FamiLee Life

Korean Orphanages :: Fieldwork Notes

I am now back in Minnesota after spending 20 days in South Korea to attend the IKAA conference and to conduct fieldwork on orphanages and domestic adoption and then another 4 days in San Francisco to attend conventions for the Asian American Psychological Association and the American Psychological Association. It is good to be back to familiar territory, despite the jet lag.

The most memorable part of the trip for me was the opportunity to visit the orphanages, meet children, speak with the directors, and to learn more about the social welfare system in South Korea. I am thankful to staff and volunteers at InKAS and GOA'L, and to my university colleagues in South Korea (Drs. Kim and Sung) who took time to answer my questions.

For the past couple of years, I have been working with my graduate student and Dr. Sung in South Korea to compare the behavioral development of Korean children adopted internationally and Korean children reared domestically in orphanages. Until this trip, I had to rely upon the firsthand knowledge of my two collaborators to understand orphanage care in South Korea.

I was lucky to visit two distinct types of orphanages - one in Seoul and the other in Mokpo. There were many similarities but also key differences between these two orphanages. Both orphanages were supported by government aid and public donation. The ratio of aid/donation ranged from 60/40 to 80/20. By one estimate, it cost about $200/month to provide basic care for a child (food, accommodation, clothing, etc). Education is separate and covered wholly by the government. Some orphanages have dormitory living arrangements and others have apartment style homes. Some orphanages have more resources for computers, tv, playgrounds, etc and others have less. Some orphanages are explicitly Christian in mission and other orphanages are more secular with stronger governmental ties. All orphanages had around 60-75 children of varying ages (infant to over 18 years old), numerous volunteers and paid staff, a strong group bond/affiliation among children, and children who expressed a range of emotion, personality, and interests. Kids were healthy and seemingly happy, though (of course) what was revealed to me is only what they chose to reveal. All but a few of the children in these orphanages had living parents who placed the in orphanage care, but had not relinquished parental rights.

I also had a chance via the IKAA conference and Korean university colleagues to learn more about the politics behind social welfare policy and public awareness in South Korea. As with all such cross-cultural exchanges, there is much lost in translation and also much learned by how things are said and what things are not said. Having grown up in a Korean family/culture, I was able to pick up some of these nuances in my interactions. I suspect other foreigners (scholars, adoptive parents and other visitors) may not catch these nonverbal cues and thus wholly accept what is being explicitly told to them.

Public attitudes and social welfare policies are changing ever so slowly. The idea of paternal responsibility has changed drastically in the last decade. In the past, following divorce, fathers and the paternal family had custody of the children. These days, mothers retain custody but many eventually place children in orphanage care because the system does not provide adequate support for single mothers. Fathers are not held at all responsible. Domestic adoption is on the rise and now constitutes about 40% of all adoptions (the remaining are intercountry). Foster care only exists for children awaiting adoption and is run through the adoption agency. Children are not eligible for international adoption until after 6 months to encourage domestic adoption. The government will now pay for the fees for domestic adoption, including adoption by single parents.

In addition to orphanages, I also visited a social welfare agency that facilitated adoption and provided temporary care for infants and young children. The facilities are spacious, clean, well resourced, and amply staffed. Staff are friendly and well trained with most having a social work degree. Still, it was tough to see so many infants in one room alone. But it was hopeful to see how well they were cared by the staff. Infants in these homes are there on a temporary basis because birth family (i.e., mothers) are overwhelmed, struggling financially, or contemplating placement for adoption. Interestingly, staff never mentioned domestic violence or abuse as a reason for temporary care, but government reports suggest that a sizable portion of children are placed in orphanage/agency care because of violence/abuse.

This young, 6-month old boy has epilepsy and was being temporarily cared for at the adoption agency. According to an agency worker, 50% of the children return to the birth family, 20% are transferred to orphanages, and 30% are adopted.

These infants were contently sleeping. The caregiver was preparing their next meal. The caregiver/child ratio is about 1 to 7 at this agency.

The fieldwork was very eye opening in so many ways. It is a difficult issue to change public attitudes and social policy. It seems money is the root of much of the problem. Families dissolve over financial strain; birth mothers cannot care for a child without support from fathers and government; agencies must rely on donations because the government aid is insufficient; foster care is limited and pay for foster families is embarrassingly low (some estimate only $50/month/child); Korean adoption agencies receive more money to facilitate international adoption than domestic adoption; foreign agencies likewise make more money to facilitate international adoption than domestic adoption via foster care. Lost in the mix is the welfare of the children; yet everyone claims to have the best interest of the children. Oftentimes, I seriously wonder and struggle to know what is the best interest?

What I do believe is that change begins through the empowerment of the people and, at the same time, from radical change from the top of the hierarchy. Government officials kept saying at the IKAA Conference that Korean adoption began because of poverty following the war and then in the next breath would say that South Korea is now the 12th or 11th or 13th largest economy in the world. The rhetoric is always the same and always seriously flawed in its logic. Not ever said is what the government is doing today to improve the social welfare of children.

Change is now.

Posted by richlee at August 20, 2007 08:13 AM