Elsbeth Neil

Professor Elsbeth Neil is a social worker and Professor of Social Work and Director of Research at the School of Social Work, University of East Anglia, Norwich, England.

She has been undertaking research in the field of adoption since 1996. She has directed a number of large studies including an 18 year longitudinal study focusing on postadoption contact, following to late adolescence a group of adopted children and their birth relatives and adopted parents.

She is currently working on a range of adoption research projects including the study “From being adopted to becoming a parent: when adopted people become parents and adopters become grandparents”.

Beth’s first degree was in Psychology, and she has an MA and PhD in Social Work. She has several years’ experience working in social work and social care settings, but since 1999 has been working full time teaching social workers and researching at the UEA. In 2006 she organised and chaired ICAR2 in Norwich, England.

Title of presentation: Studying adoptive families beyond childhood: What do we know about adoptive families when adoptees become parents?

Abstract: It is important to consider the lifelong impact of adoption, but many studies focus on families during childhood and adolescence. What happens later on in the adoptive family life cycle when adopted people become parents themselves, and adopters move into grandparenting roles? How do adopted adults view their life histories and identity when they become a parent? Do early adversities experienced by adoptees affect them as parents, and does becoming a parent mark a turning point in their lives? What is it like for adoptive parents to become grandparents and what role do they play in supporting their adult children and their grandchildren?

This presentation will explore questions such as emerging findings from a new in-depth qualitative study of 40 adoptees who are parents, and 40 adopters who are grandparents. The research uses life story interview methods to learn about how adopted men and women (who are now mothers and fathers), and adoptive parents (who are now grandmothers and grandfathers) experience and make sense of their lives when the next generation arrives. With a focus on people who were adopted or who adopted a child in England in the last 30 years, the study shines light on the longer term outcomes of domestic adoption via the child protection system.