Ensuring the rights of birthmothers to place their children for adoption

Abstract

Some women resign motherhood, abandoning or putting their children up for legal and illegal adoption. Putting a child up for adoption, though being an action provided by law, is permeated by social judgments, preventing psychological counseling and legal acceptance of women guaranteed by law. Thus, guaranteeing the right of putting children up for adoption is fundamental, considering that when mothers do not have conditions to provide them, they might be put at risk. This chapter aims to provide a comprehensive overview on the phenomenon that is the placement of a child for adoption, based on the integration of three qualitative and exploratory studies that examined how placement has been managed from the perspective of health professionals, guardianship counselors, and birthmothers. Seven health professionals, seven guardianship counselors, and three birthmothers who had placed their newborn child for adoption responded to semi-structured interviews, which have been analyzed by content analysis. The analysis is based on the bioecological model. The results point the presence of idealized conceptions of motherhood and maternal love evident in the work of the health professionals of public hospitals and in society as a whole. The methodological challenges and the advances were discussed.