How does growing up in an orphanage affect children?

Children raised in orphanages consistently show delays in brain development, emotional regulation, language, and physical growth and the longer a child stays, the greater the harm.

The Bucharest Early Intervention Project tracked children in Romanian orphanages and found stark differences in brain activity, cognitive functioning and psychiatric outcomes compared to children raised in families. Children under three are particularly vulnerable.

A meta-analysis of 308 studies covering more than 100,000 children across 60 countries found that the average child in an orphanage falls in the bottom 12% of expected height and weight for their age (van IJzendoorn et al., Lancet Psychiatry, 2020). The consequences can last a lifetime.

Research shows children raised in orphanages can experience:

Disrupted brain development – early deprivation of responsive care alters brain architecture. Without a buffering adult, the body produces excess cortisol, which weakens immunity and damages developing neural structures at critical stages. Brain scans of children from orphanages show an enlarged amygdala, the brain’s threat-detection centre, rewiring the brain for fear-scanning rather than learning.
Attachment disruption – only 24% of children in orphanages develop secure attachments, compared to 62% in family care. Without a consistent primary caregiver, children struggle to form trusting relationships. This affects not just childhood but adult relationships, mental health and parenting capacity.
Developmental and language delays – children lose on average one month of physical growth for every three months spent in an orphanage. The cognitive gap is equivalent to five to six years of missed schooling and it widens rather than narrows into adolescence.
Higher rates of psychiatric disorder – more than 50% of children with orphanage histories meet criteria for a psychiatric disorder, with around a third meeting criteria specifically for anxiety disorder. These elevated rates persist into adulthood.
Social exclusion – orphanages separate children not only from parents but from family networks, culture, language and community. Children become outsiders to their own societies.

These outcomes occur across well-funded and underfunded orphanages alike. They are caused by the absence of the one thing no orphanage can provide: a stable, individually committed adult who is always there. However, these outcomes are not a life sentence and, with the right support, children can and do recover.