“Are my eyes blue like you?”- Child

“Let’s take a look in the little mirror.”- Mom

“They are brown! They are brown!”- Child

“Yes they are… and they are beautiful.”- Mom

This short dialogue captures a powerful moment for an internationally transracially adopted Chinese child when for the first time, she realizes that she does not look like her parents. This child did not make this discovery in isolation, in a classroom or on the school play yard.

This discovery of self was made in a Chinese socialization program where the adoptive parents were available and the support of peers was ready. All of us belong to an ethnic group by birth. For most of us, our belonging is part of our life experience. For transracially internationally adopted Chinese children, this is not the case. Because the majority of adoptive parents in this population are Caucasian, the children’s birth culture and ethnic identity are removed from their lives. Transracial adoption poses many questions concerning the positive development of the ethnic identity of adopted Chinese children:

What identity challenges will these children face?

Is it important for these children to develop competence in their Chinese birth culture?

How can parents support the development of a healthy Chinese identity when they are not ethnically Chinese?

There are very few research studies on international transracial adoption ethnic identity development, however, some studies can offer guidance. A 1999 study found that many adoptive parents have a tendency to raise their children to be “American” with Chinese culture as a secondary concern. Findings indicated that parents who wanted to maintain a balanced bi-cultural identity for their adopted children found it very challenging, either because of limited access into Chinese communities or lack of support. Another qualitative study indicated that parents had two concerns: they felt that they were outsiders with respect to Chinese culture and felt a lack of control when confronting issues related to their children’s ethnic identity. Cao Wei of the University of Cincinnati found that exposure to families with children from China, programs and events related to Chinese culture was beneficial to an adopted Chinese child’s identity; the children demonstrated great resilience and agency as they negotiated multiple contexts of home and school and were able to better identify with others physically as well as emotionally.

This study suggests in a preliminary manner the importance of exposure to Chinese people and traditions to facilitate Chinese ethnic identity development. The literature reviewed above raises multiple concerns about the positive development of ethnic identity in this population. Specifically, the first challenge in developing a Chinese ethnic identity is lack of exposure to Chinese traditions (i.e., language, music, literature and art), which may later hinder the development of ethnic pride. Second, the children face challenges related to the phenotypic differences between themselves and their parents. Finally, the children face challenges in dealing with prejudices and conflicts they may encounter publicly. Research also suggests that early exposure to Chinese culture in the preschool years will also support ethnic identity development. To address these challenges, Chinese socialization programs have been developed for adopted Chinese children and their families across the country. The children in these types of programs have participated in a variety of curricular topics. The most successful curriculum was designed with a focus on two important features.

First, the curriculum was child-guided, meaning that the children themselves decided what topics to discuss. Second, the curriculum also had to be influenced by existing literature concerning the ITRA population. Important issues include: (1) children’s ability to understand Chinese ethnic traditions (i.e., gestures, language, music, literature and art); (2) children’s ability to relate/connect to their adoptive parents despite differences in phenotypic characteristics; and (3) the children’s ability to deal with prejudices and conflicts they may encounter publicly. These features were essential in creating sensitive, developmentally appropriate and relevant curriculum for the children. These experiences have become crucial for Chinese adopted children. Unfortunately, not all adopted Chinese children take part in these experiences. Today there is a great need for more theory and research to untangle the specific relations between cultural socialization, ethnic identity development, and psychological adjustment among transracially adopted children, as well as to inform parents and practitioners on how to support the challenges that international transracial adopted children will face.

By: Iris Chin Ponte, PhD

Further Reading:

Tessler, R. C., Gamache, G., & Liu, L. M. (1999). East meets west: Americans adopt Chinese Children. Westport, CT: Bergin & Garvey.

Tan, Tony Xing, and Michael J. Nakkula (2004). “White Parents’ Attitudes Toward Their Adopted Chinese Daughters’ Ethnic Identity,” Adoption Quarterly, 7(4).

Cao, Wei (2004). “Children of ‘A Dream Come True’: Identities of Children Adopted from China.” University of Cincinnati. (Dissertation completed in partial fulfillment of requirements for PhD.)

Iris Chin Ponte: is a graduate of Holy Cross College in Worcester, Massachusetts and is currently a Ph.D. Candidate at Tufts University, Department of Applied Child Development. Currently a China Fulbright Scholar, Iris is studying both behavior management in preschool as well as ethnic identity development in adopted Chinese children. In addition, as an IBM Watson Scholar she conducted extensive research in preschools in the United Kingdom, Taiwan, China, Japan and Newfoundland. Iris has also worked for Sesame Street Research at the Children’s Television Workshop in New York. She is also published in the area of children’s play, behavior management, culture and early education, as well as in the area of children and technology.

Iris Chin Ponte is also the firm director and principal consultant for Ponte and Chao Consulting Firm, a private consulting group dedicated to supporting classrooms and education based research projects. If you are interested in starting your own Chinese socialization program, improving a program that you have already started, or learning more about program curriculum please contact iris.ponte@tufts.edu.