Adoption breakdown in Andalusia, Spain: incidence and characteristics

In Andalusia, southern Spain, a study was commissioned to answer three main questions: frequency of adoption breakdown, circumstances and characteristics of those involved, and role of professional intervention in these cases.... [ view full abstract ]

In Andalusia, southern Spain, a study was commissioned to answer three main questions: frequency of adoption breakdown, circumstances and characteristics of those involved, and role of professional intervention in these cases. The main findings of the study are to be reported in this paper. For the 2003-12 period, one in 75 adoptions concluded in formal breakdown, with the adoptee returning to the public welfare protection system. Furthermore, one in 23 adoptions went through quite serious difficulties (these cases will not be reported in this presentation). The incidence of breakdown was higher among domestic than intercountry adoptions. The breakdown experience was not significantly different depending on the adoptee’s gender, nor the structural characteristics of the family (single versus two-parent). As in other similar studies, no isolated factor was associated with this negative experience. Typically, noteworthy factors included certain characteristics of the adopted children (older adoption age, sibling adoption and behavior problems), features of the adoptive parents (particularly, problems with expectations and coping skills) and of the adoption-related professional intervention (delayed detection of difficulties, poor and sporadic actions). A high percentage of the difficulties were more relational than personal, as in the case of attachment difficulties and violence within the family. As for professional interventions, early signs of difficulties were often minimized and interpreted as typical of the mutual adaptation phase. Also, many of the professional actions taken were sporadic more than stable, and took the form of advice rather than diagnostic and treatment. The impact of the separation for both adopters and adoptees was also considered, as well as post-separation contact between them. One of the main conclusions of the study is that breakdown cases are neither anecdotic, nor exceptional. They should be an integral part of professional intervention, from the training of professionals to the protocols for the preparation, selection, follow-up and support of adopters and adoptees.