35th Annual Student Research Conference
U.S. Transracial Adoption: Contribution to the White Racial Hierarchy
Allison E. Griffard
Dr. Brian Ott and Dr. Anton Daughters, Faculty Mentors
This study suggests a trend toward socioemotional disturbances in transracially adopted persons of color. Though the majority of large-scale quantitative, longitudinal studies on both domestic and international adoptions suggest that transracial adoptees fare as well as same-race adoptees over the course of their lifetimes, these studies neglect to measure specific racial and ethnic experiences and they tend to ignore intersectional realities. As such, this research, conducted over several months during Fall of 2021, utilizes a content analysis approach for discourse under Reddit’s r/TransracialAdoption and r/Adoption forums that discuss transracial adoption from an internal perspective to address: (1) How transracial adoption perpetuates the white racial hierarchy (2) Why white families in predominantly white communities adopt outside of their race, and (3) Whether communities of color want their children to be placed with white families, and to what extent their agency should be considered.
Keywords: Adoption, Transracial Adoption, White Racial Heirarchy, Reddit, Race Relations, Acculturation, Foster Care, Racial Identity Formation
Topic(s):Sociology
Presentation Type: Oral Presentation
Session: 103-6
Location: SUB GEO B
Time: 9:45