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Отношение кровных детей-подростков к приемным детям
The paper presents the results of a study, revealing the peculiarities of the attitude of biological adolescents from a foster/adoptive families to foster/adopted children in comparison with (to) adolescents who have no experience of living together with a foster or adopted child. An associative experiment and a method of concepts defining were used at the first stage of the study. 61 teenagers from 12 to 18 years old have participated (24 teenagers — biological children from foster or adoptive families, 37 teenagers — from families with no experience of adoption and alike). At the second stage, a semi-structured interview with 11 adolescents was conducted about their experience of life in a family with an adopted or foster child, also some projective techniques were used. It was revealed that the representations of biological children from foster families are distinguished by greater objectivity, more details, are associated with real facts and feelings, they combine both positive and negative emotions. They reflect the acceptance of both adopted children with their characteristics and situations of adoption in general. Along with the recognition of the importance of caring for orphans, they have complex, ambivalent feelings towards adoptive siblings and towards the situation in general. The spectrum of feelings varies from irritation, alienation to sympathy, caring, desire to establish contact. The close acquaintance with the phenomenon of orphanhood is perceived by adolescents- biological children as a resource, despite the actualizing fears of loneliness and loss of loved ones. Thanks to this, they have the opportunity to expand their understanding of the world, develop important skills of responsibility, tolerance for differences, patience and acceptance. On the one hand, blood children from foster families consider adoption to be a normal form of parenting, on the other hand, understanding what resources this requires from parents makes them think about giving up parenting in the future in general. Teenagers in a foster family are experiencing a change in the structure of the family; they see their parents as having become close to the adopted child and themselves as pushed to the periphery of the family system. Experiencing positive emotions for the mother, they more often experience more negative emotions for the father.