Adoptee Quality of Life Questions

The 31 questions that make up the AdopteeQOL measure of quality of life for 16-25-year-old adoptees

These questions were developed from focus groups with adoptees. They were then refined via a series of interviews with 16-25-year-old adoptees. This process was part of a participatory research project developing a measure of adoptee quality of life. The questions are based on adoptee experiences, and what they prioritised as being most relevant to their quality of life.

Young people have reviewed each question and considered how it feels to answer a question like that, and whether it might be triggering. In some cases there are questions which young people felt were difficult to answer but were important to include because of their relevance to their quality of life.

Each questions is a statement. The adoptee completing the measure reads the statement and responds on an agree/disagree scale.

1 - Strongly disagree

2 - Disagree

3 - Somewhat disagree

4 - Neither agree nor disagree

5 - Somewhat agree

6 - Agree

7 - Strongly agree

Questions are grouped in their themes

In cases where a question is relevant to more than one theme, I have listed them more than once. However, they are listed in plain text in their main theme, and in italics under the additional themes they are relevant for.

Identity

I feel well supported towards becoming an adult

I have felt the need to mask, or change or hide parts of my life story

I feel disconnected from my life story

I feel connected to my birth family

My ability to live my life to the full is held back by adoption

I feel different from my adoptive family

Connecting with other adoptees helps me feel happier or more supported

As an adoptee, I recognise that my relationships with family and friends will feel different

These questions are also relevant to this theme, but they sit in a different theme:

I have access to the information I need (this could be from adoption records or elsewhere) to make sense of my adoption

I have experienced bullying for being adopted

When I feel people don’t understand me, my behaviour gets worse

My school/ college/ education setting or workplace gives me the support I need

Communicative Openness

I feel uncomfortable when people I don't know that well ask me personal questions about adoption

There is at least one person in my life I can talk to, who will really listen, about my experiences of adoption

These questions are also relevant to this theme, but they sit in a different theme:

I feel it's acceptable for me to express grief or sadness about my adoption if I want to

In my adoptive family, my feelings are accepted and listened to

I have access to the information I need (this could be from adoption records or elsewhere) to make sense of my adoption

I have felt the need to mask, or change or hide parts of my life story

Trauma

Thoughts about adoption can get in the way when I’m trying to focus on other things

I have experienced bullying for being adopted

I feel it's acceptable for me to express grief or sadness about my adoption if I want to

I have experienced discrimination based on being different from my adoptive family

I still experience difficulties because of my early life experiences

I feel like the adoption system is designed to put my needs first

These questions are also relevant to this theme, but they sit in a different theme:

I feel uncomfortable when people I don't know that well ask me personal questions about adoption

I feel well supported towards becoming an adult

I have felt the need to mask, or change or hide parts of my life story

Family time

If it's safe and I'm ready, I am open to meeting someone from my birth family or life before adoption

These questions are also relevant to this theme, but they sit in a different theme:

I feel my birth family are available to me in a way that meets my wishes

I feel connected to my birth family

Relationships

If I wanted to meet with somebody from my birth family or life before adoption, I feel I would be able to do that

I feel like I can be myself with my adoptive family

I feel my birth family are available to me in a way that meets my wishes

I find it hard to form close relationships with people

These questions are also relevant to this theme, but they sit in a different theme:

I feel that my adoptive parent(s) understand(s) what it’s like to be an adoptee

I have felt the need to mask, or change or hide parts of my life story

I feel connected to my birth family

Connecting with other adoptees helps me feel happier or more supported

My school/ college/ education setting or workplace gives me the support I need

Emotions

In my adoptive family, my feelings are accepted and listened to

My mental health experiences feel unique because I'm adopted

I am always trying to consider how everyone else feels about my adoption

I am scared that I might get rejected in my friendships or relationships

This question is also relevant to this theme, but it sits in a different theme:

There is at least one person in my life I can talk to, who will really listen, about my experiences of adoption

Behaviour

When I feel people don’t understand me, my behaviour gets worse

This question is also relevant to this theme, but it sits in a different theme:

I still experience difficulties because of my early life experiences

Support

I have access to the information I need (this could be from adoption records or elsewhere) to make sense of my adoption

I feel that my adoptive parent(s) understand(s) what it’s like to be an adoptee

I feel I can access counselling or therapy from someone who understands adoption, if I need to

I feel supported to overcome challenges that prevent me from living my life in the way that I want

My school/ college/ education setting or workplace gives me the support I need

The questions are provided here for information purposes only. Please do not use them until the measure is released.

Once released, the measure will be free to use and reproduce, subject to creative commons licence CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

This license enables reusers to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon the material in any medium or format for noncommercial purposes only, and only so long as attribution is given to the creator. If you remix, adapt, or build upon the material, you must license the modified material under identical terms.

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