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When
beginning the adoption process, it may help to understand some of the
terminology that is frequently used. The following list includes definitions for
many common words and phrases related to adoption.
Common
Adoptive Terms
Abuse:
Any
action that creates a substantial injury or a risk of injury to a child. Abuse
can be physical, sexual or emotional. Physical abuse happens when a child is
hurt through beating, shaking, kicking, burning or other types of bodily harm. A
child can end up suffering from bruises, fractured or broken bones, internal
injuries or even death. When children are denied the basic necessities they need
to thrive, it is also considered physical abuse. Infants born addicted to drugs
are physically abused, as well.
Approved
Families: Families
that have completed training, the home study process and have been licensed to
adopt.
Birth
or Biological Family: Biological
mother or father (those who conceived the child) and their extended family;
“blood”
relatives.
Children
of Color: Children
of color are all non-Caucasian children, including biracial children.
Child
Welfare System: All
agencies that operate to ensure the safety and well being of children. Areas of
child welfare include adoption, child protection, and foster care.
Closed
Adoption: An
adoption that involves total confidentiality and no contact with birth family.
The birth family and the adoptive family do not share any identifying
information about themselves, and do not communicate with each other, either
before or after the placement of the child.
Contracted
Agencies: Those
agencies that have a contract with the DSS (public adoption agency) to provide
adoption services to DSS clients.
Developmental
Delays: Delays in
motor skills, speech and/or learning.
Department
of Social Services : The
Oregon State Child Welfare Agency. The agency focuses on the safety, permanency
and well being of children who have been abused and neglected in family settings
or by caretakers.
Domestic
Infant Adoption: The
adoption of infants born in the United States and generally refers to children
who are voluntarily relinquished by their birth parent/s.
Emotional
Disabilities: A
disturbance of mood not due to any physical or mental disorder. Children with
emotional disabilities may exhibit lack of respect for authority, behavior
problems in school, inability to cope with change and difficulty getting along
with other children. They might also have trouble sleeping, have mood swings, be
impulsive and appear to be unaware or unconcerned about the consequences of
their actions. Children with emotional disabilities may need therapy or
counseling.
Emotional
Injury: Also
referred to as emotional abuse, hurts a child's emotional development. It occurs
when attitudes or actions repeatedly happen in a family that negatively affect
the way a child feels about him/herself. This can impair a youngster's behavior
and ability to function. Emotional abuse happens in all kinds of ways. A lack of
love and support can be devastating. This can take the form of emotional
detachment or a severe lack of affection. Extremely harsh, critical treatment of
a child can cause emotional injury, too. This can include severe punishment,
rejection and verbal assaults that may include belittling, or scape-goating.
Foster
Care: Foster
Care is the substitute family and care that children receive when they have been
removed from a situation where either abuse and/or neglect has occurred and
neither biological parents nor other extended family members can meet a child's
needs. The State agency has placement and care responsibility during this time.
Foster
Care Adoption: Foster
care adoption, also referred to as special needs adoption, is the adoption of
children from state care. These children are typically harder to place based on
their race, ethnicity, age, disability, or part of a sibling group.
Home
study: The
home study is a process as well as a final written document. After the
family’s
completion of Foster/adopt training, the family’s
social worker conducts visits to the home in order to become acquainted with the
household and the community to ensure they can provide a safe environment for a
child. It also allows the social worker to gain a better understanding of how
the family functions within the home. The write-up at the end of the process is
the family’s home
study, which is either approved or denied by the agency.
International
Adoption: The
adoption of a child who is a citizen of a different country than the adoptive
parents.
Learning
Disabilities: Children
with learning disabilities may have average intelligence, but they have
difficulty sorting and storing information. They may have visual or auditory
perception problems that make it difficult for them to learn by reading
directions or by listening. They learn best by seeing and doing. More than 40
percent of special needs children have learning disabilities. Special classes
can help the child with school and learning.
Loss
Issues: When
children lose loved ones through separation, divorce or death, some feel
immediate grief but others may deny their loss. Long-term denial or avoidance of
grief can result in severe problems. Signs that indicate professional help might
be needed include extended depression, loss of interest in daily activities,
inability to sleep, loss of appetite, a drop in school performance,
hyperactivity, aggression and inability to concentrate.
Legally
Free: Legally
free children are those whose birth parents have voluntarily surrendered their
parental rights, or have had them terminated through a court process. These
birth parents have no legal recourse or claim to the involved children.
Legal
Risk: Children
at legal risk are those for whom the process to terminate birth
parents’
rights has not yet concluded. DSS has determined that adoption is in the
child’s
best interest and does not want to delay recruitment of a family while the court
pursues termination of the birth parents’ rights.
The court case can last as long as two years or more until the final decision is
made. In some cases, the birth parents retain the right to visit their child
during the time the case is technically in foster care status. The majority of
legal risk placements result in the foster child being adopted by the
pre-adoptive family.
A
Family For Every Child (AFFEC): A
private, non-profit organization that works in collaboration with the child
welfare system, specifically adoption agencies, to find adoptive families for
children in foster care.
Foster/Adoption
(different name in each state, MAPP, PRIDE, Foundations, etc…):
A
training course required of all prospective adoptive families and foster
families. The trainings usually are in groups of 8-20 individuals, for 3 hours
one day a week for 8 weeks. Its purpose is to help families prepare for adoption
or foster care through understanding the losses that waiting children have
suffered and the birth family issues that can exist.
Neglect:
Situation
that occurs when a child's basic needs are not provided for. Every youngster
needs food, shelter, medical care, supervision, emotional stability and a chance
to grow. When a caregiver withholds these things, a child is neglected. This may
happen deliberately, through negligence or due to an inability to parent. The
environmental circumstances that some parents may face, such as disability,
homelessness or inadequate financial resources, are not seen as sources of
neglect.
Open
Adoption: An
adoption that involves ongoing contact between birth and adoptive families,
sometimes including visits. Each adoption varies in terms of who remains
involved and visitations. Open adoption does not mean shared parenting.
Physical
Abuse: Characterized
by the infliction of physical injury as a result of punching, beating, kicking,
biting, burning, shaking or otherwise harming a child. The parent or caretaker
may not have intended to hurt the child; rather, the injury may have resulted
from over-discipline or physical punishment.
Prospective
Adoptive Family: A family
that is interested in adoption and is either in the midst of the adoption
process and/or waiting for a match with a child.
Public
Adoption Agency: The
public adoption agency is usually the state child welfare agency. For Oregon,
this is the Department of Social Services. Within the state child 27 of the
adoption of all the children who have a goal of adoption. Services are free of
charge through public adoption agencies.
Sexual
Abuse: Occurs
when a child has any sexual contact with an adult. This can happen through
intercourse, which is considered rape under Oregon law. It includes any oral,
genital or anal penetration. Sexual exploitation and molestation are also
considered abuse. They are defined as contacts or interactions with a child that
are used to satisfy an adult's sexual needs and desires. This includes any
verbally enticing language as well as fondling, masturbating or exposure of
sexual organs by the adult. Sex between an adult and child is never
consensual.
School-Aged
Children: Children
age 6 and older, and are generally at an age when they are enrolled in school.
Sibling
Groups: Children
with one or more biological brother or sister.
Special
Needs Adoption: Special
needs adoption, also referred to as adoption through foster care, is the
adoption of children who are in state care. These children are typically harder
to place based on their race, ethnicity, age, disability, or being part of a
sibling group.
Waiting
Child(ren): A child
who is waiting to be adopted.
Waiting
Family: A
family who has completed Foster/adoption training and the home study process,
has been approved to adopt and is waiting for an appropriate match to be
found.
If you have any additional questions feel free to
contact me any time!
A Family For Every Child
Associate Director
(541)343-2856
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