The resulting effects of in utero attachment on the personality development of an adopted individual.
Tracy L Carlis, PhD. Journal of Prenatal and Perinatal Psychology and Health. Volume 29, Number 4, Summer 2015, 245-263.
ABSTRACT: A newborn separated from his mother at birth and relinquished for adoption is susceptible to a primal wounding (Verrier 1993). This construct describes the deep psychic scarring and the lasting emotional impact caused in adoption by the sudden severing of the inutero bond with one’s biological mother. The results of the trauma are believed to be substantial and to carry major long-term developmental effects yet the nature of those implications remains poorly understood. The aim of the present study was to address the relationship between the degree of prenatal attachment felt by the birthmother during her pregnancy, and the subsequent emotional and mental development/wellbeing of the adopted individual.