Citation

Peek LA, Morrissey B, Marlatt H. J. Fam. Issues 2011; 32(10): 1371-1396.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2011, SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/0192513X11412496

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

The authors explored individual and family adjustment processes among parents (n = 30) and children (n = 55) who were displaced to Colorado after Hurricane Katrina. Drawing on in-depth interviews with 23 families, this article offers an inductive model of displaced family adjustment. Four stages of family adjustment are presented in the model: (a) family unity stage, (b) prioritizing safety stage (parents) and missing home stage (children), (c) confronting reality stage (parents) and feeling settled stage (children), and (d) reaching resolution. This research illustrates that parental and child adjustment trajectories are dynamic and may vary over time, thus underscoring the importance of considering the perspectives of both adults and children in research and disaster policy interventions.