A Theoretical Look at Biculturalism in Intercountry Adoption

Date
2010
Authors
Scherman, R
Supervisor
Item type
Journal Article
Degree name
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Taylor & Francis
Abstract

Intercountry adoption has been, and continues to be, a popular method of family formation worldwide, as well as a means of providing homes for children who would otherwise remain parentless. The popularity of this social welfare practice suggests that countless families continue to face the challenges of raising children whose ethnicities derive from two different ethnic backgrounds. Yet, virtually no research exists on the development of a bicultural ethnic identity in intercountry adoption. Instead, research has focused on the importance of birth-culture socialization, or the lack thereof. Faced with too little direct research on the subject, this paper synthesizes and critically reviews literature from the ethnic socialization, biracial, acculturation, and adoption fields. The aim was twofold: (1) extrapolate key elements of the literature that inform on the development of biculturalism in intercountry adoptions; and (2) identify gaps in the literature. Suggestions for future research and practice are offered.

Description
Keywords
Intercountry adoption , Transracial adoption , Ethnic socialization , Biculturalism , Acculturation , Ethnic identity development
Source
Journal of ethnic and cultural diversity in social work, vol.19(2), pp.127 - 142
Publisher's version
Rights statement
Copyright © 2010 Taylor & Francis. This is a preprint of an article whose final and definitive form has been published in the Journal of Ethnic and Cultural Diversity in Social Work and is available online at: www.tandfonline.com with the open URL of your article (see Publisher’s Version)