Social Issues Associated With Adoption, Research Paper Example

Adoption of children by families in the United States is a complex issue that is at the core of many social work issues.  Adoption serves several functions, both presently and historically.  In the past it was used to provide heirs to childless couples, as well as being used to provide families with indentured servants.  Adoption has always been seen as a way to remove children from harmful environments. Couples that have found themselves unable to have children naturally due to fertility issues see adoption as a wonderful solution to provide them with a child in order that they may be a parent.  It also provides a solution to birthparents that are, for some reason, unable to raise their children.  There are many reasons a birth family may choose to put their child up for adoption, including a birthmother being single and unable to raise a child, poverty, disease, or chemical dependency problems.  There are many children both nationally and internationally that are in need of adoption and it is often up to the social worker to work with both birth families and adoptee families in formalizing the adoption procedure and ensuring the placement of the child into a good home.

In the field of social work, there are many issues that must be addressed in order to ensure that a child is placed in a happy home.  Since the child is not usually biologically related to the family that adopts them, there can be adjustment problems. Historically and presently, it happens that adopted children that are placed in a family where they have a negative experience.  The field of social work is a response to this situation in trying to place children in homes where they can be raised in secure and loving home.  In addition, it is up to the social worker to ensure that only children who need to placed up for adoption are.  In the case that a family is willingly giving up a child, it is important that there is full consent from the family members.  In the case that a child is taken from an abusive home, it needs to be ensured that that child is truly in need and that children are not taken away unnecessarily.  As a social worker, adoption can be one of the most important issues that will need to be addressed.   Ensuring that a child is placed in a positive family situation where they can live a happy and healthy life is at the core of social work.

There have been many scholarly articles and books written on the issue of adoption and its relation to social work.  Historically, adoption was a drastically different system than the one that it is today.  In the 18^th and 19^th century, children who were without families either through abandonment or death were placed in privately owned almshouses or orphanages.” These places were often “severely criticized for their expensiveness, rigid routines, harsh conditions, and failure to produce independent and hardworking children.” (Carp 2002)  Early adoption was often used by wealthy families to secure a family servant instead of a family member, and this caused many institutions to frown on adoption by non-blood relatives. Many children placed in institutions were never placed into family homes.  Failure of these institutions led to the United States government formalizing adoption laws in order to create a more formal setting in which adoption were arranged.  Up to this point adoptions were arranged privately between the families.  Records were often not kept or destroyed, so it is difficult to ascertain the exact number of adoptions that occurred during this time.  Current adoption practices have come out of this past in order to ensure that children are treated far better than they once were.  Adoption procedures are formalized in a very legal way to ensure the proper placement of children into happy homes.

One of the most challenging aspects of adoption is the issue of biological relationship.  Some children are adopted by blood relatives who are not the birth mother and father, but may be a close or distant family member.  This has been the traditionally preferred method of adoption but this is unfortunately not always possible.  “Research suggests that the dominant North American family ideology defines a real family as the “nuclear family unit of a heterosexual couple and their biological children.” (Wegar 2000).  This poses an important problem when attempting to place children in need of adoption in happy homes.  To determine if a child will be loved and respected by their prospective adoptive family is an important issue that social workers must deal with.  Although it is of obvious benefit for a child to be raised in a family setting, placing children in a home where they will be treated as an inferior will not likely benefit the child much either.

The attitude of society regarding adoptions can be a major influence on whether or not an adoptive child feels accepted and secure in their adoptive family.  As Weager notes (2000), “The genetic family ideology has had far reaching consequences for the social institution of adoption and the individuals most intimately affected by it.  An unfortunate consequence of this dominant family ideology is that all non-genetic family forms tend to be rendered abnormal, pathogenic and unworkable.” This cultural bias can lead to a feeling of embarrassment by the adoptive child and the adoptive family and in the past led many to choose “closed” as opposed to “open” adoptions.  The difference between the two is that in a closed adoption the child is not allowed to know who their birth family was.  These adoptions are often family secrets, with the child never realizing that they were adopted.  Friends might not even be aware.  The adoptive family, in an effort to protect both themselves and the child from social stigma, choose to keep the adoption a secret and instead allow the child to grow believing they are related to their family by birth.  “Throughout most of the twentieth-century in the United States, adoption was based on a model of secrecy, a practice which it continued until about ht early 1970’s.  At that time, in response to social forces and outcries from birthparents, adopted persons, adoptive parents, and adoption practitioners, adoption practices began a gradual transformation from the secrecy model to an open one, based on increased levels of contact and shared communication.” (Fravel, McRoy and Grotevant 2000)

Changes have been forthcoming in adoption and many are now choosing open adoptions.  Proponents of open adoptions argue that “including people and sharing information reduces stress for everyone involved by eliminating uncertainty and questions about the whereabouts and well-being of the other parties.” (Fravel, McRoy and Grotevant 2000).  However, there are downfalls to open adoptions as well.  Those who support closed adoptions say that confidentiality in the adoption procedure allows all members to have closure and thus continue with their lives.  This, it is argued, eliminates much of the stress associated with adoption.

One of the conditions that are inherent in adoptive situations is boundary ambiguity.  This is the “condition that exists when an individual’s physical and psychological presence in the family are incongruent, thereby increasing the likelihood that the family members may have difficulty determining whether that person is inside or outside the family.” (Fravel, McRoy and Grotevant 2000).  In adoption, boundary ambiguity can occur in an open adoption when there is some contact between the adoptive child and their birth family.  They may be confused over the extent of the relationship they have with the birth family and this can cause pain and confusion with the family if the relationship is found lacking.  In the article by Fravel, McRoy and Grotevant (2000), the attempt is made to bring together the concepts of adoption openness and boundary ambiguity in order to heighten the understanding of the dynamics of adoptive and birth family systems, in order to target points and types of intervention.  This is a critical issue for the social worker involved in adoptive family situations.

In addition to the issues raised by adoptions by children within America being adopted by other Americans, there is also the issue of international adoption.  There are many children outside of America that are in need of homes due to extreme poverty, overpopulation, and other cultural and societal issues.  Due to the limitations associated with domestic adoption, “international adoption continues to be a desirable alternative to families looking to adopt a child.” (Hollingsworth 2008)    International adoptions more than doubled between eh 1993 and 1997 time frame.  In 1993, 7,348 international adoptions were reported, whereas in 1997 12, 596 international adoptions were reported. (Hollingsworth 2008)  There are many issues with international adoptions that are important to the social worker.  Many feel that by adopting children from “sending” countries that are impoverished, the adoptee parents are offering a better life for the adopted child then they would otherwise have received.  In addition, proponents for international adoption argue that families that opt for international adoption are “reaching out to children in need rather than competing for the limited number of healthy infants available domestically.” (Hollingsworth 2008)  However, it is argued by some that international adoption “exploits unjust social structures in the “sending” countries form which children are adopted, where they and their biological families have not had access to the freedoms and resources enjoyed by more advantaged children and families in both the sending and “receiving” countries.” (Hollingsworth 2008)

Changes in what constitutes a traditional American family has created an environment where adoption is seen as more socially acceptable, leading to more openness in adoption and more acceptance of both domestic and international adoptions.  “Today’s family may consist of a single parent with biological and/or adopted children, two same-sex parents with adopted and/or biological children of one of the parents, and “blended” families with parents of the same or opposite sex and children who may be a mix of both adopted and biological.” (Grotevant and McRoy 1998).  Since the traditional family may take any number of variations these days, children who are adopted may no longer feel as harsh a social stigma as was felt in the past.

However, despite the growing trend of acceptance in adoption, there still are signs that trauma from adoption affects the child far into adulthood. “Adopted children are referred for psychological treatment two to five times more frequently than their non adopted peers.” (Grotevant and McRoy 1998)   In the book Openness in Adoption: Exploring Family Connections, Grotevant and McRoy (1998) found that children that are adopted have been found to exhibit behavior that is characterized as impulsive, provocative, aggressive and antisocial.  They also site studies that show that there is an increase in emotional disturbance among adopted adolescents.  A specific pattern of adoption-related psychopathology has been identified called adopted-child syndrome.  This syndrome may have roots in many issues.  It may be that children from adopted parents are usually referred to psychotherapists for treatment and are therefore diagnosed more as a group.  Also, many children that are put up for adoption come from birthmothers that may have had problems including drug or alcohol abuse.  Exposure in the womb to chemicals or lack of prenatal care could also cause adopted individuals to have more psychological problems than their non adopted peers.

It is evident from the literature that adoption has in the past and continues to be a complex issue.  As societies view on adoption changes, previous stigmas that were once attached are fading away.  However, there are still many complex social issues to be dealt with, including redefining the traditional family as blended and non-traditional families become more common. There are many factors surrounding adoption, from openness and confidentiality issues, to issues surrounding the both the birth families and the adoptee families.  Continued research will be necessary in order to make the adoptive process more balanced for all parties concerned.   Understanding the psychological consequences of adoption is necessary in order to ensure that adopted individuals can lead normal and healthy lives outside of their birth family.

Personal Impressions Regarding Adoption and Social Work   

Researching the history and social issues of adoption has opened my eyes to many issues I was originally unaware of concerning adoption.  I myself have a cousin who was adopted by my Aunt and Uncle from India and I have seen the various issues that surround international adoption, including the desire to know ones birth family.  The issue of boundary ambiguity if very much at the center of adopted families and is one in which a social worker must understand in order to assist families in dealing with adoption issues.   In order for a social worker to be effective in negotiating a happy adoption, there must be an understanding of the complex psychological issues that surround adoption, both from the child’s perspective and the adopted family’s perspective.

As a social worker, I realize I will be able to assist families dealing with adoption issues.  By having a good understanding of the complex issues at hand with adoptions, I may be able to help adopted children and families have a more fulfilling adoption experience with fewer issues.  However, I am aware of the potential hazards that may arise.  Adoption is not a simple issue and each situation is unique and needs to be dealt with as such.  However, the role of a social worker is fulfilling because if offers the opportunities to make the lives of others happier and healthier and because of this, I am willing to take the up the challenge.

Bibliography and References

 Carp, Wayne E. (2002) Adoption in America: Historical perspectives.  United States: University of Michigan Press.

Fravel, Deborah Lewis, McRoy, Ruth G., Grotevant, Harold D. (2000) Bimother perceptions of the psychologically present adopted child: Adoption openness and boundary ambiguity. Family Relations, 49(4), 425-433.

Grotevant, Harold D., McRoy, Ruth G. (1998) Openness in Adoption: Exploring family connections. California: Sage Publications, Inc.

Hollingsworth, Leslie Dot. (2008) International adoption among families in the United States: Considerations of social justice. Social Work, 53(4), 377-379.

Weager, Katarina. (2000) Adoption, family ideology, and social stigma: Bias in community and attitudes, adoption research and practice. Family Relations, 49(4), 363-370.