivery. Using administrative data from a Midwestern state between the years 2009 and 2015 (N = 17,420), this study examines characteristics of substance-abusing families at the time of entry into the foster care system and estimates the risk of reentry subsequent to reunification. Bivariate findings and survival analysis for reentry suggests substance-using parents are more likely to be involved in additional allegations associated with foster care involvement. These results highlight the need for improved services integration and coordinated delivery among service systems. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Helping youth in congregate care form healthy relationships and achieve stability is an ongoing concern among child welfare stakeholders. The purpose of this mixed methods study was to examine the effectiveness of a family finding intervention with youth with a history of congregate care placement and to explore factors related to the achievement of relational and physical permanency. Results from a logistic regression indicated that for youth previously in congregate care, intensive family finding increased the odds of achieving relational permanency, but not physical permanency. Qualitative analyses identified several themes surrounding successes and challenges to achieving relational and physical permanency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Among families in the child welfare system, family reunification depends largely upon the services to which families are referred. This study examines whether race/ethnicity influences the number and types of services to which families are referred. Findings suggest that compared to African American families, Hispanic families were more often referred to psychosocial services (e.g., mental health) than basic needs (e.g., housing). These findings indicate a need to reduce service referral disparities between ethnic groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cohort of women who served in Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) was the largest group of women in history to serve in the military and be deployed to combat zones. This large cohort is now moving into veteran status as the numbers of deployed service members decreases. Upon separation from the military, many of these women step back into family roles and responsibilities. To date, there has been sparse research on how military service, particularly in Iraq and Afghanistan, has affected the family relationships, family functioning, and parenting of women veterans. In an effort to better understand the experiences of women veterans as they return to their families and civilian life, five focus groups were conducted with 29 veterans. Analysis of focus group transcripts revealed seven common challenges, ranging from adjustments to the civilian pace of life and developmental changes in children’s behavior to managing anger and difficult emotional interactions with family members. Women demonstrated strength and resilience in dealing with family challenges by employing four common strategies, such as making meaning of their military service, accessing veteran social support, and drawing on military-acquired skills. Implications of the findings for social work practice are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Military deployments can demand long separations of service members and their families. The strain of separation is particularly acute for mothers of very young children. This study aimed to better understand the deployment and reintegration experiences of service members who are mothers of young children. Focus groups and interviews were conducted with 12 service member mothers who deployed to Iraq and/or Afghanistan when one or more of their children was younger than age 6. Discussions explored experiences before, during, and after deployment; needs and challenges at each stage; available support resources and gaps in support. Thematic data analysis was conducted, drawing on principles of grounded theory. Disruption and continuity were central themes as participants illuminated the challenges they faced and their profound dedication to sustaining strong family relationships across the deployment cycle. Relinquishing, reassuming, and balancing multiple roles and responsibilities are additional themes that were frequently evoked. Participants noted a lack of formal resources responsive to their needs and circumstances and highlighted a need for services tailored to mothers who are deploying. Military mothers, particularly mothers of young children, face distinct challenges surrounding deployment. Better understanding their experiences and support needs can inform tailored services to meet their needs. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The majority of past research on adoptees' reunions with birth families has focused on domestic adoptees, with little scholarly attention given to the reunions of transnational adoptees despite their large presence in western countries. To address this shortcoming in existing research, the current study explored adult Korean adoptees' reunions with their birth families, focusing on experiences of cultural differences and their perceived impact on relationships with birth family members. Nineteen adult Korean adoptees were interviewed about their reunions and relationships with their Korean birth (a.k.a., first) families. Participants reported cultural differences in family roles and expectations, standards for beauty and femininity, expectations for interactions, and past and present circumstances. These differences were reported to have a range of impacts on participants' subjective sense of belonging with birth families. Whereas some participants experienced estrangement resulting from these differences, others expressed a deep sense of belonging with their birth families. Scholarly and practical implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Theemotional cycle of deployment modelproposes that military couples face both obstacles and opportunities across the trajectory of deployment. Guided by the model, we seek to address gaps in the literature by investigating how 236 recently reunited service members and at-home partners (N = 118 couples) describe their experiences during deployment and reunion. Results of content analyses revealed a variety of changes to communication during deployment (RQ1), challenges of reunion (RQ2), benefits of deployment (RQ3), and advice for reintegration (RQ4). These findings bolster and extend the emotional cycle of deployment model; they also have practical utility for helping military couples navigate deployment and reunion. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The present study examines Korean adoptees’ initial reunions with their birth families. Using Galvin’s (2006) framework of boundary management, this project examined the discussions, narratives, and rituals that took place during these reunions. In-depth interviews revealed that participants wanted to absolve their birth families of guilt for placing them up for adoption and to know whether they bore any similarities to their birth families. Birth families were reported to apologize, express love for participants, convey gratitude toward adoptive families, and offer advice. Knowing their story of birth and relinquishment was important to most participants, and although birth families were reported to share this information, the narratives were sometimes perceived as incoherent. Participants also reported experiencing rituals, which included extended touch, exchanging gifts, going on outings, learning culture, and performing symbolic family acts. Results from the study suggest that engaging in these internal boundary management strategies contributed to a sense of personal identity—not just family identity—and that the birth family reunion may be a culturally recognized family ritual in South Korea. Scholarly and practical implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines how East African Indians in Canada engage in the processes of place-making to construct their identities and to recreate ties of community both locally and transnationally. By focusing on two sites of interaction in Toronto—a local association for Sunni Punjabi East Africans (SPEAs) and larger reunions for East African Asians—this analysis demonstrates the multifarious ways in which migrants’ past histories continue to inform their everyday lives. I reveal how SPEAs not only draw on their middleman experiences under colonial rule in East Africa to counter discrimination but also how their nostalgic memories of past neighborhoods and continued relationships with ex-residents unify them as a community in Toronto. Migrants also come together to celebrate their shared provenance during reunions. This study explores how these gatherings have become temporal and transnational spaces of belonging for a diverse, global population of East African Asians. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This study evaluated the Pathways Home manualized selective preventive intervention that was designed to prevent reunification failures once children are returned home to their biological parent(s) after first-time stays in foster care (N = 101). The theoretically-based intervention focused on support and parent management practices designed to prevent the development of child behavior problems, including internalizing and externalizing problems and also substance use. Intent-to-treat analyses employed probability growth curve approaches for repeated telephone assessments over 16 weeks of intervention. Findings showed that relative to “services as usual” reunification families, the Pathways Home families demonstrated better parenting strategies that were, in turn, associated with reductions in problem behaviors over time. Growth in problem behaviors predicted foster care reentry. Maternal substance use cravings were a risk factor for growth in problem behaviors; this risk was buffered by participation in the Pathways Home intervention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Anglo-Indian diaspora is a result of the accelerated migration of Anglo-Indians from India to (mainly) Commonwealth countries after India gained independence from Britain in 1947. This article examines the World Anglo-Indian reunions that are now held every 3 years in one or another of the diaspora cities in which they have made their homes. It interrogates what it is about these week-long events that bring thousands of Anglo-Indians to them, concluding that the answer hinges on the ability for attendees to feel Anglo-Indian at a sensory, experiential level, for the duration of each reunion. It further claims that reunions can be productively understood as pilgrimages in that they renew the attendees sense of belonging to a community, in ways that can be understood in terms of Turner's notion of ‘communitas’. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The current study examined the convergence between young children's attachment classifications in the laboratory-based Strange Situation Procedure and children's and parents' behaviors during naturalistic reunions after a day in child care. Fifty-eight parent–child dyads participated in this study. Children's attachment security assessed from the Strange Situation Procedure was significantly associated with ratings of children's security, avoidance, and delight toward their parents during the natural reunion episodes, and with parents' responsiveness during the natural reunion episodes. These findings suggest that natural reunions at the end of the day in child care reflect the quality of attachment relationships between young children and their parents. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article discusses the application of an empowerment group work model in working with Chinese women who have migrated from mainland China to Hong Kong. Oppression of female migrants exists at multiple levels, including oppression based on ethnicity, gender, and class. Empowerment groups have tackled the internalized sense of powerlessness and linked isolated individuals to the collective to advocate for social change. Empowerment was achieved through the use of storytelling that identified differences and commonalities that contested the idea that migrants are inferior and detrimental to the society. The storytelling also helped to challenge policies that discriminate against migrants. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

China's one-child policy led to the abandonment of tens of thousands of infants. Included among these children were twins who were adopted and reared separately. Since 2006, 10 reunited twin sets participated in the first prospective study of twins reared apart. This exploratory study reports a qualitative analysis of the children's reactions to their first meeting with, and departure from, their co-twin. The majority of twins 18 months of age and older displayed strong attraction upon first meeting. Leave-taking included sadness, but responses varied across pairs. Theoretical interpretations of the findings and implications for parenting reared-apart adopted twins are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When children are removed from their parents due to child maltreatment, the goal remains to reunite families whenever possible. Although extensive research exists regarding barriers to reunification, little is known about the families who are successfully reunited. The aim of this study was to examine the strengths families found helpful in the process of achieving and maintaining reunification. In-depth, qualitative interviews were conducted with 15 reunified families. Thematic coding of these narrative interviews was completed, uncovering the ways the families perceived intrafamilial and external social support that was given and received played an important role in their stories of reunification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the South American sea lion (Otaria flavescens), mothers and pups are regularly separated throughout lactation, demanding a well-developed individual recognition system. The aim of this study was to investigate and quantify the searching and reunion behaviour between mothers and pups at Isla de Lobos, Uruguay. We recorded details of searches and reunions using focal animal sampling during two breeding seasons. Our results support the hypotheses that mother-pup dyads combine spatial, acoustic and olfactory cues for successful recognition and reunion behaviour and that pups play an active role in the process. A total of 74% of the females returning from sea visited the last zone (4 × 4 m grid cell) where they had been with their pup prior to separating. Pups spent close to 23% of their time at that location while their mothers were away foraging at sea. Female call rate was significantly higher in successful searches (i.e. those resulting in a reunion) compared to unsuccessful ones (Mann-Whitney test U = 72.5, P < 0.001). During reunions, 90% of the pups called prior to physical contact and search success varied significantly with their movement towards the mother (Fisher exact test P = 0.039). Lastly, mothers conducted olfactory investigations of their offspring during 97.6% of the reunions; they also conducted olfactory investigations of 53.6% of the non-offspring that approached them. In sum, multiple sensory modalities appear to play important roles during O. flavescens mother-offspring reunion behaviour, as has often been described but rarely quantified for other otariid species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using historical data, material from relevant Internet forums and websites, as well as personal experiences and observations, this article examines 12 Czech/Slovak Jewish reunions that have taken place since Communism collapsed and the country split into two separate states. Many of the participants have known each other since they were adolescents or young adults in the 1960s when, as part of their search for a Jewish identity, they joined several Jewish youth groups then in existence. The reunions have involved both those who emigrated (after the August 1968 Soviet invasion) and those who remained. They have entailed memorial journeys both in time and space. The reunions are analysed as case studies of autobiographical occasion, commemoration, reflective nostalgia and diasporic practice, addressing questions of identity, memory and group dynamics. Since the transnational generational community of Czech and Slovak Jews of the first post-Holocaust generation is essentially a latent community based on shared experiences unique to that group, the reunions have played an important role in resurrecting the past, both historical and biographical. Neither the memory nor the strong emotion surrounding the generational experience can be successfully transmitted trans-generationally. Thus, as the group members age and die off, this generational community is bound to disappear. In the meantime, however, it serves its current members rather well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Eighteen adoptees who had met both their birth mothers and birth fathers were surveyed in order to determine the types of post-reunion relationships they developed with each birth parent and the factors that facilitated or hindered their reunions. While adoptees were more likely to develop a personal rather than nonpersonal relationship with birth mothers, relationships with birth fathers were more evenly divided between personal and nonpersonal relationships. Thematic analysis revealed some similarities in the factors that influence reunions with each birth parent (e.g., birth parent characteristics, support from others), though some differences also emerged (e.g., reactions to pregnancy and relinquishment). Issues of kinship, identity, and family structure are discussed, along with implications for counseling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined reunion participation among 256 urban and 265 rural African American female caregivers of older African Americans. A majority of caregivers reported having reunions and reported favorably about their function. Logistic regression results indicated that for urban caregivers, reporting young children, as compared to not reporting young children, and reporting two or more helpers with caregiving, as compared to reporting no other helpers, increased odds of reunion participation. Caring for an elderly person with a high number of chronic conditions decreased odds of reunion participation. For rural caregivers, higher levels of family functioning increased odds of reunion participation; being a spouse caregiver, as compared to a daughter caregiver, decreased odds of reunion participation. Post-hoc Wald chi-square test results confirmed significant urban-rural differences when predicting urban caregivers' reunion participation from two or more caregiver helpers and number of chronic conditions for the elder. Research and service implications are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents a study which focused on the development of the relationship between the birthparent and the adoptee after being reunited. Indepth look at the developmental phases which are experienced by the birthparent and the adoptee; Analysis of the reunion; Results of the study.

The article discusses various studies related to adoptees and their searches and reunions with birth parents. The article "Privacy v. Secrecy: The Open Adoption Records Movement and Its Impact on Hawaii," by B.W. Lum, describes the types of searches conducted under Hawaii's search and consent procedures. The article "A Sociopsychological Investigation of Adult Adoptees Search for Birth Parents," by M.P. Sobol and J. Cardiff, focuses on 110 adoptees who were searching for birth parents. Another article "Perception of Adoption As a Social Stigma: Motivation for search and reunion," examined adoptees' perceptions of their sense of stigma about being adopted.

Focuses on the activities of National Institute of Industrial Psychology (NIIP) that was founded in the year 1921. Founder of NIIP; Details of the reunion of NIIP held at the Caledonian Club in London in the year 1990.