Madonna's actions are convincing the public that it is easier to adopt children from abroad, a charity has warned.
Madonna, 48, sparked controversy following her decision to adopt one-year-old Malawian David Banda. The boy is currently at Madonna's London home after the star was granted a temporary custody order, which she said makes her a "foster parent".
She brought the child out of Malawi last month.
But if UK adults do not consider adoption from the country where they live it would be "disastrous" for the 4,000 children who need a home each year, according to David Holmes, chief executive of the British Association for Adoption & Fostering (BAAF).
A poll of 1,000 people aged 16 and above released shows that 74% thought that overseas adoption was easier than adopting a child from the UK, and 58% believed that British people adopt more children from abroad than from this country.
The GMTV poll was commissioned by BAAF.
Mr Holmes said: "Overseas adoption has received so much attention over the past month, and we believe this has distorted public perception. People think it's common and easy.
"This is not true. There are fewer than 400 adoptions from abroad to the UK each year. You must go through the same rigorous assessment and approval process as you would if adopting a UK child, as well as complex negotiations with the country from which you want to adopt.
"And if people think it's harder to adopt a child from this country than a child from elsewhere, they may not consider domestic adoption. This would be disastrous for the 4,000 vulnerable children needing adoption across the UK every year."
The charity said all children separated from their biological families, whether in the UK or abroad, will need support and commitment to help them overcome the challenges they face.
