Handbook on the Clinical Treatment of Adopted Adolescents and Young Adults

Description

This collection bridges the voices of international scholars and adopted persons to share knowledge about clinical practice with adopted people in adolescence and early adulthood. Coming at a time when countries are beginning to focus on adoption reform, this handbook is the first to address not only the external, systemic contributions to their developmental complexities but also the underlying, internal meanings of being adopted as children become adolescents and mature into adulthood. It explains how adopted clients differ from those not adopted and emphasizes the need for clinical research on adopted people in this older age group. Exploring how clinicians can understand their client’s clinical needs, it offers specific protocols and frameworks for assessment and necessary modifications in language and treatment. With a foreword by Miriam Steele, chapters examine the legal and sociopolitical cultures, policies, and practices in which adoption is embedded, calling for broad systemic change. Embracing theoretical, conceptual, and global perspectives, this handbook is written for clinicians in all disciplines, at all tiers of practice, administration, and training, identifying the key roles they can potentially play in expanding and better focusing our understanding of the psychology of being adopted. Cover Endorsements Half Title Cover Image Title Copyright Dedication The Editors' Memorials Contents Editor Profiles List of Contributors Foreword Part I Introduction: The Impact of the Adoption, Legal, and Mental Health Systems on the Development of Adopted Adolescents and Young Adults 1 The Larger Context of Systemic Factors in the Interface of Adoption, Mental Health, and Family Law: How They Relate to Clinical Practice 2 Where Are We Now? Trends and Observations in Adoption Study in the Netherlands 3 Challenging Adoption Narratives: Adult Adoptees Write Remembrance – Four Australian Case Studies Part II Developmental Complexities and Necessary Modifications for the Assessment 4 Life Begins Before Adoption: A Guide to the Essential Demographic Factors in Assessment and Treatment 5 The Adoptive Family Narrative and Its Effects on the Adopted Person’s Development 6 Understanding the Inner World of the Adopted Person: A Psychoanalytic Conception of the Psychology of Adoption 7 Birth Fathers in Adoption: Into the Light 8 Growing Up Adopted in India – Mental Health and Well-Being: Implications for Therapeutic and Clinical Practice Part III Considerations in Medical Care 9 Adoption Medicine: Special Considerations in Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine and Young Adult Medical Care Part IV The Spectrum of Search and Reunion 10 Revisiting the Meaning of the Search Part V Complexities of Psychotherapeutic Treatment 11 Observations on Clinical Problems and the Need for Shifts in Perspectives 12 Notes on the Psychoanalytic Treatment of the Adopted Person 13 From Fragmented to Firm Foundations in Identity Formation: A Neurosequential Approach to the Treatment of Adopted Adolescents and Young Adults with Early Developmental Trauma 14 Similarities and Differences in Attachment Representations between Late-Adopted and Non-Adopted Adolescents: A Study from Italy 15 Countertransference Challenges in Working with Adopted Adolescents: Notes of a Psychoanalyst in Private Practice Part VI Epilogue Index