With the increasing number of Adoptees in Sweden, so has the amount of literature regarding different aspects of adoption. The aim of this study is to explore the construction of Adoptees in children's literature. It takes on a social constructionism view, by regarding language as a narrative tool in which human beings construct versions of different phenomenon. By exploring the different discourses in the data within the context adoption, we can identify different versions of "the adopted child" and their needs as it is constructed in the literature. Also, by putting them in a bigger context, we are allowed to see the social structures and the discursive conditions that allow a certain child perspective of "the adopted child" to take place.

Problem area of this Bachelor thesis is the mental illness of internationally adopted at the age of 16-26. Our study focuses on a compilation of previous results from positivistic researches in the first question formulation. In the second and third question formulations a narrative text analysis, through hermeneutically interpret risk and prevention factors, is carried out for the life of internationally adopted that can lead to mental health/illness and how they apprehend to be Adoptees. The purpose is to get a comprehensive understanding at individual, group and society's view of their lives. Further intention is to interpret the material for possible approach angles on further research.

From an Evolutionary psychology point of view focusing on Attachment theory will this essay describe how adopted adults think about their roots. To find an answer to this purpose a several miner questions has been asked: Are their any earlier research according to Evolutionary psychology about internationally adopted? Is it possible to understand the creation of the identity in relation to the Attachment theory? In what way do the Adoptees think that their youth has effected their situation of life? And finally, is there any specific time when the Adoptees have had even more thoughts about their roots?We have tried to find the answer on these questions through a qualitative study. Questions have been asked to eight internationally adopted adults, in age between 24-33 years.The result from the study makes it even that adopted individuals thoughts about their roots get incensed in some specific periods in life. One period is adolescence, another is parenthood.

The aim of this study was to examine how adoptive parents related to parenting and how they related to their children?s biological origin. Issues that were used were how adoptive parents described their own parenting, how they described their own thoughts about their children eventually wanting to search their biological origin and how adoptive parents described the child´s country of birth attitudes towards Adoptees wishes to search their biological origin. The method used was qualitative research interviews. The theory that was used for analyzing the collected data was attachment theory.

AbstractThe aim of this essay is to bring understanding to one of the problems theinternationally adopted in Sweden might face, the identity dilemma. In order to do so, a theory of identity construction, Constructionism, is used. This theory says that the construction of identities is a constantly continuing process, influenced, not only by our own perception of ourselves, but also by how we are viewed and treated by otherpeople.Given this theoretic starting point, an examination of the Adoptees? everydayencounters in the Swedish society is made, using an autobiography, a biography, a collection of interviews, and newspaper articles. The result shows that the internationally adopted, although they are Swedish both by mind and by law, experience that they have been, and sometimes still are, confronted with strong attitudes such as racism, prejudice and stereotypes.Furthermore, those who experience the identity dilemma often refer to how they are perceived by ?the others?, or to what the encounters with ? the real? Swedes have been like.

Till Sverige har det idag från utlandet adopterats ca 49 500 personer. Bland dessa personer har psykisk ohälsa och social problematik visat sig vara vanligt förekommande. I Folkhälsorapport 2009 uppmärksammas att barn som adopteras från länder utanför Europa vårdas två till tre gånger så ofta på sjukhus under ungdomsåren på grund av psykiatrisk sjuklighet, som ungdomar födda i Sverige. När det handlar om hälsa hos adopterade är det viktigt att beakta den speciella livssituation som det innebär att vara adopterad. Internationellt adopterade individer växer ofta upp i familjer med bättre socioekonomiska förhållanden, än den genomsnittliga ungdomen i Sverige.