Structuring the Everyday: Family Routines in the Care of Adopted Children with Special Needs

Abstract

Understanding how family life is reorganized following the adoption of children with special needs is essential for informing adoption practices and post-adoption support systems. This qualitative study explored the everyday routines of three families who adopted children with special needs and entered the adoption process with prior awareness of the children’s conditions. Employing a multiple case study design, data were generated through semi-structured interviews, a routine inventory, and systematic field diary observations. Across cases, core daily activities clustered around caregiving domains such as feeding, hygiene, rest, and leisure, typically occurring within the home and involving various caregivers, including parents, siblings, and, in some instances, nannies. Despite these shared domains, notable variations emerged in how routines were structured, who participated in them, and the settings in which they unfolded. These differences reflected the specific needs of each child as well as the organizational patterns and socioeconomic resources of each family. The findings suggest that family routines following special needs adoption are highly adaptive and context-sensitive rather than uniform. This research highlights the importance of flexible, family-centered support strategies in adoption services and underscores the need for policies and interventions that acknowledge the diverse ways families accommodate the demands of special needs caregiving in everyday life.

Keywords: Special Needs; Special Education; Inclusion; Early childhood