The post-adoptive experience of intercountry adoption families in Catalonia: A quantitative study in social work

Abstract

This article presents an image of the post-adoptive panorama in intercountry adoption in Catalonia. It explores the families’ preparation for adoption, the post-adoption needs and resources used, with a special regard on the social work role. It is based on the families’ experiences and opinions collected in a questionnaire applied in 2022-23 in the framework of the doctoral research "Intercountry adoption in Catalonia in the post-adoptive phase. A look from social work”. A total of 355 families with sons and daughters from a total of 23 different countries answered the online questionnaire anonymously. Results are on family communication, pre and post-adoption care, including the experience on the compulsory follow up stablished by each country of origin. Conclusions are both about the problems in family adaptation and in the relationship with the services and organizations that have accompanied the families, with special emphasis on the social worker figure. Recommendations are drawn from these conclusions to strengthen the protection system for this group. Reflections are also presented regarding the expressed and detected needs in the families and in relation to professional accompaniment, especially the role played by social work.