Examination of how white adoptive parents racially socialize black/biracial adoptees

This dissertation was concerned with the efforts of White adoptive parents to promote enculturation and racial inculcation processes by helping their adopted Black children to develop a positive racial identity and strategies for effectively coping with racism. This dissertation study, drawing from transcripts of in-depth interviews, identified and analyzed themes in the lessons about race conveyed within families formed through transracial adoption. The central aim of this dissertation was to examine how these race lessons connect family members to and perpetuate or challenge U.S. society?s existing racial hierarchy. In this study, I used the notion of White racial framing to move outside of the traditional arguments for or against transracial adoption and to explore how a close analysis of the adoptive parents? race lessons may serve as a learning tool for fostering more inclusive and democratic forms of family, community, and teaching and learning processes.