Exploring Birth Countries: The Mental Health Implications of Heritage Travel for Children/Adolescents Adopted Internationally

Abstract

Heritage trips are increasingly recognized as beneficial for children adopted internationally for myriad reasons. For example, a large percentage of adults adopted transracially during childhood report birth country travel to be a critical aspect to their ultimate development of positive racial identity. Although generally perceived to be a helpful experience for youth and families, heritage travel is not always without psychological distress. This article describes the theoretical basis for heritage travel, reviews the emerging literature on the mental health impact of heritage trips, and provides anecdotal vignettes to highlight mental health considerations and implications for heritage travel.

KEYWORDS:

• heritage travel
• adoption adjustment
• ethnic/racial identity

Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank Becca Piper and Bea Evans at the TIES Program–Adoptive Family Travel for their thoughtful review and collegial support during the preparation of this manuscript. The authors have traveled as “adjunct support staff” with the TIES Program but are not employed by the agency and did not receive any compensation or payment to write this article.

Notes

Sara is a pseudonym for an actual teen who created a pen pal program following her heritage trip.