Korean Adoptees’ Reports of Intrusive Interactions: Exploring Boundary Management in Families

• In Event: Adoptive Family Communication

Abstract

Intrusive interactions occur when the adoptive family is asked by an outsider to respond to a comment or question about the family’s composition. Examples include questions such as, “Is your daughter adopted?” This paper explores these interactions from the perspective of Korean adult adoptees, examining what these adoptees recalled experiencing and their reports and evaluations of their family members’ responses. Boundary management (Galvin, 2006b) is the theoretical framework used to examine these interactions.

Author

• Sara Docan-Morgan, University of Wisconsin, LaCrosse