Adoptive Family “Leap-Frogging” Patterns

Abstract

This article examines a developmental change pattern that considers dimensions of time and social comparison called “leap-frogging” that was discovered to occur within the rapid transition to parenthood among some adoptive families. Leap-frogging occurs where infertile couples feel left or lagging behind their social counterparts, but abruptly, rather than gradually, transition to become adoptive parents upon adoptive placement thus leaving the newly adoptive parents feeling “caught up” with others in their social network. This rapid transition to parenthood for adoptive parents causes some adoptive families to experience unique transitional events in terms of temporal and social processes in the adoptive family life-cycle. Rather than being an exhaustive review of the transition to adoptive parenthood, this article provides a brief report of the leap-frogging developmental change pattern within this transition.