Berättelser om adoption

This dissertation explores adoption stories in a Swedish context. The aim is two-fold: First, how adoption is presented by adopted adults; second, how adoption is constructed in the press. The way adoptees create meaning of “being adopted” is investigated; the way those stories are shaped culturally is also explored. The study was conducted in a qualitative tradition with a constructionist and narrative approach. The empirical material consisted of 20 individual interviews, a focus group interview and an analysis of adoption issues in media. The age span of the adoptees in the individual interviews was 25-65 years. The articles examined stemmed from daily newspapers. The time period studied was 2003-2005. 124 articles were chosen for closer investigation.Two different storylines were uncovered in the personal stories – adoption as a complicated experience and adoption as an uncomplicated experience. In the first storyline the abandoned child was linked with psychological and social interpretations of “being different”; in the second, on the other hand, a story of the chosen child, brought up with a loving family, was built. In this storyline issues of being different were not raised, on the contrary being adopted appeared almost irrelevant. In the press two discourses were identified – adoption as a solution (for “not having children” or “not having parents”) and adoption as a problem (for example individual problems regarding “identity” or adoption as a contested practice). The analysis illustrates that personal stories are framed by culturally available resources. It is emphasized that the qualitative interview is a relational practice. This means that interviews must be considered in context, the local context of its production, but also in a broader cultural context.

Grantor dc:publisher

Socialhögskolan, Lunds universitet

Year dc:date

2008

Author dc:creator

• Martinell Barfoed, Elizabeth

• Social Work
• Adoption
• adoptee
• story
• narrative analysis
• interview study
• discourse
• self construction
• identity
• media analysis
• social constructionismNyckelord: adoption
• identitet
• självkonstruktioner
• diskurs
• intervjustudie
• adopterad
• berättelse
• narrativ analys
• narrativ
• medieanalys
• social konstruktionism

Statement dc:rights

• info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess

Language dc:language

swe

Repository record dc:identifier

https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/1259128

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:lup.lub.lu.se:724de5c7-0ca3-45f4-9d68-9f2cddc6ee3c