Special Needs Adoption: An Ecological Systems Approach

Posted: March 27th, 2020

Special Needs Adoption: An Ecological Systems Approach

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Special Needs Adoption: An Ecological Systems Approach

What are the three major points you learned from reading this article?

            The article, “Special Needs Adoption: An Ecological Systems Approach” by Schweiger and O’Brien covers the critical issue of the adoption of children, particularly those with special needs. Schweiger and O’Brien (2005) concentrate on numerous concerns that affect needy children, and they hold the position that there is an increase in such cases in the recent years. The rise consequently warrants the need for strategies that will enhance the process of adoption. One of the most critical points that Schweiger and O’Brien cover in the article is the vulnerability of most of the special needs youth. Children with special needs experience physical, emotional, psychological, and behavioral issues that require an increased need for attention from their parents or guardians.

            Adopted children are subject to encounter the adoptive family microsystem. Schweiger and O’Brien recognize that most of the research on adoption concentrates on the family system considering that adopted children create a new relationship structure. In some cases, children may have been part of a family system that involved neglect and child abuse, and this scenario threatened their social and emotional states (Schweiger and O’Brien, 2005). Therefore, adoptive parents experience numerous difficulties while pursuing the integration of such children as well as challenges of creating a positive family relationship. The article identifies the importance of identifying family paradigms that enable the adoptive family to structure their approaches and meet the needs of the child.

            Pre-adoptive and post-adoption services require a unique approach to ensure families understand all individual parent-child and sibling interaction settings. Schweiger and O’Brien (2005) identify that adoptive parents and guardians lack the necessary factual information regarding the parenting issues that they are likely to encounter. Therefore, the authors propose a system in which the characteristics of the adoptive family, as well as the child, may be analyzed to determine their association. The post-adoption process involves a follow-up on the family after legal finalization of the procedure. Various organizations provide post-adoptive programs and interventions that can support the family system.

Apply two concepts and two propositions of the weekly theory on this article

            The article employs the Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory to evaluate literature that has documented family and child approaches geared towards successful adoption. One of the concepts that apply in this case is the adaptive range. It defines a state where the child grows and adjusts through interchanges with his or her immediate ecosystem. The adaptive range has been used to define the microsystems of special needs adopted children in a study that considered the characteristics of the family and the children in stable homes. Highly distractible and active children increased the risk of failed placements with new adoptive families that had issues such as sensitivity and warmth (Schweiger, and O’Brien, 2005). The niche concept in the ecological model applies profoundly to the macro system of the adopted children with special needs as it considers a basic family as necessary in any society. In this case, changes in specialization involve transformations in relationships among functions. The family function may be defined by the impact of the broader society that creates a need to pursue adoption.

How can you relate to this article?

`           The article demonstrates the elements that support pre and post-adoption success. Financial aid proves to be one of the issues that affect different agencies and families as they seek to integrate needy children into their households. While federal and state child welfare policies have promoted the pursuit of adoption to offset an increase in the number of children, I find it quite disturbing that financial impropriety may prevent the success of such approaches. The lack of adequate funding to recruit, train, and promote adoptive parents has prevented needy children from successful integration into stable families (Schweiger and O’Brien, 2005). Such children end up experiencing different family settings and environments that may threaten their character. The concepts within the ecological model support pursuit of pre and post-adoption services as it highlights the challenges that adoptive parents may encounter.

References

Schweiger, W. K., & O’Brien, M. (2005). Special needs adoption: An ecological systems approach. Family Relations, 54(4), 512-522.