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Elizabeth Martinell Barfoed

Elizabeth Martinell Barfoed

Senior lecturer | PhD in Social Work

Elizabeth Martinell Barfoed

Berättelser om adoption

Adoption Stories

Author

  • Elizabeth Martinell Barfoed

Summary, in English

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.

Department/s

  • School of Social Work

Publishing year

2008

Language

Swedish

Publication/Series

Lund Dissertations in Social Work

Volume

33

Document type

Dissertation

Publisher

Socialhögskolan, Lunds universitet

Topic

  • Social Work

Keywords

  • 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

Status

Published

Supervisor

  • Mats Hilte
  • Katarina Jacobsson

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 1650-3872

Defence date

22 November 2008

Defence time

10:15

Defence place

Socialhögskolan, Lund, Edebalksalen

Opponent

  • Lars-Christer Hydén (professor)