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Prinka Kaur
Mrs. Greene
Academy Capstone 7
15 November 2016
International Adoption
International adoption was quite prevalent in the early 1900s due to the lack of
international standards and complicated procedures. Traffickers and abusers used inter-country
adoptions as a medium to acquire children because of the weak legal procedures involved.
Although it is now more secure for children and adoptive parents, international adoption is not
increasing exponentially in the US, like domestic adoption, because of the convoluted process
and the establishment of international standards.
The general process of international adoption is quite extensive because adoptive parents
must coordinate not only with international protocols, but also with the individual policies of the
countries involved. Often, there are about six to seven major steps, starting with a general
information session through adoption agencies where potential adoptive parents learn about the
entire process. After the general information session, a home study is conducted in which
governmental officials interview and conduct background checks on the family members
planning to live in the same household as the adopted child. Additionally, parents must attend a
group training, or parenting classes, to learn how to properly raise a child and support the mental
well being of the adopted child who may have had (International Adoption). Not only do
government officials check that the residing family members are ready for a child, but also make
sure that the financial state of the adoptive parents is stable. Additionally, multiple forms of
paperwork must be completed, varying based on the adoption agency handling the case,

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including Dossier paperwork, or forms for the donor country, and other official procedures like
background and history checks for the governmental officials of the receiving country
(International Adoption). After all the technical procedures are complete, the adoptive parents
finally get to bring their adopted child home. The adoption process is still not complete as the
child must be supervised for at least twelve months by government officials, after which the
parents can officially adopt the child and gain all of the rights of the birth parents without any
further governmental interference. The process is not only long, but it is also much more
complex when compared to domestic adoption due to the Hague Convention.
The Hague Convention established rules which made the process of adoption more
complex and secure in order to prevent child abuse and abductions under the label of adoption.
Before the convention, in some sending nations, customary safeguards were nonexistent, and
the international movement of children tended to compound opportunities for corruption and
circumvention of the law (Carlson). Upon the increase of child labor and trafficking, many
countries decided to step away from international adoption, leaving many children in orphanages
and foster care without the option of being adopted across borders. Ultimately, the Hague
Convention was designed to encourage adoption at home rather than abroad, to end the
international baby trade and to restore order, transparency and decency to the adoption process
(Worthington). Although the convention succeeded in establishing international protocols and
rules, it unintentionally promoted domestic adoption over international adoption by making it so
much more harder to adopt across borders. It was an endorsement of domestic adoption, although
there were many countries with limited adoptable children and others with plenty (Wallace). The
results of this convention are clear when observing the decreasing rates of international adoption

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and increasing rates of domestic adoption. Other than the contrasting rates, there are many other
differences between these two types of adoption as well.
The legal aspects of domestic and international adoption differ greatly and this
emphasizes the importance of international adoption. The availability of children to adopt is
decreasing in the US. Greater contraceptive use, the legalization of abortion, and societys
increased acceptance of single-parent-families have resulted in the decreased number of
children (Wallace). In order to fulfill the desires of parents wishing to adopt, international
adoption is a very viable option. The process may be more complex, but internationally more
children are available to adopt, especially in developing countries with less contraceptives and
resources to support more children. Additionally, domestic adoption is increasing at a much
faster rate than international adoption. This is because intercountry adoption is needlessly
complex, risky, and uncertain for a transaction in which so much is at stake and some sending
nations have acted to discourage out-of-country placement (Carlson). The differences in
domestic and intercountry adoption explain why international adoption is being overshadowed
by its counterpart, but it is important to consider that both have irreplaceable benefits.
Overall, the legal aspects of intercountry adoption seem to discourage parents looking to
adopt across borders, although it is safer, due to the influence from the Hague Convention. In
addition, domestic adoption seems like an easier option, but the availability of adoptable children
is quite low in developed countries because of family planning and contraceptives. Therefore,
international adoption is a viable option which should be utilized more for parents looking
towards adopting.
Currently, international adoption is a controversial topic in multiple countries. While
some governments have implemented policies to reject international adoption as a potential

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solution to the problem of abandoned or orphaned children, other governments have embraced
the idea and provided federal grants and accessibility towards the cause. In order to give more
children a safer and more suitable environment, governments should allow and encourage
international adoption despite the minor drawbacks which may be taken into account.
One of the biggest claims put up by those rejecting international adoption is that racial
differences may harm the children involved psychologically and mentally. While children
adopted by parents of different races may grow up knowing their adoptive status, with supportive
parents, racial variations can easily be embraced and even assimilated. Many parents with
adopted children who are visibly different from themselves learn the culture, or even the
customs, of their charge of their child's country of origin with child's attitudes (Marre, Diana, &
Briggs). As long as background checks are done responsibly to ensure that the parents are not
abusive, care and nurture are almost always a part of the process- for any parent in general.
Another myth that needs to debunked is the idea that racial characteristics exist and determine
certain personality and cultural traits which may cause children to feel emotionally insecure with
new parents. Older notions of racial characteristics lurk within some notions of culture, just as
they do in popular conceptions of genetic heritage (Marre, Diana, & Briggs). With the myth of
racial differences inflicting mental damage onto children discarded, it is important to discuss
other misconceptions surrounding the mental status of children following adoption.
Regardless of how harsh the adoptive process may seem, children are usually not
permanently mentally influenced by the adoptive process. In fact, the problems that children may
face prior to adoption- especially in underdeveloped home countries like India and China- may
put them in mental distress. Many were relinquished or removed from parental care for reasons
of abuse, deprivation, maternal mental illness or substance abuse, or a disabling medical

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condition in the child Institutionalized children seldom receive optimal nutrition, stimulation,
or health care, and group living itself increases the risks of infectious disease, abuse, and
neglect (Bledsoe). By getting adopted- especially internationally- and moving away from a
stressful situation can help children overcome the difficult phases in life they may have had to
face without parents. The new love and nurture they receive will help children prevail over the
attachment issues they may have faced and although some adopted children have serious
disorders in attachment, most develop secure relationships with their adoptive families over time
(Londen, Monique, Juffer, & IJzendoorn). Overall, regardless of whether the adoption occurs
internationally or domestically, children are in fact taken away from mental distress rather than
facing more mental disorders.
There are some minor problems associated with international adoption, but the benefits
outweigh the potential consequences. One of the main reasons why some governmental policies
restrict international adoption is that children adopted into different countries will most likely
lose touch with their origins and culture. It is considered an attack to national pride by some,
but there is nothing above the security and happiness of the child. In many sending countries
national pride has led to calls to stop selling, or giving away, our most precious resources, and
to claims that the country should take care of our own (Bartholet). The interest of all children
should be put before national pride and the importance of heritage. Additionally, there is no
concrete evidence that claims that denying children homes internationally will help resolve
domestic problems, therefore is is better to overcome these small consequences and realize the
weight of the benefits.
Although it is common in the US for adoptive parents to adopt from overseas, the debate
over international adoption has never failed to exist. There are many myths and minor

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consequences associated with international adoption, but one of the most important factors to
consider is that many children need homes and cannot be provided essential services and love
and nurture in their home countries. Therefore, in the controversial debate regarding international
adoption, the interest of children should be put before any other claims.