Disruption and Dissolution

What is disruption?

The term disruption is used to describe an adoption which does not continue, resulting in the child returning to foster care and/or to another set of adoptive parent(s).

What is dissolution?

The term dissolution is used to describe an adoption that fails after finalization, resulting in the child returning to foster care and/or another set of adoptive parent(s).

How many adoptions disrupt?

*Most adoptions do not disrupt before legalization; over 80% remain intact. (Groza and Rosenberg, 1998)
*Most adoptions do not dissolve; over 98% are not terminated after legalization. (Groza and Rosenberg, 1998)
*Very few adoptions are contested: less than .1% each year. (Groza and Rosenthal, 1998)
*Adoption disruption and dissolution rates have remained relatively consistent over the past 15 years, ranging between 10 and 20 percent, depending on the type of adoption. (Barth and Berry, 1988)
*Disruption can range as widely as 3% to 53%, depending on group being studied and the calculating techniques being used. (Stolley, 1993)
What kinds of adoptions disrupt?

*Less than 1% of infant adoptions disrupt. (Barth and Berry, 1988)
*10% to 12% of adoptions of children aged three and older disrupt. (Barth and Berry, 1990)
*Of children placed for adoption at ages 6 to 12, the disruption rate is 9.7%. (Barth, 1988)
*Of children placed for adoption at ages 12 to 18, the disruption rate is 13.5%. (Barth, 1988)
*Of children of any age with special needs placed for adoption, the disruption rate is 14.3%. (Groze, 1986)
*Placements of older children and children with histories of previous placements and longer stays in the foster care system are more likely to disrupt (Stolley, 1993)
*The disruption rate increases as the age of the child at the time of adoption increases. (Boyne et al., 1984; Barth and Berry, 1988)
*The overall decrease in disruption percentages in 1988 from 1984 can be traced to the introduction of post-adoption services, an important factor in containing the number of adoption disruptions. (Barth and Berry, 1988)

Bibliography

Barth, R.P. and Berry, M. (1988). Adoption and disruption: rates, risks, and responses. Hawthorne, NY: Adline de Gruyter.

Boyne, J., Denby, L., Kettenring, J.R., and Wheeler, W. (1984). The shadow of success: A statistical analysis of outcomes of adoptions of hard-to-place children. Westfield, NJ: Spaulding for Children.

Groza, V. and Rosenberg, K. (1998). Clinical and practice issues in adoption: bridging the gap between adoptees placed as infants and as older children. Westport, Connecticut: Praeger.

Groze, V. (1986). Special needs adoption. Child and Youth Services Review, 8(4), 363-373.

Stolley, K.S. (1993). Statistics on adoption in the United States. The Future of Children: Adoption, 3(1), 26-42.

This material has been taken from the National Adoption Information Clearinghouse Web site as reviewed and approved for addition to this site on January 12, 2004.

The National Adoption Information Clearinghouse http://naic.acf.hhs.gov, can be reached toll free at 1-888-251-0075,or by e-mail at: naic@calib.com.

Credits: Child Welfare Information Gateway (http://www.childwelfare.gov)