Family functioning and racial socialization in transracial adoptive families

• Published date: 01 December 2022
• Author: Katie M. Hrapczynski,Leigh A. Leslie,HaeDong Kim
• Date: 01 December 2022
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1111/fare.12692

RESEARCH

Family functioning and racial socialization

in transracial adoptive families

Katie M. Hrapczynski

1

|Leigh A. Leslie

2

|HaeDong Kim

1

1

Department of Family Studies and

Community Development, Towson University,

Towson, Maryland, United States

2

Department of Family Science, University of

Maryland, College Park, Maryland

Correspondence

Katie M. Hrapczynski, Towson University,

Liberal Arts Building, Suite 2210, Department

of Family Studies and Community

Development, Towson, MD 21252 USA.

Email: khrapczynski@towson.edu

Abstract

Objective: This study of transracially adopted adolescents

and their White parents examines family cohesion and

expressiveness as predictors of parents’engagement in cul-

tural socialization and preparation for bias. It also exam-

ines differences in adolescent and parent views of the level

of cohesion and expressiveness in their family.

Background: Given the importance of both cultural socializa-

tion and preparation for bias on promoting the well-being of

adoptees, it is of value to examine why some White parents

engage in these behaviors more frequently than others. Family

functioning sets the tone for subsequent interactions and may be

an important contributor to parents’racial socialization efforts.

Method: Seventy-two transracially adopted parent–adolescent

dyads completed an online survey.

Results: Generally, parents and adolescents reported high

cohesion and moderate expressiveness, although transracially

adopted adolescents tended to view their family more nega-

tively than their parents. Parents who viewed their family as

more cohesive and expressive were more likely to engage in

cultural socialization. Those who viewed their family as more

expressive were more likely to talk to their child about race

and prepare them for discrimination. Contrary to expectation,

when adolescents viewed their family as less expressive, their

parents were more likely to engage in preparation for bias.

Conclusion and Implications: The importance of including

multiple family members’perspectives to more fully under-

stand transracial adoptive families and the need for White

parents to engage in quality, not just frequent, racial sociali-

zation are discussed.

KEYWORDS

cultural socialization, family cohesion, family expressiveness, preparation

for bias, transracial adoption

Author note: We have no known conflict of interest to disclose.

Received: 11 May 2021Revised: 19 October 2021Accepted: 26 February 2022

DOI: 10.1111/fare.12692

© 2022 National Council on Family Relations.

Family Relations. 2022;71:1917–1932. wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/fare 1917

In approximately 23% of adoptions, a bicultural or multiracial family forms when parents

adopt a child of a race, ethnicity, or culture different from themselves (Marr, 2017). Givenmost

transracial adoptive families are headed by White parents (Vandivere et al., 2009), questions

arise regarding adoptive parents’capability to meet the unique needs of their children of color

(R. M. Lee, 2003). Racial minority youth need to be connected to their culture of origin and

live in homes supportive of their ethnic-racial identity. These youth need to be prepared for the

way race will structure their interactions with others, including being taught how to cope with

discrimination.

Adoption scholars and professionals acknowledge racial socialization as an essential parent-

ing practice linked to addressing the needs of transracially adopted youth (Malott &

Schmidt, 2012; Montgomery & Jordan, 2018). Engaging in racial socialization, however, may

be challenging for transracial adoptive parents who are likely less connected to their child’s cul-

ture, have not experienced racism themselves, and live in predominately White communities

(Samuels, 2009). Indeed, research suggests White transracial adoptive parents engage in low to

moderate levels of racial socialization and are more likely to focus on connecting their child to

their birth culture than discussing racism and coping strategies (Berbery & O’Brien, 2011;

Hrapczynski & Leslie, 2018; Kim et al., 2013).

In order to support families in their racial socialization efforts, it is important for us to

understand what predicts why some transracial adoptive parents are more likely to engage in

these practices and others do so to a lesser extent. Most research on transracial adoptive fami-

lies has focused on demographic variables and adoption- and race-specific predictors of racial

socialization (Hrapczynski & Leslie, 2018; Vonk et al., 2010). However, family functioning

within these families may also be relevant to the processes surrounding racial socialization.

Family systems theory posits that the family environment is pivotal to family member well-

being and sets the tone for interaction among members (Watzlawick et al., 1967). Patterns of

interaction maintain the family’s homeostasis. When interactions are positive, they may beget

other positive transactions within the family. Because indicators of healthy family dynamics

include cohesion among members and their ability to express themselves, these patterns of inter-

action may lay a foundation for facilitating successful racial socialization. The current study

examines transracial adoptive parents’and adolescents’views of their family cohesion and

expressiveness as predictors of parental engagement in two types of racial socialization: cultural

socialization and preparation for bias.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Racial socialization

Broadly, racial socialization can be operationalized as a collective set of parental behaviors that

impart information and beliefs about race and ethnicity to the child (Hughes et al., 2006). For

example, research on transracial adoption refers broadly to parental cultural competence

(Vonk, 2001), bicultural socialization (Thomas & Tessler, 2007), and racial socialization (Leslie

et al., 2013). However, scholars also acknowledge the value of examining distinct constructs

within racial socialization; the two most commonly examined are referred to as cultural sociali-

zation and preparation for bias (Berbery & O’Brien, 2011; Hrapczynski & Leslie, 2019;

Hughes & Chen, 1997; J. Lee et al., 2018). Cultural socialization includes parental efforts to

integrate aspects of their child’s birth culture into their child’s life (Hughes & Chen, 1997).

These actions aim to promote the child’s cultural, racial, and ethnic pride by connecting them

to their customs, heritage, and history. Preparation for bias, on the other hand, refers to paren-

tal efforts that acknowledge the social construct of race and realities of oppression, including

teaching their child strategies for coping with discrimination (Hughes & Chen, 1997).

1918 FAMILY RELATIONS