Greenhow, SK, Hackett, S, Jones, C and Meins, E (2015) Adoptive family experiences of post-adoption contact in an Internet era. Child & Family Social Work. ISSN 1365-2206

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Abstract

In the UK, post-adoption contact between adoptive and birth families traditionally includes letterbox and/or face-to-face methods of communication. Because of the emphasis in the UK of adoption from the public care system, post-adoption contact is often supported and mediated by social work professionals. The growth in the use of e-communication, through for example social media, has created concerns regarding the use of such technologies for the purposes of ‘virtual contact’ following adoption. This paper reports the findings of a study of this emerging practice. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 11 adoptive parents and six adopted young people. Findings suggest that virtual contact presents both challenges and opportunities for adoptive families. We conclude that virtual contact is complex, but with appropriate boundaries and consideration of different interests, can work well in some cases.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Greenhow, S., Hackett, S., Jones, C. and Meins, E. (2015), Adoptive family experiences of post-adoption contact in an Internet era. Child & Family Social Work, which has been published in final form at http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/cfs.12256 This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-Archiving.
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > H Social Sciences (General) H Social Sciences > HQ The family. Marriage. Woman
Divisions:	Humanities & Social Science
Publisher:	Wiley
Date Deposited:	07 Sep 2015 10:50
Last Modified:	04 Sep 2021 04:32
DOI or ID number:	10.1111/cfs.12256
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/1942

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