Biological, Adoptive, and Mixed Families

An abundance of research has focused on the many challenges faced by families that have children with special needs. While special needs has been defined and operationalized in a number of ways, virtually all measures are linked to additional familial challenges. Few, if any, studies to date have examined the topic of the special needs child from the perspective of differing family types (biological, adoptive or mixed). Considering the increasing number of parents choosing to adopt internationally, the existing literature also lacks a systematic examination of the differences prevalent between families who have chosen to adopt internationally. The present study was based on two central predictions: (1) parental and marital satisfaction would be adversely impacted by the presence of a special needs child, and (2) the impact of the special needs child would differ depending on what family type was examined. Participants included 91 mothers who provided data on 231 children. A family questionnaire was administered to participants across the United States and from two foreign countries. Parental satisfaction was found to be lower in adoptive families with a special needs child, but the overall satisfaction rating was still relatively high.