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Adoption - Results (27 Publications)

Title: The Emotional Experience of Adoption: A Psychoanalytic Perspective.
Author(s): Hindle, Debbie.;Shulman, Graham.
Published: 2008
Available from: Routledge -- Taylor and Francis Group
http://www.routledge.com
7625 Empire Drive
Florence, KY 41042
Abstract: Drawing on psychoanalytic, attachment, and child development theory, and detailed in-depth clinical case discussion, this text explores the emotional experience of adoption and demonstrates how psychoanalytic understanding and treatment can contribute to thinking about and working with adopted children and their families. It explains and accounts for the emotional and psychological complexities involved for the children, parents, and professionals in adoption. Following a review of key psychoanalytic concepts, the adoptive family life cycle, and psychoanalytic perspectives on adoption, Part 1 focuses on the relevance of psychoanalytic thinking to current policy and practice in adoption, recent research in neurobiology and attachment theory, and how psychoanalytic child psychotherapy works and how it can help adopted children and families. Part 2 considers the importance of understanding unconscious emotional dynamics and processes that can occur in the internal world of the individual child, or in the professional network around adoption, or within adoptive families. Part 3 includes detailed clinical case discussions that illustrate how unconscious primitive states of mind, if they are not contained, can impact on relationships in damaging and destructive ways, and the relevance to adopted children in their lives. Parts 4, 5, and 6 focus on the emotional tasks and complexities of three key aspects of the adoption experience: joining and becoming part of a family, with the associated theme of belonging; being a part of a family, with specific reference to emotional issues and dynamics linked to dyadic and triadic relationships; and the developmental stage of adolescence, with particular reference to primitive emotional issues linked to the core adolescent tasks of establishing a mature identity and separation from the family. The text closes with a discussion of the primitive emotional issue of adoption in the novel "Wuthering Heights." Numerous references. (Author abstract modified)

Title: Major Federal Legislation Concerned With Child Protection, Child Welfare, and Adoption [Conference Flyer]
Published: 2008
Available from: Child Welfare Information Gateway
http://www.childwelfare.gov
Children's Bureau/ACYF
1250 Maryland Avenue, SW
Eighth Floor
Washington, DC 20024
Abstract: Conference flyer.

Title: Understanding an Adopted Child: A Child Psychotherapist's Perspective. (Chapter 3 in The Emotional Experience of Adoption: A Psychoanalytic Perspective.)
Author(s): Miller, Lisa.
Published: 2008
Available from: Routledge -- Taylor and Francis Group
http://www.routledge.com
7625 Empire Drive
Florence, KY 41042
Abstract: This chapter focuses on individual psychoanalytic psychotherapy as a therapeutic option for adopted children and adolescents experiencing serious emotional difficulties. The nature of psychoanalytic psychotherapy is described, as well as how it works and the type of damage or disturbance at pre-verbal or non-verbal levels that it is suited to address. Case examples are provided. 3 references.

Title: Multiple Families in Mind. (Chapter 4 in The Emotional Experience of Adoption: A Psychoanalytic Perspective.)
Author(s): Rustin, Margaret.
Published: 2008
Available from: Routledge -- Taylor and Francis Group
http://www.routledge.com
7625 Empire Drive
Florence, KY 41042
Abstract: This chapter explores how the complex internal worlds of participants in adoption dramas influence ongoing relationships within substitute families. It describes the disorganizing and confusing effects that multiple family life can have on the inner worlds of adopted children and highlights the way in which the shadow of earlier turbulence is liable to fall on the adoptive family. Case examples are provided to illustrate how the inner worlds of adoptive children and parents may impact on or interact with each other at an unconscious level. 6 references.

Title: Enabling Effective Support: Secondary Traumatic Stress and Adoptive Families. (Chapter 5 in The Emotional Experience of Adoption: A Psychoanalytic Perspective.)
Author(s): Cairns, Karen.
Published: 2008
Available from: Routledge -- Taylor and Francis Group
http://www.routledge.com
7625 Empire Drive
Florence, KY 41042
Abstract: The phenomenon of secondary traumatic stress is described in which caring for others who have been traumatized has a traumatizing effect on carers. The incidence of secondary stress disorders in adoptive families is discussed, as well as prevention and treatment of secondary stress disorders. 8 references.

Title: The Network Around Adoption: The Forever Family and the Ghosts of the Dispossessed. (Chapter 6 in The Emotional Experience of Adoption: A Psychoanalytic Perspective.)
Author(s): Sprince, Jenny.
Published: 2008
Available from: Routledge -- Taylor and Francis Group
http://www.routledge.com
7625 Empire Drive
Florence, KY 41042
Abstract: Conscious and unconscious emotional dynamics in professional networks and adoptive families are discussed and linked to the children's abusive or traumatic histories prior to adoption, and to difficulties for professionals and adoptive parents in facing the emotional reality of adopted children's inner worlds. Destructive aspects of an adopted child's early attachment relationships that may unconsciously be re-enacted in the relationship between adopted child and parents are discussed, as well as the role of the network around adoption in facilitating an understanding of the child's needs and impact of their disturbances. Case examples are provided. 6 references.

Title: On Being Dropped and Picked Up: The Plight of Some Late-Adopted Children. (Chapter 8 in The Emotional Experience of Adoption: A Psychoanalytic Perspective.)
Author(s): Edwards, Judith.
Published: 2008
Available from: Routledge -- Taylor and Francis Group
http://www.routledge.com
7625 Empire Drive
Florence, KY 41042
Abstract: This chapter describes a case study involving a 6-year-old adopted boy to illustrate primitive states of mind and their impact on relationships. It explains that the boy's preoccupation with falling, his denial of physical danger, and his physically risk-taking behavior were primitive bodily expressions of a fear of being dropped psychologically, linked with feeling emotionally unheld and uncontained. His preoccupation with cruelty and violence are explained as indicative of primitive, extreme fears of vulnerability and helplessness. Clinical interventions are highlighted. 17 references.

Title: Playing Out, not Acting Out: The Development of the Capacity to Play in the Therapy of Children Who Are 'in Transition' from Fostering to Adoption. (Chapter 9 in The Emotional Experience of Adoption: A Psychoanalytic Perspective.)
Author(s): Lanyado, Monica.
Published: 2008
Available from: Routledge -- Taylor and Francis Group
http://www.routledge.com
7625 Empire Drive
Florence, KY 41042
Abstract: This chapter considers therapeutic work with a 4-year old child transitioning from a foster home to his adoptive home, and discusses the way in which transitional anxiety and transitional phenomena may be encountered and understood. The paradoxical task of having to stay in touch with painful losses while being open to the potential of making and experiencing new loving relationships is explored. Clinical interventions that enable a child to play and find their way towards ordinary developmental processes are discussed. 16 references.

Title: The Longing to Become a Family: Support for the Parental Couple. (Chapter 11 in The Emotional Experience of Adoption: A Psychoanalytic Perspective.)
Author(s): Ludlam, Molly.
Published: 2008
Available from: Routledge -- Taylor and Francis Group
http://www.routledge.com
7625 Empire Drive
Florence, KY 41042
Abstract: This chapter describes parallel therapeutic work with a parental couple whose adopted child was referred for psychotherapy. It also considers the challenges that adoptive parents, and those who seek to support them, might encounter in their progress towards becoming a family. The grief and loss experienced by the couple is described, as well as clinical interventions. 10 references.

Title: Shared Reflections on Parallel Collaborative Work with Adoptive Families. (Chapter 12 in The Emotional Experience of Adoption: A Psychoanalytic Perspective.)
Author(s): Calvocoressi, Francesca.;Ludlum, Molly.
Published: 2008
Available from: Routledge -- Taylor and Francis Group
http://www.routledge.com
7625 Empire Drive
Florence, KY 41042
Abstract: This chapter describes parallel collaborative psychotherapy for adopted children and their adoptive parents. It discusses developmental tasks for both parents and children, what makes parallel collaborative psychotherapy effective, and how therapists can work together to enable anxiety to be contained and nurture capacities to bear loss and to mourn. The importance of being aware of defenses against disappointment and of the significance of memory, history, and narratives of self are stressed. 3 references.

Title: Loss, Recovery and Adoption: A Child's Perspective. (Chapter 13 in The Emotional Experience of Adoption: A Psychoanalytic Perspective.)
Author(s): Hindle, Debbie.
Published: 2008
Available from: Routledge -- Taylor and Francis Group
http://www.routledge.com
7625 Empire Drive
Florence, KY 41042
Abstract: This chapter follows the developments of a five-year-old girl who was placed for adoption shortly after her birth, but whose adoptive father died when she was three years old. During the course of her psychotherapy, her capacity to grieve the loss of her father enabled her to develop a closer relationship with her adoptive mother and to grapple with earlier stages of development at a later stage. The complexity of her struggle to be part of a family and to begin to think about her adoption is described. 12 references. (Author abstract modified)

Title: Deprivation and Development: The Predicament of an Adopted Adolescent in the Search for Identity.(Chapter 15 in The Emotional Experience of Adoption: A Psychoanalytic Perspective.)
Author(s): Dalley, Tessa.;Kohon, Valli.
Published: 2008
Available from: Routledge -- Taylor and Francis Group
http://www.routledge.com
7625 Empire Drive
Florence, KY 41042
Abstract: This chapter describes the psychotherapy of an extremely troubled adolescent adopted at the age of five after severe deprivation and neglect in infancy and early childhood. It explores the issues and difficulties that puberty may present for children who have been adopted and considers the adopted child's experience of bodily changes in puberty in the context of a secure sense of identity. 9 references.

Title: Adoption and Adolescence: Idealisation and Overvalued Ideas.(Chapter 16 in The Emotional Experience of Adoption: A Psychoanalytic Perspective.)
Author(s): Spensley, Sheila.
Published: 2008
Available from: Routledge -- Taylor and Francis Group
http://www.routledge.com
7625 Empire Drive
Florence, KY 41042
Abstract: This chapter discusses the psychotherapy of a 14-year-old who had been adopted at the age of 10. It elaborates the problems of negotiating the move toward separation from family in adolescence for adopted children who were not fully attached in childhood, and explains how fear of not being wanted or loved can lead to a hostile rejection of adoptive parents and an idealization of the birth parents when the adopted child reaches adolescence. 17 references.

Title: Building Identity: A Training Programme.
Author(s): Cairns, Kate.;Fursland, Eileen.
Published: 2008
Available from: British Association for Adoption & Fostering (BAAF)
http://www.baaf.org.uk/
Skyline House, 200 Union Street
London SE1 0LX
Abstract: This training book and accompanying CD-ROM are designed to enable carers and social workers help children in care overcome disruptive early experiences and boost their identity and self-esteem. It is designed to work with groups of between 8 and 20 participants and is made up of four courses covering various aspects of identity and contact. The training material contains PowerPoint presentations for each of the four courses. The courses address: identity and child development, including sessions on identity, diversity, and infant attachment, and enabling traumatized children to form a strong sense of identity and to celebrate diversity; life story work, including sessions on child development and the creation of narrative and enabling traumatized children to form a strong and positive personal narrative; family ties and working with issues in the care of siblings, including sessions on the complexity of sibling relationships and assessment and planning; and issues of identity and stability, including sessions on understanding the complexity of contact and making child-centered contact plans. The book contains instructions for conducting the training, reproductions of the PowerPoint slide presentations for each of the four courses, supplementary materials to help the trainer, suggested training exercises, and suggested group discussion questions. The CD-ROM contains the PowerPoint presentations and a set of handouts. 15 references.

Title: Searching to be Found : Understanding and Helping Adopted and Looked After Children with Attention Difficulties.
Author(s): Comfort, Randy Lee.
Published: 2008
Available from: Karnac Books
http://www.karnacbooks.com/
118 Finchley Road
London NW3 5HT
Abstract: Designed for parents, carers, and professionals, this book addresses the association between children who are adopted or in foster care and who manifest significant difficulties with attention and the behaviors most associated with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). It focuses on understanding and treating the behaviors, emotions, and needs of adopted and foster children and the most efficacious means of providing an environment in which he child has a better chance to grow and develop. Chapter 1 discusses the characteristics of children in care, the overlap of attention deficit disorders and adoption and fostering, and difficulties encountered by adopted and foster children with ADHD. Chapter 2 describes how the infant brain grows and what it needs to develop. The role of both heredity and the environment on neurodevelopment is discussed, as well as the impact of maltreatment and the consequences for adopted and foster children with ADHD. The next two chapters address specific strategies for living with and teaching adopted and foster children with ADHD at home, in the communt9y, and in school. Chapter 5 explores the social development of adopted and foster children with ADHD and ways of enhancing a child's self esteem and confidence. The final chapter summarizes recommendations for meeting the needs of adopted and foster children with ADHD. Appendices include a list of suggestions for teachers and parents. 133 references.

Title: Together or Apart? Assessing Siblings for Permanent Placement. Second Edition.
Author(s): Lord, J.;Borthwick, S.
Published: 2008
Available from: British Association for Adoption & Fostering (BAAF)
http://www.baaf.org.uk/
Skyline House, 200 Union Street
London SE1 0LX
Abstract: This guide focuses on the permanency needs of brothers and sisters in foster care in the United Kingdom. It examines the legislative framework, research findings, and practice experience in assessing and working with sibling groups. Factors are highlighted which affect decisions on whether brothers and sisters are placed together or separately, including the impact of policies and procedures, staffing issues, personal beliefs of social workers and carers, placement resources, financial resources, characteristics of the children, views and wishes of birth relatives, ethnicity, disability, and experience of abuse. Section 4 considers when, how, and by whom placement decisions for children in sibling groups are made. The following sections provide guidance on assessing sibling groups, recruiting, preparing, and supporting new families, timing introductions and placements, and planning post-placement contact. 36 references.

Title: Understanding the Effects of Maltreatment on Early Brain Development and the Consequences for ADHD/ADD and Adopted/Looked After Children. (Chapter 2 in Searching to be Found : Understanding and Helping Adopted and Looked After Children with Attention Difficulties).
Author(s): Comfort, Randy Lee.
Published: 2008
Available from: Karnac Books
http://www.karnacbooks.com/
118 Finchley Road
London NW3 5HT
Abstract: This chapter discusses how the infant brain grows and what it needs for development. The role of both heredity and the environment on neurodevelopment is discussed, as well as the impact of maltreatment and the consequences for adopted and foster children with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorders. Scientific research is shared indicating that the plasticity of the brain allows for healing, improvement, resilience, and progress.

Title: Empezando el proceso: paquete de información general sobre la adopción 1 (Getting Started: Adoption General Information Packet 1)
Published: 2008
Available from: Child Welfare Information Gateway
http://www.childwelfare.gov
Children's Bureau/ACYF
1250 Maryland Avenue, SW
Eighth Floor
Washington, DC 20024
Document available online at: http://www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/spanish_gip_one.cfm
Printable version (PDF): http://www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/spanish_gip_one.pdf
Abstract: This collection of factsheets published by the National Adoption Information Clearinghouse provides an overview of the adoption process. The papers address the steps involved in agency and independent adoptions, the home study process, and legal aspects of adoptions.

Esta colección de hojas informativas ofrece una perspectiva general de la adopción en los Estados Unidos. Se enumeran los pasos a seguir por los posibles padres adoptivos y se dan a conocer las diferentes opciones al dar un hijo en adopción.

Title: Online Resources for Answering the Call.
Published: 2008
Available from: Child Welfare Information Gateway
http://www.childwelfare.gov
Children's Bureau/ACYF
1250 Maryland Avenue, SW
Eighth Floor
Washington, DC 20024
Abstract: This two-page flier provides a brief listing of online adoption and foster care resources available from AdoptUsKids and Child Welfare Information Gateway. One side is printed in English; the other is printed in Spanish.

Title: Adoption as a Diversity Issue in Professional Preparation: Perceptions of Preservice Education Professionals.
Author(s): Taymans, Juliana M.;Marotta, Sylvia A.;Lynch, Sharon J.;Riley, Debbie B.;Oritz, Deanna M.;Schutt, Jean M. LaFauci;Mallery, Coretta J.;Embich, Jeanne L.
Published: 2008
Journal Name: Adoption Quarterly
v. 11, 1, 2008, p. 24-44
Available from: Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
http://www.taylorandfrancis.com
325 Chestnut Street
Suite 800
Philadelphia, PA 19106
Abstract: This research explored preservice teachers' and counselors' perceptions of the needs of adopted children in schools. Using a quasi-experimental survey design, this study examined the views of preservice teachers and counselors toward adoptive families before and after an educational intervention. Findings from this research support the effectiveness of a brief, standardized intervention in increasing preservice education professionals' awareness of particular challenges adopted children and their families may face in school settings. Qualitative data indicated preservice education professionals' awareness of adopted children and their families in their internship experiences. Learning about adoptive families can be part of sensitizing education professionals' to the growing diversity of families and children in U.S. schools. (Author abstract)

Title: Open Adoption and Adolescence.
Author(s): Siegal, Deborah H.
Published: 2008
Journal Name: Families in Society
v. 89, 3, July-September 2008, p. 366-374
Available from: Families in Society
http://www.familiesinsociety.org
11700 West Lake Park Drive
Milwaukee, WI 53224-3099
Abstract: In open adoptions, birth and adoptive families exchange identifying information and have contact. Although most adoptions today include some form of openness, much of the public remains wary of this. The purpose of this study was to explore, longitudinally, adoptive parents' perceptions of their children's open adoptions. This article reports the findings of tape-recorded interviews with 31 adoptive parents who were first interviewed when their children were infants and toddlers, again 7 years later, and a third time when their children were adolescents. The study found adoptive parents were committed to maintaining contact with the birth family even when discomforts and challenges in the relationships occurred. These findings can be used to guide agency policies and clinical practices that enable a wide range of open adoption options. (Author abstract)

Title: Evidence-Based Practice or Practice-Based Evidence: What Is Happening With MEPA and Current Adoption Practices?
Author(s): Mapp, Susan C.;Boutté-Queen, Needha.;Erich, Stephen Arch.;Taylor, Patricia.
Published: 2008
Journal Name: Families in Society
v. 89, 3, July-September 2008, p. 375-384
Available from: Families in Society
http://www.familiesinsociety.org
11700 West Lake Park Drive
Milwaukee, WI 53224-3099
Abstract: The Multiethnic Placement Act (MEPA) and Interethnic Placement Act (IEPA) were passed in an attempt to eliminate race as a barrier to adoption. The purposes of the current research were to discover what child welfare social workers know about MEPA and IEPA, their views about the usefulness of the acts in addressing race issues in adoption, and how these two acts have affected their child placement practices. A randomized nationwide survey of social workers in child welfare had 261 respondents. Respondents seemed knowledgeable about the acts, but they remained uncertain about their intended purpose and lacked knowledge about research on transracial adoption (TRA). The majority of respondents indicated race is a continuing factor in adoptive placements. (Author abstract)

Title: The Ethnic Identification of Same-Race Children in Intercountry Adoption.
Author(s): Scherman, Rhoda.;Harr, Niki.
Published: 2008
Journal Name: Adoption Quarterly
v. 11, 1, 2008, p. 45-65
Available from: Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
http://www.taylorandfrancis.com
325 Chestnut Street
Suite 800
Philadelphia, PA 19106
Abstract: Intercountry adoption is a worldwide phenomenon that has been drawing an ever-increasing amount of research attention. The vast majority of that research has focused on transracial adoptive relationships and, in particular, the ethnic socialization and adjustment of children adopted into racially different families. Very little is known about the ethnic identity development of internationally adopted children who are racially similar to their adoptive parents. In the current study, 50 children adopted into New Zealand from Eastern Europe were interviewed on their ethnic self-identification and self-concept. The adoptees scored in the midrange on an ethnic identity scale and in the high range on a self-concept scale. However, no correlation was found between the two indices, suggesting that ethnic self-identification and self-concept operate independent of each other. These results, plus additional data collected during the interviews, are discussed in light of the New Zealand context and as they relate to the transracial adoption literature. (Author abstract)

Title: A Meta-Analysis of Developmental Outcomes for Children of Same-Sex and Heterosexual Parents.
Author(s): Crowl, Alicia.;Ahn, Soyeon.;Baker, Jean.;;;
Published: 2008
Journal Name: Journal of GLBT Family Studies.
v. 4, 3, 2008, p. 385-407
Available from: Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
http://www.taylorandfrancis.com
325 Chestnut Street
Suite 800
Philadelphia, PA 19106
Abstract: While there has been a recent upsurge in the number of studies related to children raised by gay and lesbian parents, the literature in this area continues to be small and wrought with limitations. This study presents a meta-analysis of the existing research and focuses on the developmental outcomes and quality of parent-child relationships among children raised by gay and lesbian parents. A total of 19 studies were used for the analysis and included both child and parent outcome measures addressing six areas. Analyses revealed statistically significant effect size differences between groups for one of the six outcomes: parent?child relationship. Results confirm previous studies in this current body of literature, suggesting that children raised by same-sex parents fare equally well to children raised by heterosexual parents. The authors discuss findings with respect to the implications for practitioners in schools. (Author abstract)

Title: Definitional Field Guide for AFCARS Elements Used in the CFSR Permanency Measures.
Author(s): Tromble, Kristen.
Published: 2007
Available from: Children and Family Research Center
http://cfrcwww.social.uiuc.edu/welcome.htm
School of Social Work, UIUC
1203 W. Oregon
Urbana, IL 61801
Printable version (PDF): http://cfrcwww.social.uiuc.edu/pubs/Pdf.files/Field_Guide_AFCARS_Permanence.pdf
Abstract: The overall goal of this Guide is to support the production of accurate permanency measures that are both internally consistent and, given the wide variation in state policies and practices, as comparable as possible with other states' measures. To meet this goal, the Guide compiles a set of common definitions that may be used to inform development in three broad areas: information systems, field guidance, and policy and procedure. The Guide is designed primarily to address the first of these areas, information systems, and specifically targets the process of translating (or mapping) data from a state's information system to meet the federal requirements for data reported to AFCARS. By considering the definitions in this Guide, states may also identify refinements to their system design for the collection, validation or storage of data that will improve consistency. Secondarily, this Guide may also inform revisions to state policies or field guidance, such as training curriculum, that would improve the completeness and consistency of data collected for the permanency measures. (Author abstract)

Title: Intercountry Adoption and Poverty: A Human Rights Analysis.
Author(s): Smolin, David M.
Published: 2007
Journal Name: Capital University Law Review
v. 36, p. 413-453
Available from: Berkeley Electronic Press
http://www.bepress.com/
2809 Telegraph Avenue, Suite 202
Berkeley, CA 94705
Printable version (PDF): http://works.bepress.com/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1004&context=david_smolin
Abstract: This Article explores the question of whether intercountry adoption is an effective, appropriate, or ethical response to poverty in developing nations. As a matter of methodology, this fundamental question of adoption ethics is explored through the lens of international human rights law. This Article specifically argues that, where the birth parents live under or near the international poverty standard of $1 per day, family preservation assistance must be provided or offered as a condition precedent for accepting a relinquishment that would make the child eligible for intercountry adoption. (Author abstract)

Title: Presentation 1: Pre-Adoption Videotape Evaluation: Possibilities and Limitations.
Author(s): Gindis, Boris.
Published: 2006
Available from: Center for Cognitive-Developmental Assessment and Remediation (BGCenter)
http://www.bgcenter.com/
150 Airport Executive Park, Suite 152
Nanuet, NY 10954
Document available online at: http://www.bgcenterschool.org/FreePresentations/Pr1-Videotapes.shtml
Abstract: With the advent of digital technology: video cameras, camcorders, and even telephones with camera capabilities, creating a digital video of a child in the orphanage is entirely within reach of a visiting parent, who, being very personally involved and interested, can create a larger and more objective video file of a prospective child. Such data may be helpful in the initial screening of this child, but it should be gathered according to certain guidelines (not randomly) to be useful for further professional assessment. This unit is devoted to the description of what and how to record to make the most of your recorded data. (Author abstract)

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