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Adoption Life Cycle: The Children and Their Families Through the Years
Adoption is once again the subject of intense controversy. Some groups call for the abolition of adoption altogether as an outmoded social institution that fails to meet the needs of any of the members involved, while others propose major changes in our social and legal systems. Yet few reformers have been able to reach a consensus, or to provide concrete solutions to the problems they describe.
In this first book to take into account all the new issues surrounding the adoption debate, Elisor Rosenberg throws light on what adoption means for all three members of the triad - adoptees, adoptive parents, and birth parents - at every stage of life. Drawing on extensive case examples, she examines the ways in which the triad members' lives interact with and affect each other in the course of their lifetimes, and offers direct, practical advice on handling the issues and conflicts that often arise. The continued mourning of birth parents, the difficult behavior of a child who tests the bounds of an adoptive parent's love and acceptance, and the numerous developmental hurdles of adoptive parents are just some of the issues which Rosenberg addresses.
A section on the clinical implications of adoption, illuminated with case studies, will be especially helpful for therapists and social workers who encounter adoption circle members in their practices. Also useful will be the outline of developmental tasks for each member of the triad. This outline will help those in the adoption circle, as well as professionals, to understand better both the problems encountered in the past and the challenges that lie ahead.
The institution of adoption is still a fine solution to a significant social problem, the author concludes, when we view it from the perspective of a lifetime. To be successful, the author argues, the adoption of children must be administered and undertaken with a realistic sense of the ways this experience is at once similar to and profoundly different from the non-adoptive experience, and with an appreciation of the losses and pains, as well as the great pleasures, it represents. With this understanding we can then begin to address more effectively the problems that arise and make the appropriate changes so that all members in the adoption circle will benefit.
In this first book to take into account all the new issues surrounding the adoption debate, Elisor Rosenberg throws light on what adoption means for all three members of the triad - adoptees, adoptive parents, and birth parents - at every stage of life. Drawing on extensive case examples, she examines the ways in which the triad members' lives interact with and affect each other in the course of their lifetimes, and offers direct, practical advice on handling the issues and conflicts that often arise. The continued mourning of birth parents, the difficult behavior of a child who tests the bounds of an adoptive parent's love and acceptance, and the numerous developmental hurdles of adoptive parents are just some of the issues which Rosenberg addresses.
A section on the clinical implications of adoption, illuminated with case studies, will be especially helpful for therapists and social workers who encounter adoption circle members in their practices. Also useful will be the outline of developmental tasks for each member of the triad. This outline will help those in the adoption circle, as well as professionals, to understand better both the problems encountered in the past and the challenges that lie ahead.
The institution of adoption is still a fine solution to a significant social problem, the author concludes, when we view it from the perspective of a lifetime. To be successful, the author argues, the adoption of children must be administered and undertaken with a realistic sense of the ways this experience is at once similar to and profoundly different from the non-adoptive experience, and with an appreciation of the losses and pains, as well as the great pleasures, it represents. With this understanding we can then begin to address more effectively the problems that arise and make the appropriate changes so that all members in the adoption circle will benefit.
209 pages, Hardcover
First published September 3, 1992
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February 15, 2010
Being an MFT, I have been trained in a life cycle perspective...what is the big picture and how does it change through time. I was excited to read a book about the adoption process from a life cycle perspective and for all three parties of the adoption circle- birth parents, adoptees and adoptive parents. This is a big undertaking and I'm glad that Rosenberg took it on. This book would be helpful to those who wish to understand more about the experiences of any in the adoption circle. Those who have been touched by adoption especially need to have an understanding of the others that make up the circle.
Sadly, I did come away mostly disappointed though.
One reason might be that the book was written in 1992 which even though I don't like to admit it is almost 20 years ago and some things have changed such as a larger prevalance of open adoptions. Information and statistics and experiences from those who have an open adoption were basically not in the book probably because they were less available. But many of the factors discussed in the book are still concerns or true today, too.
Secondly, even though I'm glad Rosenberg took on the topic, it probably took on too much. There wasn't much time spent on anything in depth at all. I got a general picture that was rather abstract and often didn't seem very useful.
Thirdly, the book was problem-focused and had a pretty negative underlying tone. A lot of the words used were strongly negative and assumed that everyone felt this way. I believe the book might be written so negatively in an attempt to counter and balance the too happy "adoption is the perfect answer" literature that came before it. There needs to be a better balance of the positive and the negative.
This book is a good starting point for what I hope to see more of in the present day adoption literature and in the future.
Sadly, I did come away mostly disappointed though.
One reason might be that the book was written in 1992 which even though I don't like to admit it is almost 20 years ago and some things have changed such as a larger prevalance of open adoptions. Information and statistics and experiences from those who have an open adoption were basically not in the book probably because they were less available. But many of the factors discussed in the book are still concerns or true today, too.
Secondly, even though I'm glad Rosenberg took on the topic, it probably took on too much. There wasn't much time spent on anything in depth at all. I got a general picture that was rather abstract and often didn't seem very useful.
Thirdly, the book was problem-focused and had a pretty negative underlying tone. A lot of the words used were strongly negative and assumed that everyone felt this way. I believe the book might be written so negatively in an attempt to counter and balance the too happy "adoption is the perfect answer" literature that came before it. There needs to be a better balance of the positive and the negative.
This book is a good starting point for what I hope to see more of in the present day adoption literature and in the future.
Displaying 1 of 1 review