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Article

The Placement of Children in Need of Out-of-Home Care: Forms of Care and Differences in Attachment Security and Behavioral Problems in the Italian Context

by
Rosalinda Cassibba
1,2,*,
Caterina Balenzano
2,3,
Fabiola Silletti
1,
Gabrielle Coppola
1,2,
Alessandro Costantini
2,3,
Stefania Giorgio
1,2,
Alessandro Taurino
1,
Charissa S. L. Cheah
4 and
Pasquale Musso
1,2
1
Department of Educational Sciences, Psychology, Communication, University of Bari Aldo Moro, 70122 Bari, Italy
2
Interdepartmental Training and Research Centre for Care and Protection of Children and Families, University of Bari Aldo Moro, 70122 Bari, Italy
3
Department of Political Sciences, University of Bari Aldo Moro, 70122 Bari, Italy
4
Department of Psychology, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Baltimore, MD 21250, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20(23), 7111; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20237111
Submission received: 19 July 2023 / Revised: 12 November 2023 / Accepted: 20 November 2023 / Published: 25 November 2023
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Attachment Processes in Adolescence and Adulthood: Contexts and Developmental Trajectories at Risk)
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Abstract

The current paper investigated differences in secure attachment levels and behavioral problems among four groups of children in out-of-home care in Italy: closed adoption (child and birth parents not in contact following adoption), open adoption (child and birth parents still in contact after placement), foster care (child living temporarily with relatives or unrelated foster parents) and institutional care (child in residential care for large groups of children). One hundred and thirty children aged 10–19 were included in this study. The Attachment Interview for Childhood and Adolescence and the Achenbach Youth Self-Report were employed to measure participants’ secure attachment levels and behavioral problems. Both a multivariate analysis of covariance and measured variable path analysis were performed. Age, gender and time elapsed between the request for child protection and placement on out-of-home care were used as covariates. The results showed that adolescents in closed adoption had higher secure attachment scores than those in foster care and institutional care, while adolescents in open adoption scored significantly higher on problem behaviors than those in the other out-of-home care groups. Findings were discussed in terms of limitations and implications for future research.
Keywords: adoption; foster care; institutional care; attachment; behavioral problems adoption; foster care; institutional care; attachment; behavioral problems

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MDPI and ACS Style

Cassibba, R.; Balenzano, C.; Silletti, F.; Coppola, G.; Costantini, A.; Giorgio, S.; Taurino, A.; Cheah, C.S.L.; Musso, P. The Placement of Children in Need of Out-of-Home Care: Forms of Care and Differences in Attachment Security and Behavioral Problems in the Italian Context. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2023, 20, 7111. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20237111

AMA Style

Cassibba R, Balenzano C, Silletti F, Coppola G, Costantini A, Giorgio S, Taurino A, Cheah CSL, Musso P. The Placement of Children in Need of Out-of-Home Care: Forms of Care and Differences in Attachment Security and Behavioral Problems in the Italian Context. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2023; 20(23):7111. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20237111

Chicago/Turabian Style

Cassibba, Rosalinda, Caterina Balenzano, Fabiola Silletti, Gabrielle Coppola, Alessandro Costantini, Stefania Giorgio, Alessandro Taurino, Charissa S. L. Cheah, and Pasquale Musso. 2023. "The Placement of Children in Need of Out-of-Home Care: Forms of Care and Differences in Attachment Security and Behavioral Problems in the Italian Context" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 20, no. 23: 7111. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20237111

APA Style

Cassibba, R., Balenzano, C., Silletti, F., Coppola, G., Costantini, A., Giorgio, S., Taurino, A., Cheah, C. S. L., & Musso, P. (2023). The Placement of Children in Need of Out-of-Home Care: Forms of Care and Differences in Attachment Security and Behavioral Problems in the Italian Context. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20(23), 7111. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20237111

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