Trans-racial adoption : a study of race, identity and policy

Adoption policy requires
that the child's welfare needs must be considered as the
priority, and
in light of the surplus of available
"white" adopters and shortage of
"black" adopters, calls
for 'trans-racial' adoption to be seriously considered.
However, despite their lack of empirical evidence,
it is the essentialised and political
arguments of the opposers of
'trans-racial' adoption
that dominate adoption practice.
This thesis addresses the contradictory and
inconclusive
research on
'trans-racial'
adoption, by providing a
firm sociological understanding of racial
identity
development theory as applied to the 'trans-racial' adoption debate. It shows
that the
'trans-racial' adoptees were constantly aware of
their racialised differences, and
although most perceptions of difference were negative because the adoptees
felt alone
and saw
it as a constant reminder of them not being a
'real' member of that family,
some of the adoptees perceived these differences positively. This is significant
because it tells us such differences are able to contribute to the adoptee considering
themselves to be confident, have high self-esteem and a positive perception of self.
Another key finding is that race and the racialised differences brought about by the
'mixed heritage' aspects of the adoption, are significant
factors in the adoptees'
searches
for their birth heritage. Another finding is the adoptees' possession of a
'trans-racial' identity, and how this is a racialised
identity that consists of being
neither
"black" or
"white", but "mixed". The thesis argues
for the recognition of the
valuable
insight that the current population of
'trans-racial' adoptees can offer policy
debates, and hence calls
for their consultation.
It also
illustrates the value of the life
(hi)story approach,
in particular the oral
life (hi)story interview as a method of data
collection when studying the racial
identity development of
'trans-racial' adoptees.
The thesis concludes that the racial
identity development of
'trans-racial' adoptees
is
far more complex than existing debates acknowledge.
It is something
that
is socially
constructed
in an ongoing process, where
it is open to modification and negotiation.
As such,
the thesis is contrary to the idea that individuals need
to develop a
"black"
identity in order to have a positive and healthy sense of self.