Session: [CW] Research That Matters for Child Welfare: the Collaboration to Adoptuskids Research Project



Research That Matters (January 17 - 20, 2008)


Friday, January 18, 2008: 2:00 PM-3:45 PM
Empire Ballroom (Omni Shoreham)
[CW] Research That Matters for Child Welfare: the Collaboration to Adoptuskids Research Project

Symposium Organizer:	Ruth G. McRoy, PhD, University of Texas at Austin
		Barriers to the Adoption of Children from Foster Care: Perspectives of Adoption Staff and Adoptive Families Courtney J. Lynch, PhD, Patricia A. Cody, PhD, Amy Chanmugam, MSSW, Ruth G. McRoy, PhD, Susan Ayers-Lopez, MEd
		Post Adoption Service Needs of Families Who Adopt Special Needs Children Reetu C. Naik, MA, Elissa Madden, MSW, Ruth G. McRoy, PhD, Susan Ayers-Lopez, MEd
		Preparing School Age Children for Special Needs Adoption: Perspectives of Successful Adoptive Parents and Caseworkers Michele D. Hanna, PhD, Ruth G. McRoy, PhD, Susan Ayers-Lopez, MEd
		Successful Adoptions from Foster Care: Family and Child Characteristics Kim A. Wittenstrom, PhD, Mary Ellen Wallace, MSSW, Ruth G. McRoy, PhD, Susan Ayers-Lopez, MEd
		Why Do Prospective Adoptive Families Discontinue the Adoption Process? Patricia A. Cody, PhD, Amy Chanmugam, MSSW, Elissa Madden, MSW, Ruth G. McRoy, PhD, Susan Ayers-Lopez, MEd
Abstract Text: There are approximately 114,000 children currently in foster care waiting for adoption (AFCARS, 2005). Several federal initiatives in recent years have called for research in order to better understand the process of adoption and to increase the success of adoptions from foster care. In 2000, the Children's Health Act of 2000 called for two research studies as described below: Section 330G (c) (2) of the Act states: With respect to the adoption of children with special needs, the Secretary shall make grants to carry out studies to identify (A) the barriers to completion of the adoption process; and (B) those components that lead to favorable long-term outcomes for families that adopt children with special needs. In 2002, the Adoption Exchange Association was awarded a five-year contract from the U.S. Children's Bureau to establish The Collaboration to AdoptUsKids in order to design and implement a national adoptive family recruitment and retention strategy aimed to increase the number of adoptions from foster care. Two studies were designed and implemented to assess barriers to adoption from foster care and factors associated with successful adoptions from care. Study participants included a nationwide sample of 161 adoptive families, 300 prospective adoptive families, and 512 adoption agency staff which was recruited through public and private adoption agencies in 47 states and the District of Columbia. PAPERS: All five papers in this symposium are based on findings from this multi-faceted Collaboration to AdoptUsKids research project and the organizer and Principal Investigator will serve as discussant. Three papers are based on findings from the study of successful adopters from the foster care system. The first paper identifies family and child characteristics and services that contribute to successful outcomes for the adoptions of children from foster care. The second paper summarizes the findings from a 4-year prospective examination of post adoption challenges and services needed by families who have adopted older and special needs children. The third paper explores the perspectives of caseworkers and adoptive families on how children in foster care are prepared for adoption. Two additional papers are based on findings from the research on barriers to adoption from foster care. In one paper, factors will be presented which led prospective adoptive families to discontinue the process of adopting children from the foster care system. The final paper examines systemic barriers to the adoption of children from foster care. The perspectives of both prospective adoptive families and adoption staff are presented. IMPLICATIONS: The findings from these studies were recently submitted to Congress and to the Department of Health and Human Services for the purpose of developing policies and practices to increase the likelihood of children being adopted successfully from the child welfare system. The results hopefully will demonstrate how research matters in creating informed Congressional decision-making.

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