A adoção de crianças maiores e a contrução do vínculo familiar

Abstract

This work sought to understand the constitution of familial bonds in the adoption of older children by taking into account foster families’ perspective. Family bonds lay the foundations of the individual’s psychic constitution and comprise the subjective process. However, as the development of the relationship between parents and children is not restricted to the biological conception of the family bond, filiation follows a symbolic dimension that makes it possible to parents to desire a child as well as to allow a non-biological family to develop parenting and filiation relationships. Though myths and prejudices permeate adoption, still it is a very important device for older children and teenagers to enjoy the right of being part of a family. There are difficulties in establishing familial bonds by adoption. Not only experiences of family rupture and traumatic experience leave traces in child psychic making up but also mishaps in parenthood making, which relates to fantasies of foster parents and to feelings arising from the condition of infertility and difficulty in living with differences. The research followed psychoanalysis theoretical and methodological procedures. The study strategy adopted was the case building. The analysis of data followed methodological procedures related to psychoanalysis. One family gave an interview, answering questions related to the research subject; the other family participated in five familial psychological care sessions and gave an interview answering questions related to the research interests. It stands out the fragility of bonds construction, the impacting insertion of four children in the family dynamics, changes in relationships between siblings, issues relating to the family of origin and the interrelationship of unconscious aspects interwoven in the desire to adopt, which are beyond of what the family is able to think of and understand. Case 2 brings the analysis of a family consisting of a couple with two adult-blooded children and two sisters who were welcomed by the family in an irregular adoption process. The making up of the second case includes issues such as the insecurity experienced by the family before the specificity of the adoption, the relationship with the family of origin, the symbolic place of the sisters in families, fraternal relationships, and the repetition of patterns in the familial functioning. Our analysis point out the importance of exploring unconscious aspects interwoven in the adoption bonds of older children process and discussing it largely, so that to favor gradual changes in the social imaginary and in prejudice matters.