Open Adoption: A Growing Trend in the U.S.
In the last four decades, the concept of the American family has undergone a radical transformation, reflecting society's growing openness. Among all segments of society, there is a greater acceptance of a variety of family structures from single parenting to blended families to same sex parenting of children. The introduction of openness into the process of adoption offers new opportunities for children in need of a parent or parents and prospective parents wishing to create or expand their families. Meeting the requirements to become eligible to adopt no longer means being constrained by the conventions of an earlier generation.
As defined in Children of Open Adoption by Kathleen Silber and Patricia Martinez Dorner (Silber and Dorner, pg 9):
Open adoption includes the birthparents and adoptive parents meeting one another, sharing full identifying information, and having access to ongoing contact over the years. . . .In open adoption, the birthfamily is extended family, like other relatives within the adoptive family.
Current statistics show that open adoptions are increasing in the United States. Despite the challenges and emotional issues involved in open adoption, its incidence is growing and providing a means for families to share their lives in different ways and allowing adoptive children to feel positive about themselves and about adoption.
Statistics
Statistics show that the rate of adoption has grown since the 1900s. In 1944, about 50,000 adoptions took place in the U.S. The greatest known number of adoptions took place in 1970 when 175,000 children were adopted. Currently, there is only limited statistical information on U.S. adoptions. (Child Welfare Information Par. 2) The most complete statistics were gathered by the National Center for Social Statistics (NCSS) from 1957 through 1975. Most new statistical information about adoption is being gathered and analyzed by private organizations, through private surveys and research. (National Adoption Information Clearinghouse, http://statistics.adoption.com/information/adoption-statistics-overview.html)
States with the highest number of adoptions are states with greater populations, with California, New York, and Texas generally leading the nation. In 2000 about 9,054 adoptions took place in the state of California alone. (Child Welfare Information par. 1) In 2001, New York had the highest number of adoptions with 10,209 cases. In 69% of public and private agency adoptions, the birth parents had met the adoptive couple. (Berry, 1991)
Societal attitudes toward adoption have made great advances since the 1900s, both in the understanding of the complexities of adoption and the acceptance of adoption as a positive path for children.
Many potential adopted parents have experienced heartbreak, anguish and other problems that can be associated with adoption. There is an imbalance in the Nations foster care system and the system needs to be strengthening and the quality of services improved.
When I heard the clicks of heels in the hallway, I sat up attentively on the waiting couch. A pleasant looking woman came to greet me. She was in her mid fifties and introduced herself as Celeste Drury. She worked with the children home society, an adoption agency that is located in Oakland. I found Celeste through a family friend. The family friend knew my interest in learning about adoption and the criteria used for adoption processes. I was excited to meet Celeste and to learn about what she did. Settling in my chair, Celeste slightly cheered me. Celeste orphanage was licensed under the adoption agencies act. It has been in existence for many years. Children home society is in charge of providing adoption services in the entire state of California. I asked Celeste of its role and she said that it “helps parents to make informed decisions about their children, and also give tips on the adoptive parents” (Drury).
Since the beginning of time, people have been adopting. Whether or not the adoption process is for everybody is a debatable topic. Adoption occurs all over the world and is the cause for an impact on not only the children being adopted, but also an impact on those who adopt. Whether it’s nationally on internationally adoption is everywhere and will continue to grow in popularity as the years go on.
Adoption is a process where by a person assumes the parenting for another and, in so doing, permanently transfers all rights and responsibilities from the biological parent or parents. Unlike guardianship or other systems designed for the care of the young, adoption is intended to effect a permanent change in status and as such requires societal recognition, either through legal or religious sanction. Adoption has changed considerably over the centuries with its focus shifting from adult adoption and inheritance issues toward children and family creation; its structure moving from recognition of continuity between the adopted and kin toward allowing relationships of lessened intensity. In modern times, adoption is a primary vehicle serving the needs of homeless, neglected, abused and runaway children (Wikipedia, “Adoption”).
Adoption is in place to balance, to nurture and create a structural environment of safety in which the child can thrive and develop into a productive individual contributing to society. Also, it allows older children to abandon old maladaptive behaviors and make their first steps toward the construction of new behaviors influenced by their new environment. In years past, parents who adopted a child as an infant often debated whether to tell him or her about the adoption. Many children grew up not knowing they were adopted, and the birth mother’s identity was kept secret from those who did know (Ashford, LeCroy and Lortie 249). This paper provides facts on widely acceptance option of open adoption rather than the traditional practice of closed adoption. Adoption separates real biological family members, removing the adopter heritage whether the adoption is open or closed. Open adoption can lead to problems, but there are proven facts that open adoption is the best option for all parties working together in the best interest of the children.
In the United States there are approximately 397,000 children in out-of home care, within the last year there was about 640,000 children which spent at least some time in out-of-home care. More than 58,000 children living in foster care have had their biological parental rights permanently terminated (Children’s Rights, 2014). Due to the rising number of children in foster care and the growing concerns of the safety, permanency, and well-being of children and families, the Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997 was signed into law. On November 19, 1997, President Bill Clinton signed the Adoption and Safe Families Act of 1997, to improve the safety of children, to promote adoption and other permanent homes for children who need them, and to support families (Child Welfare League of America). The Adoption and Safe Families Act also promotes adoption by offering incentive payments for States. During the FY of 1999-2003 the payment to states which had exceeded the average number of adoptions received $20 million (Child Welfare League of America). The ASFA improved the existing federal child welfare law to require that the child’s health and safety be a “paramount” concern in any efforts made by the state to preserve or reunify the child’s family, and to provide new assurances that children in foster care are safe (Shuman, 2004).
When it comes to adoption though, open adoption is one of the best ones there is. An open adoption is when you adopt a child with open records, where the biological parents and the adoptive parents stay in contact though out the adoptive child’s life or for however long they want. (Berry 1)Throughout the years open adoption has been encouraged the most out of all of them because then the medical records. This way if anything comes up it can be open for the child to know their history. By not having that missing piece of information help the family with what they need to know about the medical condition. Open records are great to because of the emotional state during the adoptees life. (B...
McRoy, R., Grotevant, H., Furuta, A., & Lopez, S. (1990). Adoption Revelation and Communication Issues: Implications for Practice. Families in Society, 71, 550-557.
According to American academy and adolescent psychiatry, about 120,000 children are adopted in the United States alone. That is a lot of children that need to find a new home to stay in. Not only do adoptions affect the child after they are adopted, no matter the age; but adoption also affects the parents giving their child up for adoption. There are many types of adoptions. Along with that, there are many reasons for giving the child up for adoption. There are three main perspectives that I will be talking about. One function would be the structural functionalism. How society cooperates. The second would be the conflict perspective. The third would be symbolic interactionism approach. There are many different aspects of adoption, making it
Stolley, K.S. (1993). Statistics on adoption in the United States. The Future of Children: Adoption, 3(1), 26-42
Second parent adoption is an important tool utilized by same-sex couples in an effort to protect their parental rights in states where same sex marriage is not recognized. Although gay and lesbian paren...
Adoption is the complete and permanent transfer of parental rights and obligations, usually from one set of legal parents to adoptive parents(Ademec 27). Not until the late 19th century did the U.S. legislative body grant legal status to adoptive parents. This is when children and parents started to gain rights and support from the government. Through the years new laws have been passed and amended to keep the system fair to all adoptive parents. In 1994, Congress passed the Multiethnic Placement Act, making it illegal to delay the placement a child to find a racially matching family. In 1996 the Multiethnic Placement Act was amended to say, “One can not use race as a routine consideration in child placement”(Lewin sec.A). Before 1994, it was difficult to place a black child with white adopters. Last year 5,000 children were adopted from Europe, and 6,000 from Asia, while 183 came from Africa.(Lewin sec. A). The number of out-of-country adoptions are so high because of the requirements and regulations one must follow in the U.S. The requirements include being 21, and include being committed and loving. The home income must be adequate enough to support the family. Passing all of the medical exams and filling out the personal information is mandatory. But the main reason people adopt from overseas is because it is much quicker. A person can adopt a child from another country in a matter of months. In the U.S. the wait can exceed 5 years, which is why some people choose international adoption.
There are now different types of adoptions such as going through an agency adoption, independent adoptions, step parent adoptions, international adoption, and lastly an open agency adoption. Many individuals face these particular adoptions today. Adoptions however affect adoptive parents, biological parent, and over all family. An adoption can affect an adopter by yearning to build that family but on the other hand still being terrified that something can possibly go wrong. Also an adoption affects a biological parent the most because there whole life is affected by this choice but sometimes a mother or father will do it for the better of the child. A biological parent will ponder to a whole bunch of unanswered questions about the child’s life with the adoptive family such as being care and nurtured by the new family? Or maybe even wonder if the new family will tell their child they’re adopted. Adoptions affect a biological parent by grief because they know its not a conversation to touch upon with anyone, they can encounter unresolved grief where it can affect the mothers feelings of happiness and worthelessness because they put there child up for adoption. This can escalate a biological parent to become angry at their parents or even the
Many people grow up in loving families and cannot imagine not having their parents and siblings around, but each year, 18,000 or more American born babies are put up for adoption (Newlin Carney). That means at least 18,000 children face the harsh truth of maybe not having a family to grow up in. Childhood is a very important part of one’s life and helps shape who one is. These children that are eligible to be adopted just need loving parents, good homes, and stability. And who is to say the high price of adopting is not ho...
Fleming, Caroline B. "The open-records debate: balancing the interests of birth parents and adult adoptees." William & Mary Journal of Women and the Law Spring (2005): 461-480. Academic OneFile. Web. 17 Feb. 2012.