Unsettled adoptive identity: Understanding relationship challenges in adopted adolescents' identity narratives

Adopted adolescents create identity narratives conceptualizing their connections to their families of adoption and birth. Previous work with a sample of adoptive adolescents identified a sub-group who reported negative experiences regarding adoption as part of their navigating of adoptive identity processes (the "Unsettled" group). The current study examined interviews with adolescents in the "Unsettled" group to elucidate these negative experiences, specifically through identifying the relationship challenges linked to adoption. Participants included 30 adopted adolescents (18 females, 12 males) from a longitudinal study of adoptive families. All the adolescents (M age = 15.2 years) were domestically adopted in infancy by heterosexual couples who were the same race as the adolescents (29 White, 1 Mexican American). Thematic analysis revealed six themes reflecting adolescents' relationship challenges as related to adoption, both in terms of interpersonal interactions and how relational experiences influenced adolescents' thoughts and feelings of past, present, and future selves: (a) Negative experiences in relationships with adoptive family members, (b) Negative experiences in relationships with birth family members, (c) Difficulties in the adoptive kinship network, (d) Negative thoughts and feelings toward the self as an adopted person, (e) Negative views toward adoption as a form of building a family, and (f) Negative connections between adoption and future relationships. Multiple subthemes were also identified that built upon topics within the adoption and family systems literature, such as communication among family members, navigation of birth family contact, and adopted adolescents' perceptions of loss. Also identified were four profiles across themes. Implications for mental health providers and adoption professionals are discussed.

A trauma-informed substance use disorder prevention program for transracially adopted children and adolescents

The prevalence of substance use among transracial and international adoptees is higher than that of non-adopted persons, and yet no specialized treatment modalities exist for this underserved population. Our purpose is to propose a substance use disorder (SUD) prevention program for transracial adoptive families that addresses the specific issues that face this community. There are several pre- and post-adoption factors which position transracial and international adoptees (TRIAs) to be at higher risk to develop SUDs. Some of these factors include adoption identity, trauma, loss, genetics, and racial discrimination. The biopsychosocial (BPS) model (Engel, 1977) is used to conceptualize SUDs in adoptees, and theories that focus on adoption-related development issues such as the Adoptee Stress and Coping Model (Brodzinsky, 1990) are also presented. Our proposed program, Strengthening Transracial Adoptive Families (STAF), utilizes the Guiding Good Choices (GGC) prevention program as its foundation to integrate a culturally responsive adoption-focused curriculum to best serve transracial adoptive families.

Adoption openness and adoption stigma: a retrospective study of adult adoptees

This study explored adult adoptees' experiences and challenges concerning their adoption and the extent to which adoption issues were openly discussed within the adoptive family. Listening to the perspective of adoptees is important as their experiences, and expectations can influence their well-being and the success of their placement. Fourteen adult adoptees participated in this study. Qualitative data were gathered using semi-structured interviews. Interviews took place between June 2020 and November 2020. The analysis of transcripts was conducted according to the interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) guidelines. Three themes related to the aims of the current research emerged from the data: (a) adoption secrecy, (b) adoptees' expectations for communication openness, and (c) adoption stigma. This study provides valuable insight into adoption communication openness, recognition of adoption stigma, and adoption microaggressions.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s43545-022-00339-2.

Experiences of Mothers Who Relinquished Their Child for Adoption in Pakistan: A Qualitative Study

The literature suggests long-term consequences and lack of support for birthmothers following relinquishment of their child for adoption (Memarnia in Listening to the experience of birth mothers whose children have been taken into care or adopted, 2014). But there was not any work done to study in-depth experiences of birthmothers after giving away their child in Pakistan. So, the purpose of the present study was to explore the experiences of mothers who relinquished their child for adoption. As the present study was intended to explore lived experiences of a particular group, the phenomenological research design was used to conduct this qualitative study. An interview protocol was devised to explore the experiences of birthmothers. The sample was comprised of five birthmothers who relinquished their child for adoption and fulfilled the criteria. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with the birthmothers, and all the interviews were audio-recorded and transcribed before analysis. Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) was used to interpret the transcripts of interviews. Further, data verification was done through peer scrutiny, by debriefing sessions with the supervisor, and enriches the description of the phenomenon. Four main themes were emerged: Reasons to Relinquish, Psychological Distress, Coping Strategies, and Disenfranchised Grief. The study present that the experience of relinquishment has a negative impact on birthmother and highlights the need for proper measures to regulate the process of adoption and involvement of psychologists during the process of adoption. Moreover, it stresses the need for acknowledgment of the experience and psychological services for birthmothers who relinquish their child.

Close Relations? The Long-Term Outcomes of Adoption Reunions

There has been a number of studies on the outcomes of adoption reunions, most of which have focussed on relatively ‘fresh’ reunions. Very few studies have looked at long-term outcomes. Fewer still have discussed reunions and kinship with controversy over firstly, the longevity of reunions, and secondly, what such reunions might engender regarding the relative kinship statuses of adoptive and birth families. This paper critically discusses the existing literature on reunions and kinship, and then reports on the long-term outcomes of 200 ‘matches’ on the Adoption Contact Register for Scotland between 1996–2006, presenting qualitative detail from the 75 respondents who completed questionnaires and sent in stories. The paper invites us to think about how adoption can form an adoptive family and deform a birth family, and how adoption reunions re-form both and everyone included. However, it will especially focus on what a coming together of two people separated by adoption means for the way that they frame their relationship with each other and those around them.

“YOU Were Adopted?!”

This study delineated a microaggressions typology and corresponding intensity levels that occur to adopted adolescents. The microaggressions framework by Sue et al. was adapted to identify this adoptive microaggression typology. Interviews with 153 (males = 79, females = 74) non-Latino/a White adolescent adopted individuals in same-race families were analyzed. Thematic analysis was used to discover 16 themes: (a) Silence, (b) Overly Intrusive Questions, (c) Assumption of Bionormativity, (d) Recurring Confusion/Ignorance, (e) In-House Divisions, (f) Public “Outing,” (g) Using Adoption, (h) Questioning Authenticity, (i) Unacknowledged Identity Status, (j) Spokesperson for Adoption, (k) Adoptees as Nonnormative, (l) Sensitivity, (m) Negative Stereotypes about Birth parents, (n) Adoptees as Orphans, (o) Negative Societal Portrayal of Adoption, and (p) Other. Implications for theory and practice are provided.