Handbook of Adoption

Implications for Researchers, Practitioners, and Families

Rafael A. Javier, Amanda L. Baden, Frank A. Biafora, Alina Camacho-Gingerich

• Publisher: SAGE Publications, Inc
• Year: 2006
• Print ISBN: 9781412927512
• eBook ISBN: 9781483350745
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: Social Work
• Index: Social Sciences

While most mental health and behavioral health professionals have encountered adoption triad members—birth parents, adoptive parents, and adopted persons—in their clinical practice, the vast majority have had no formal or informal training on adoption issues. The Handbook of Adoption: Implications for Researchers, Practitioners, and Families is the first book to specifically address the many dimensions of adoption-related issues which can and do affect adoption triad members, specifically in the United States.

Key Features:  

• Includes contributions from nationally known experts: Prominent authors who are directly involved in adoption-related research and practice provide insight from personal and professional experience. Theory and real-life examples come together in the "Treatment Issues" and in the "Training and Education" sections of each chapter.
• Reviews the major theoretical, historical, and research issues of adoption: The book begins by addressing the historical and theoretical issues surrounding adoption, thus providing the reader with a comprehensive review of the adoption landscape from past to present and setting the stage for topics addressed in the remainder of the book.
• Reflects upon many issues affecting adoption triad members: The contributing authors address issues pertaining to transracial adoption; special issues in adoption such as foster care, single parents, and special needs; training and education issues; assessment and treatment issues; and much more.

Intended Audience:  
This extensive resource is designed for researchers, practitioners, students and families interested in learning more about and working with adoption triad members. It will be particularly relevant in counselor education programs, departments of social work and policy, and marriage and family counseling programs which emphasize developing clinical skills with a variety of clients.

Breaking the Seal

1

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Taking Adoption Issues to the
Academic and Professional Communities

RAFAEL A. JAVIER
St. John’s University

AMANDA L. BADEN
Montclair State University

FRANK A. BIAFORA
St. John’s University

ALINA CAMACHO-GINGERICH
St. John’s University

DOUGLAS B. HENDERSON
University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point

Adoption has a long history in human civilization, with clear reference to its existence as far back as biblical time. The adoption triad, which consists of birth parents, adoptive parents, and adopted persons, can be readily identified within these biblical stories. For example, one is reminded of the story of Moses who was adopted by the Pharaoh and almost became the heir to the throne until he abdicated to return to the people he came from and felt greatest affinity to, the Hebrews. His was technically a closed adoption, since there was no reference to his awareness, while growing up, of his biological family until later in life when he decided to search for his birth identity and birth family. His search was precipitated by his unexplained feelings of empathy when seeing a Hebrew woman about to be crushed by one of the block-columns that was being positioned for the construction of the temple. His decision to search for his birth identity resulted in his losing the connection with and protection of his adoptive parents and set the stage for the showdown between him and his adoptive brother, Ramsey.

The most famous and complicated biblical adoption story is the one of Jesus, who was adopted by Joseph the Carpenter after having been conceived mysteriously in the body of a virgin, Mary. In the eyes of many, Joseph was the biological father and the legal husband of Mary, although Joseph knew that Jesus was not his creation and was his adopted child (Gardner, 1995). Joseph’s son was known as Jesus of Nazareth so that the issue of the last name was bypassed. That was not the case, however, for many during the Romans’ time, in which the issue of the preservation of the family’s name was the primary reason for adoption. In fact, adoption was used as an effective way to ensure the continuation of the family’s name in families of the nobility when they were unable to engender a progenitor or their sons were unfit to inherit (Encyclopedia of Adoption, 2006). This practice extended to the emperors, resulting in a number of Roman emperors and high officials who were adopted during their adolescence or adulthood. Children from less well-to-do families were adopted into families with better means, immediately acquiring the new family’s name with full right of heritage. It was expected that all family ties with birth families were to be permanently severed. This was not unique to the Romans, as this practice was also found in the Chinese Qing Dynasty, India, and Hawaiian royal families (Chinese Qing Dynasty, 2006; Hawaiian Royal Families, 2006; India Princely States, 2006).

Adoptions have taken place throughout history in various forms, where children end up being raised at some point in their lives by people other than their birth parents. It was even present at the very beginning of the birth of the United States as a nation. In fact, many adopted triad members have led notable and illustrious lives. Well-known and admired adoptees include leaders (e.g., Catherine I, Crazy Horse, John Hancock, William Jefferson Clinton), artists (e.g., Gian Giacomo Caprotti), performers (e.g., John Lennon, Ella Fitzgerald, Faith Hill, Willie Nelson), writers (e.g., Truman Capote, Edgar Allen Poe, Charles Dickens), actors (e.g., Jack Nicholson, Ray Liotta, Gary Coleman, Ingrid Bergman), athletes (e.g., Greg Louganis, Scott Hamilton, Dan O’Brien), and business owners (e.g., Dave Thomas, Steven Jobs) (Dever & Dever, 1992; Freedman, 1996; Goldman, 1996; Longworth, 1973; Petre, 1991; Plimpton, 1997; Terrill, 1994; Tyler, 1998).

The list above includes famous people from the adoption triad (birth parents, adoptive parents, and adoptees). Those listed led prominent lives in history and were largely powerful and accomplished in their lives. However, other stories and representations of adopted persons also exist—those for whom their adoption may have been used as a partial explanation for their criminal and pathological behavior. For example, Lyle and Erik Menendez were adoptees who became infamous for killing their adoptive parents and reinforcing Kirschner’s (1990) “adopted child syndrome” that has reinforced the stigma surrounding adoption. In fact, Kirschner built his theory in his 1978 paper on David Berkowitz, the serial killer known as the Son of Sam, who was adopted as an infant. These and similar stories have contributed to both a glorification and a condemnation of adoption, leaving many without any clear picture of the true nature of adoption. The stigmatization of adoption has created a society of people who may end up having a stereotypical view of adoption, in which each part of the triad reenacts the scenes from history, and each is infused with attributes that reflect their role. For example, the birth parents who died tragically or were unknown or uncaring, the damaged and wounded adoptees whose bad luck and bad birth will reveal themselves in some unwanted way, and the heroic and suffering adoptive parents who sought to rescue unwanted children. With these images and with the roles already ingrained in the consciousness of society, how can we adequately begin to understand and address the needs of the adoption triad? In particular, how will clinicians, whose role it is to intervene and assist those affected by adoption, be prepared to help, and be effective and competent in their treatment?

To begin to assist the adoption triad, these tainted images and ideas of adoption and the stigma that accompanies them must be unraveled and replaced with accurate, unbiased, and useful knowledge that both acknowledges the potential issues and tolerates the ambiguity of differing outcomes within this population. It is our hope that this Handbook will assist triad members, their families, clinicians, laypeople, and anyone interested in adoption in their efforts to approach the members of the adoption triad with the respect and understanding that they deserve, while simultaneously recognizing the complexity of the experiences that adopted people and their two sets of parents have in this world that operates on assumptions of a genetic and biological heritage.

The questions regarding the forces responsible for creating the necessary conditions to have children available for adoption are complex and multifaceted, as are the consequences. This has been clearly delineated in the different parts included in this book. The book has been divided into nine parts specifically designed to cover critical issues in the adoption experience, from a review of the major theoretical, historical, and research issues to specific discussions on assessment and treatment issues with members of the adoption triad. The first part is meant as a foundation to address historical and theoretical issues to provide the reader with a comprehensive review of the adoption landscape from past to present and to set the stage for the other parts in the book. Thus, chapters by Esposito and Biafora (Chapter 2), Biafora and Esposito (Chapter 3), and Freundlich (Chapter 4) provide excellent discussions on the history of adoption in general and, particularly, in North America. They also place special emphasis on identifying the social, political, and economic forces that have accompanied the adoption experience throughout history and resulted in the enactment of the many laws influencing adoption practice. These are considered foundation chapters because they provide readers with important information to help them understand the state of adoption in today’s society and gain the necessary appreciation of the complexity of the adoption experience and the historical antecedents to the current historical, political, and legal forces that are guiding the current debate on the adoption experience. As discussed further below, other parts include discussions on issues pertaining to transracial adoption, special issues in adoption (i.e., foster care, single parents, special needs, etc.), training and education issues, relevant research findings in adoption, assessment and treatment issues, and finally, samples of how the adoption experience can provide unique dynamism to the creative process. Each part has a part-specific introduction (or preface) in which a series of learning goals are listed to guide the reading of the different chapters in that part. A list of resources covering topics discussed in the book is included at the end of the book. You will also find in most of the chapters a list of reflection questions that can be used, by those using the book as a textbook, to guide the learning of the subject. Thus, readers are strongly encouraged to use the reflection questions to guide their reading of the different chapters. They are also encouraged to look at the preface of each part where specific learning goals are listed and the resource list at the end of the book, if they are interested in additional information about the topic.

THE CURRENT STATE OF AFFAIRS

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Given the longevity of adoption throughout history, including North American history, and the prevalence of adoption in the United States and other parts of the world, how are we to understand that adoption issues still remain largely unaddressed and off the radar in terms of interest to the professional and academic disciplines? How is it possible that training programs that prepare professionals for human services do not systematically include discussions on adoption issues, as suggested by Post (2000) and Henderson (2000)? It is, indeed, truly perplexing that even after so many generations of families have been directly or indirectly involved with and affected by the adoption experience, our understanding remains so rudimentary. The fact that many adoptive triad members still feel that the complexities of adoption are not fully understood by the professional community not only is unfortunate but leaves many adoptees and their families at a loss as to where to go to address unanswered questions. This ignorance may be responsible for the lack of systematic research on the issues in behavioral science and the lack of clear and useful training and treatment guidelines for those involved in the evaluation and treatment of adoptive triad members.

FUNDAMENTAL ISSUES IN ADOPTION

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Attachment Issues and Identity Formation

There are a number of fundamental issues that are in need of more systematic attention from behavioral scientists and practitioners alike. Children are adopted at different stages in their developmental trajectory, and yet an empirically validated and comprehensive model documenting the psychosocial life span development of adoptees does not yet exist. How do these children develop bonding and attachment, their self-identities, their views of the world, their relationships with others, their sense of belonging, and so on, in the context of their adoption experience, are questions that have largely eluded the scientific community. We know from the work of Freud (1896, 1905), Sullivan (1953), Piaget (1995), Erickson (1950, 1982), Mahler, Pine, and Bergman (1975), and Stern (1985) that individuals’ basic identity, personality, values, and belief systems, their assumptions concerning causality, time, space, and human nature, as well as culturally specific styles of relating and moral standing are developed during the formative years and in relationship with their human and ecological environments (Dana, 1993; Javier, 1996; Javier & Rendon, 1995; Javier & Yussef, 1998). For adoptees, this environment includes birth parents, membership in an extended family system, geographical and environmental landscapes, genetic and familial heritage, culture, traditions, customs, and language. These authors provide a vivid description of this development where the child is initially in a totally dependent relationship with those he or she relies on for care and comfort. As the child’s brain capacity grows more sophisticated, the child’s ability to organize its experience with itself and others also becomes more sophisticated. It is in this context that the child learns to handle tension and anxiety, develops a language to communicate, develops categories of emotions, and develops “a relatively enduring pattern of experience of the self as a unique, coherent, entity over time” (Moore & Fine, 1991, as cited in Herron, 1998, p. 321). This sense of self-identity becomes consolidated later in life during the critical adolescent period (Erickson, 1950, 1982) when the child normally challenges and questions many of the assumptions that have guided his or her belief system and values, and that up to that point were accepted without much question. Because of the vulnerability of the child’s cognitive and emotional condition during the formative years, this development could be derailed by obstacles in the child’s environment. When adoption enters this developmental trajectory, what happens to the child’s sense of identity when removed from his or her birth environment early in life and adopted into another environment? And what happens when this new environment also involves different cultural norms, race relationships, and language? What happens to the sense of identity when adoption occurs later in development, during the adolescent years, or when the adopted adolescent who was adopted in childhood is unable to reconcile the discrepancy of race/cultural differences with the adoptive family or the information made available about his or her origin? These are just some of the incredibly complex questions ably addressed in Part II of this book by McGinn (Chapter 5), Grotevant, Dunbar, Kohler, and Lash Esau (Chapter 6), and Baden and Steward (Chapter 7).

Beginning with the work of Spitz (1946) investigating the deaths of many of the British infants raised in institutions in World War II, and accelerating in the 1980s, psychologists have studied the concepts of attachment and bonding as they relate to several aspects of the developing child. Our understanding of the sensory and cognitive capabilities of the infant has expanded rapidly and now includes knowledge of these processes in the fetus as well. With this new knowledge, we have reevaluated the effects of adoption, especially in terms of the environment of the prenatal child. It has been suggested that adoption affects the experience of separation from the birth mother and the early postnatal environment, including possible foster or institutional placements prior to adoption (Henderson, 2000).

Nydam (1999), Verrier (1993), and Verny and Kelly (1981) are but three of the many authors who have written about how the infant destined to be adopted, experiences pre- and postnatal life differently than the infant who will remain with the birth family. Emphasizing the importance of early attachment and bonding, Nydam (1999) calls for specific and separate discussions of the relinquishment experience and of its effects on adoption triad members.

McGinn’s contribution in Chapter 5 is particularly relevant in this context because it includes a comprehensive discussion of attachment and “attachment derailment” and the consequences of these issues throughout the adoptee’s life span, including their effect on adoptees’ capacity to develop meaningful relationships. Anchoring his chapter in the work of John Bowlby, Erik Erickson, and Margaret Mahler, McGinn provides an informative discussion on some of the potential obstacles and challenges for adopted persons in the context of their developmental trajectory.

In the final analysis, a self-identity that emerges as a result of all these different cultural, racial, and ethnic influences can only result in the development of what Herron (1998) referred to as “ethnic identity,” which goes through the same basic four stages of development (i.e., identity diffusion, identity foreclosure, moratorium, and finally identity achieved). Only when the individual reaches the stage of “identity achieved” is a secure sense of self assumed to have developed. The work of Grotevant et al. in Chapter 6 provides relevant empirical support to the crucial importance of an identity formation for the adoptees that includes the adoption experience, or what they referred to as “adoptive identity.” These authors emphasize the iterative and integrative nature of the identity development process for the adoptee rather than a linear one. According to these authors, the major task of identity development in the context of the adoption experience “involves ‘coming to terms’ with oneself in the context of the family and culture into which one has been adopted.” This is the case because most aspects of adoption include things that the adopted person has not chosen. The process of coming to terms is a progressive one and includes unexamined identity, limited identity, unsettled identity, and integrated identity. Thus, the highest level of identity formation will be one where the individual has managed to integrate all his or her experiences as an adoptive person in ways that promote sound mental health and a good level of functional adaptation.

Baden and Steward in Chapter 7 take the issue ...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title Page
• Dedications
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Contents
• List of Figures and Tables
• Acknowledgments
• Foreword
• 1. Breaking the Seal: Taking Adoption Issues to the Academic and Professional Communities
• Part I: Foundation
• Part II: Theoretical Issues in Adoption
• Part III: Transracial and International Adoption
• Part IV: Special Issues in Adoption
• Part V: Training and Education for Adoption Therapy Competence
• Part VI: Research Findings in Adoption Work
• Part VII: Assessment and Treatment Issues in Adoption
• Part VIII: Poetic Reflections and Other Creative Processes From Adoptees
• Part IX: Conclusion
• Resource Guide
• Index
• About the Editors
• About the Contributors