"This study ... presents comparable information for 195 countries. The information presented relates to: adoption policies and legislation; multilateral, regional and bilateral treaties on intercountry adoption; levels and trends of total, domestic and intercountry adoptions, and data on selected demographic characteristics of the individuals involved in an adoption, namely, the adopted person, the adoptive parents and the birth parents. The report surveys recent trends and policies on child adoption while providing the cultural and historical background necessary to understand differences in country practices"--P. [iii].