Impact of Christianity and Ancestral Beliefs on Black South Africans’ Decision-Making Regarding the Adoption of Abandoned Children

Abstract

Abstract Annually, hundreds of African infants are abandoned in South Africa and become adoptable because rigorous efforts to trace their parents and family members are unsuccessful. Although domestic adoption is prioritised in terms of legislation, policy and practice, most abandoned children’s right to be permanently raised in a loving family is not being realised. The most promising source of potential adopters is black South Africans, but the number of black adopters is ever declining. To investigate factors affecting black South African’s decision-making regarding the legal adoption of abandoned children, a post-graduate study was undertaken. Thirty-nine black adults participated in the study consisting of adopters, adoption applicants in the screening process, potential adopters that did not enter the screening process, adoption of social workers and citizens. The theory emerging derived from concurrent data gathering and analysis as set out by Corbin and Strauss is: ‘Tensions surrounding adoption policy and practice, and perceptions and experiences of adoption’. This article focuses on a main category of this grounded theory; that African ancestral beliefs and modern Christian beliefs can both reinforce and discourage adoption abandoned children.