British Chinese Adoption Study

The British Chinese Adoption Study is a long-term follow up study of a group of 100 girls brought from orphanage care in Hong Kong to the UK for adoption in the 1960s and early 1970s. This research is being carried out by BAAF and has been funded by the Nuffield Foundation.

This study builds on a feasibility study that was also funded by the Nuffield Foundation and carried out by BAAF. It explores the women's experiences across a range of areas including relationships, family formation, education, employment and physical and mental health. Participants were asked to complete a questionnaire pack and take part in a face-to-face interview to help us find out more about their lives. The information collected is being compared with findings from other studies to explore the possible links between early childhood experiences and adult outcomes.

The researchers

BAAF is carrying out this research in collaboration with Professor Alan Rushton from King's College, London who is the academic consultant for this project. The three other researchers are based at BAAF. The BAAF team is led by Julia Feast supported by Dr. John Simmonds and Margaret Grant.

Information to be gained from the study

This is an important scientific study. There has been a longstanding interest in the way that the early experiences of children have an impact on development in adolescence and adulthood. This study has already looked at a lot of that evidence and has used it to make sure that we are asking relevant questions in the right way so that any results and conclusions will be seen to be significant and valid. We have thought a lot about the impact of both the good as well as the challenging things that happen to people throughout childhood, adolescence and adulthood and what science has already told us about this. We have worked hard to make sure that this has been taken into account as well. We think that this study has important things to say to the scientific community, those that work in or have a personal connection to adoption and society at large.

The relevance of this study today

Adult follow-up studies are rare in the field of intercountry adoption, so this study provides a unique opportunity to learn more about the long-term outcomes for people adopted from overseas. Many Chinese girls continue to be placed in the UK and other Western countries for adoption - it is estimated that more than 70,000 children were brought to Western countries for adoption between 1998 and 2006 (including more than 2,000 to the UK). Over the past few years approximately half of all children adopted from overseas to the UK have been girls from China. This study will therefore have international importance and help refine practice and policy for intercountry adoption to ensure that the needs of children are kept at the forefront.

For further information

The women who took part in this study were adopted through the Hong Kong Adoption Project. All of the adoptions took place in the 1960s and early 1970s and were arranged through International Social Services working in partnership with National Children's Home & Orphanage (now Action for Children) and Barnardo's fostering and adoption. If you would like to know more about the study, please contact the project manager Julia Feast at BAAF.

A network called the UK Hong Kong (Adult) Adoptees Network has also been established for people adopted from Hong Kong and meets in different locations in the country to try and give everyone the opportunity to attend. These are open to anyone (adult) adopted from Hong Kong – please email hkadoptees@btinternet.com for further information.