Family functioning and racial socialization in transracial adoptive families

Objective This study of transracially adopted adolescents and their White parents examines family cohesion and expressiveness as predictors of parents' engagement in cultural socialization and preparation for bias. It also examines differences in adolescent and parent views of the level of cohesion and expressiveness in their family. Background Given the importance of both cultural socialization 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 negatively 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 understand transracial adoptive families and the need for White parents to engage in quality, not just frequent, racial socialization are discussed.