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The journey to adopt a child who has special needs: parents' perspectives
- Authors:
- DENBY Ramona W., ALFORD Keith A., AYALA Jessica
- Journal article citation:
- Children and Youth Services Review, 33(9), September 2011, pp.1543-1554.
- Publisher:
- Elsevier
Many of the children eligible for adoption are considered to have special needs. Included in the definition of special needs are sibling groups, older children, children with disabilities, black and minority ethnic children, and children with learning disabilities or mental health problems. Knowing more about the adoption process as it is experienced by prospective parents who complete (or are in the process of completing) their adoption and those who discontinue it are critical to improving the process. Using qualitative inquiry, prospective adoptive parents in nine families in the United States were studied in an effort to learn more about their motivations, expectations, preparation, and experiences. Although the adoption outcome (continued versus discontinued) was different, the process, including negative experiences, was quite similar. Programming implications and suggestions for future research are offered.