Open vs. Closed Adoption

Closed adoption

In a closed adoption, all details are handled by the agency. There is virtually no contact between the birthparents and the adoptive parents and/or the adopted child after adoption. The child might not even know that he or she came into the family through adoption.

In domestic infant adoptions the adoption records are sealed at finalization. The child usually does not know the birthparents’ identity, especially before turning 18. Closed adoption is becoming rare in domestic adoptions but continues to be common in international adoptions.

Open adoption

In open adoption, the adoptive parents meet and often stay in touch with the birthparents. Birth parents and adoptive parents work together to determine the level of openness most comfortable for them. Most adoption agencies now encourage some degree of openness. Birthparents usually play a significant role in choosing their child's adoptive parents. Most agencies gives birthparents biographies of prospective adoptive parents and the birthparents pick the family they want to raise their child. The birthparents and adoptive parents meet and may stay in touch frequently during the pregnancy. The adoptive parents are often able to witness their child's birth. Some families continue to stay in touch through their adoption agency, especially on birthdays and holidays. Others become and remain friends without agency involvement.

Choosing the option that’s right for you

Open vs. closed adoption is no longer absolute. There are many degrees of openness, and it’s important to choose the process that’s right for you. Open adoption can remove some of the mystery from the adoption process and can give both adoptive and birthparents a greater degree of control in the decision-making process. Open adoption also gives adoptive parents the information to answer their children's questions about their ancestry. Open adoptions can also help children accept being adopted because their concerns can be addressed directly by everyone who was involved in the process.

Many adoptive parents find the degree of openness threatening and fear that the birthparents will intrude in their lives or even try to regain custody of the child. Adoptive parent may also worry that the child will be confused about who his/her “real” parents are. It is helpful to understand the following facts about open adoption.

Facts about open adoption

Following are some facts about open adoption from the Child Welfare Information Gateway:

Parties in open (fully disclosed) adoptions are NOT confused about their parenting rights and responsibilities.
Birthmothers do NOT attempt to "reclaim" their children.
Children in open (fully disclosed) adoptions are NOT confused about who their parents are. They do understand the different roles of adoptive and birth parents in their lives.
Differences in adolescent adoptive identity or degree of preoccupation with adoption are NOT related to the level of openness in the adoption.
Adoptive openness does NOT appear to influence an adoptee's self-esteem in any negative way.
Adoptive parents in open adoptions do NOT feel less in control and, in fact, have a greater sense of permanence in their relationship with their child.
Open adoption does NOT interfere with adoptive parents' sense of entitlement or sense that they have the right to parent their adopted child.
Birth mothers in open and ongoing mediated adoptions do NOT have more problems with grief resolution; in fact, they show better grief resolution than those in closed adoptions. Researchers did find that birth mothers in time-limited mediated adoptions (where contact had stopped) had more difficulty resolving grief at the first interview of the study (when the children were between 4 and 12 years old).




		Closed adoption In a closed adoption, all details are handled by the agency. There is virtually no contact between the birthparents and the adoptive parents and/or the adopted child after adoption. The child might not even know that he or she came into the family through adoption. In domestic infant adoptions the adoption records are sealed at finalization. The child usually does not know the birthparents’ identity, especially before turning 18. Closed adoption is becoming rare in domestic adoptions but continues to be common in international adoptions. Open adoption In open adoption, the adoptive parents meet and often stay in touch with the birthparents. Birth parents and adoptive parents work together to determine the level of openness most comfortable for them. Most adoption agencies now encourage some degree of openness. Birthparents usually play a significant role in choosing their child's adoptive parents. Most agencies gives birthparents biographies of prospective adoptive parents and the birthparents pick the family they want to raise their child. The birthparents and adoptive parents meet and may stay in touch frequently during the pregnancy. The adoptive parents are often able to witness their child's birth. Some families continue to stay in touch through their adoption agency, especially on birthdays and holidays. Others become and remain friends without agency involvement. Choosing the option that’s right for you Open vs. closed adoption is no longer absolute. There are many degrees of openness, and it’s important to choose the process that’s right for you. Open adoption can remove some of the mystery from the adoption process and can give both adoptive and birthparents a greater degree of control in the decision-making process. Open adoption also gives adoptive parents the information to answer their children's questions about their ancestry. Open adoptions can also help children accept being adopted because their concerns can be addressed directly by everyone who was involved in the process. Many adoptive parents find the degree of openness threatening and fear that the birthparents will intrude in their lives or even try to regain custody of the child. Adoptive parent may also worry that the child will be confused about who his/her “real” parents are. It is helpful to understand the following facts about open adoption. Facts about open adoption Following are some facts about open adoption from the Child Welfare Information Gateway: Parties in open (fully disclosed) adoptions are NOT confused about their parenting rights and responsibilities. Birthmothers do NOT attempt to "reclaim" their children. Children in open (fully disclosed) adoptions are NOT confused about who their parents are. They do understand the different roles of adoptive and birth parents in their lives. Differences in adolescent adoptive identity or degree of preoccupation with adoption are NOT related to the level of openness in the adoption. Adoptive openness does NOT appear to influence an adoptee's self-esteem in any negative way. Adoptive parents in open adoptions do NOT feel less in control and, in fact, have a greater sense of permanence in their relationship with their child. Open adoption does NOT interfere with adoptive parents' sense of entitlement or sense that they have the right to parent their adopted child. Birth mothers in open and ongoing mediated adoptions do NOT have more problems with grief resolution; in fact, they show better grief resolution than those in closed adoptions. Researchers did find that birth mothers in time-limited mediated adoptions (where contact had stopped) had more difficulty resolving grief at the first interview of the study (when the children were between 4 and 12 years old).