Socio-perceptual images as regulators of child-parental relations in foster families
Authors: Sitnikov V.L. , Strelenko A.A. , Kedich S.I. , Komarova A.V. 
Published: July 2021

Objective. Definition of communications of I-images of mothers with He-images of the own children, I-images of the foster mothers with He-images of foster children became the purpose of our research; establishment of communications of I-images of the foster mothers with the child parental relation and interaction.
Background. The problem of social and perceptual reflection is current because the number of families with receptions and the sponsored children grows. Quite often adoptive parents aren’t ready to adequate interaction with nonnative children and return them in the system of guardianship, putting to children a severe psychological injury. One of the most important reasons of it is the discrepancy of ideal fixations on need of children for family and real perception of specific children by adoptive parents, rigidity of their attitudes — social installations. In this regard studying mechanisms and regularities of perception of the child in family since how the child is perceived in family, formation of his “Ya-concept”, formation of the personality, the relation with relatives, peers, teachers, with surrounding people directly depends is of particular importance. To minimize emergence of such psychoinjuring situations the in-depth study of mechanisms and regularities of social perception in the replacing families is necessary.
Study design. Links between the structures of I-images of mothers and He-images of their native and adoptive children were investigated; links between socio-perceptual images and child-parental attitude (interaction) in foster families.
Participants. Sample: 18 women from 29 to 59 years (M=48,05; SD=7,77) with only foster children and 20 women aged 37 to 48 years (M=39,85; SD=3,93) having only their biological children.
Measurements. The technique “The structure of the image of a person (hierarchical),” developed by V.L. Sitnikov; two versions of the VRR questionnaire by I.M. Markovskaya, to study the interaction of parents with children and adolescents.
Results. I- and He-images are indicators of child-parental relations in foster families. At the replacing mothers the controlling behavior in relation to the child is expressed. And high control can be shown in petty guardianship, persistence, to lead to restrictions and the bans.
Conclusions. Reliable connections of socio-perceptual images of members of substitute families and child-parental relations were revealed, proving that these images are indicators of child-parental relations. The images children have similarity on structural characteristics both at foster, and at biological mothers. In representations of the foster mothers when forming an image of the foster child the orientation to the I-concept and ideas of what has to be the child is noted. The foster mothers identify themselves with foster children in the present and the future, more close relations with the foster child seek to establish. In comparison with foster, biological mothers are more open in communication with the children.