“...jag hade stort behov av att prata om sådant här...” - En kvalitativ studie om internationellt adopterades perspektiv beträffande behov av stöd utifrån att leva som adopterad i Sverige.

Abstract

Sweden is the country with the highest percentage of international adoptees in the world. Based on previous research, we believe that international adoptees are a vulnerable group in society. This based on that they have specific conditions in their luggage, such as traumatic break with their origins, which can affect their mental-being destructively. With reference to this, we wanted to investigate whether adult international adoptees feel that they from the day they came to Sweden until today have had or have needs, according to live as adopted in society and what the underlying causes may be. Furthermore, we intended to examine how adult international adoptees during their life in Sweden experienced variety and availability of support, and if there are more forms of assistance that they might be in need of. Given this purpose, we chose to apply qualitative interviews. Based on the empirical material, which consists of interviews with five adult international adoptees, we sorted out the following main themes: "forms of support" and "social treatment in society". Together these themes answered the questions of our study. The conclusions of the study was that the need of informal and other support among the informants was valued as significant. However, regarding the need for specifically designed formal support the informants' experiences differed, as two of five informants considered themselves to be in need of and desired such assistance. Whereupon our conclusion was, based on empirical data and previous research, that an underlying reason why a need of specifically support exists may depend on how society treats adopted by discrimination and racialization. This we considered can influence on the adoptees mood and experiences regarding need of specifically support. Furthermore, the informants experienced that the supply and availability of specifically designed formal and other support throughout the years has been inadequate. Finally, the informants suggested many new proposals of specifically designed formal support for adoptees.