Perceptions of Adjustment to Stepfamily Living - Case Study Example

The present case study will examine the perceptions held by stepfamily members on their adjustment to stepfamily living. The study will focus on individual characteristics in adjustment, and therefore take into consideration the often overlooked perspective of the child, as well as the perspective of the biological parent within the step-relationship, and the stepparent. Participants in this study will consist of stepfamilies, whereby biological parents with physical and legal custody of their children have entered into a relationship with a new spouse. The age of the child to be included will be limited from age thirteen to eighteen. This case study will help individuals, couples, and families determine how to meet stepfamily challenges through a clearer understanding of how their own perceptions are contingent upon particular outcomes. This study will additionally contribute to the fields of social science, psychology and family therapy by adding to the already existing body of knowledge on stepfamily functioning. Finally, such information would be particularly valuable to professionals in the field who can draw on the findings to assist them as they work with stepfamilies in their daily practice, and to understand the value of the utilization of the therapeutic process. Introduction Stepfamilies are becoming an increasingly more common type of family in almost all countries, especially in the UK and USA. Increasing parental separation over past decades means that approximately one million children under 18 years of age will experience the divorce of their parents. A large population pool for remarriages and the formation of stepfamilies is created by high divorce rates. Estimates project that 50-60 percent of couples in first marriages will separate (Degarmo & Forgatch, 2002; Jones, 2003; Waite & Gallagher, 2000). Research indicates that women (mothers) ordinarily re-partner within 3-5 years post-separation and men (fathers) typically re-partner within 1-2 years of separation (Hughes, 2000), most of these include children from a prior marriage, and thus, stepfamilies are formed. While educational, social, and economic factors present unique barriers to stepfamilies, societal stereotyping is another major challenge that stepfamilies encounter (Aronson, 1992). The negative stereotyping of stepfamilies may lead new members of stepfamilies to expect negative outcomes which can then increase the chance of family disharmony. The stereotypes and cultural values may be associated with increased difficulties for stepfamilies in adjusting to a larger social system that sees them in a potentially negative manner. Literature review Wilkes and Fromme (2002) investigated the stability over time of themes in the experiences of biological parents, stepparents, and adolescents in stepfamilies. Twelve adolescents, ten stepparents, and nine biological parents from ten stepfamilies that participated, completed follow-up questionnaires that sought to determine if the themes found in the earlier study were still present in their stepfamilies four years later. The results indicated areas that remained stable over time and areas of positive change and adjustment. The results also suggested the need for further research about the specific factors that shape adjustment to stepfamilies. Stepfamily relationship research has focused on step relationships with particular emphasis on stepparent-stepchild relationships, despite increasing evidence that residential bioparent-child relationships can be negatively impacted through remarriage and stepfamily living. In a project by Cartwright (2003), nine stepfamily therapists were interviewed about their experiences of the bioparent-child dyad in stepfamilies. They observed that children often experience a loss of attention or time associated with the parent’s repartnering and can feel displaced by the new relationship. Another theme identified by the therapists was that of concerns with the essential differences in meaning that remarriage has for parents and children, and the different expectations they often have of the new household that has formed. There have been additional contributions to the literature on stepfamilies and remarriage, with particular emphasis being placed on underlying theories. Using family systems theory as a framework, the primary research question Berg (2003) addressed was whether the relative influence of each parent on adolescents’ self-esteem and adjustment depended primarily on their status as custodial, step-, or nonresident parents, and whether these influences differed for adolescents with stepmothers, compared to those with stepfathers. This research suggests that the importance of perceived closeness for adolescents may operate differently in affecting self-esteem within stepmother and stepfather families. According to Downs (2003), the main premise of “uncertainty reduction theory” is that individuals seek to reduce uncertainty that they experience in interacting with others (Berger & Calabrese, 1975). Individuals are motivated to reduce uncertainty in order to explain past behavior, as well as to predict future behavior, as well as to predict future behavior in social interactions (Berger & Calabrese, 1975). The emphasis on explanation and prediction of behavior in “uncertainty reduction theory” shares an important link with the concept of future orientation in the marital commitment literature. One’s uncertainty is reduced when family commitment is high, and the family relationships are expected to endure into the future. Research Setting The participants in this study will be stepfamilies, in which biological parents with physical and legal custody of their children have entered into a new relationship with a spouse, defined as a stepfamily. The families will be classified for demographic purposes in that the child is the father’s/mother’s biological child with a step-mother/-father present. Unlike much of the past research when only parents reported on adjustment factors, a child will also participate in completion of inventories in this research study. Participants will consist of stepmothers and biological fathers, stepfathers and biological mothers, and the oldest child of the biological parent living within the home. The selection criteria for stepfamilies will stipulate that the duration of the stepfamily relationship be at least six months and that at least one biological child reside in the household at least six months. This duration of stepfamily living has been chosen so as to prevent limiting the sample too aggressively, and whereby family perception and adjustment can be best addressed, assessed, and understood. The age of the child to be included will be limited from age thirteen to eighteen, since the research instruments chosen for this study are valid for use with this age range. The Demographic Inventory (DI) has been adapted from the larger scale inventory developed by Crosbie-Burnett (1984). The DI is a self-report instrument developed for the purpose of assessing predictor variables, such as demographic data associated within remarried families. The DI contains questions about characteristics of the participants, such as socioeconomic data, educational background, employment information, religious preference, and marital history. The questions are grouped pertaining to family, couple, and youth. As the inventory has been devised for use by parent, stepparent, and youth, it will be completed by each participant during this research study. Data Summary All questionnaire data will be analyzed and tabulated for both positive and negative adjustment, the frequency of responses will be calculated and descriptive statistics will be reported as means + SD. Statistically, a measure of correlation analysis will be employed to evaluate the degree of relationship (correlation) between the scores in the distributions from the biological parent, stepparent, and the child. Since the SAS will be utilized with a population of test takers that differs from the population on which the test was standardized, validation studies will be necessary. Finally, variables associated with either past or present utilization of therapy, will be analyzed to further determine if these categorical variables have an influence on the outcome variable of adjustment to stepfamily living, for each of the stepfamily members, the biological parent, the stepparent, and the child. Since the mathematical procedures used in factor analysis are very complex, this researcher will utilize the SPSS statistical software package for all data analysis. Interview Schedule to be filled in by the Child (Student) C1. I resent the loyalty this child has for the biological father when I’m doing the day-to-day fathering. TRUE OFTEN TRUE RARELY TRUE NOT TRUE C2. This child tries to run this family too often. TRUE OFTEN TRUE RARELY TRUE NOT TRUE C3. I feel free to have any kind of relationship I want (or no relationship at all) with this child. TRUE OFTEN TRUE RARELY TRUE NOT TRUE C4. I feel relaxed around this child. TRUE OFTEN TRUE RARELY TRUE NOT TRUE C5. This child supports my suggestions. ALMOST OFTEN RARELY PRACTICALLY ALWAYS NEVER C6. This child is interested in listening to my day-to-day ups and downs. ALMOST OFTEN RARELY PRACTICALLY ALWAYS NEVER C7. To what extent does this child accept my authority over him/her? ALMOST OFTEN RARELY PRACTICALLY ALWAYS NEVER C8. When I am being close to or having fun with one of my stepchildren or with my wife, does this child interfere? ALMOST OFTEN RARELY PRACTICALLY ALWAYS NEVER C9. When my wife and I are arguing, does this child interfere? ALMOST OFTEN RARELY PRACTICALLY ALWAYS NEVER C10. This child does a nice thing for me without my asking (like: telling me I look nice, offer to fix me something to eat, invite me to go somewhere, etc.) ONCE A DAY ONCE A ONCE A ALMOST OR MORE WEEK MONTH NEVER C11. How often do I have fun with this child (Includes: laughing together, going out and having a good time) ONCE A DAY ONCE A ONCE A ALMOST OR MORE WEEK MONTH NEVER C12. The relationship this CHILD WANTS with me is (take a guess) DISTANT COOL WARM CLOSE C13. The relationship I WANT with this child is DISTANT COOL WARM CLOSE C14. The relationship WE HAVE NOW is DISTANT COOL WARM CLOSE C15. Overall, the message I get from this child is… I’M GLAD IT IS RATHER YOU I WISH YOU ARE OKAY WERE NOT YOU WERE WITH US NOT WITH US C16. To me, this child is mostly JUST ANOTHER FRIEND ADDITIONAL TAKING THE PERSON OR CHILD PLACE OF MY NIECE/NEPHEW BIOLOGICAL CHILD C17. Getting along with this child is NOT MILDLY IMPORTANT VERY IMPORTANT IMPORTANT IMPORTANT C18. When I want this child to know something important, I tell the child directly (rather than asking someone else to tell the child). ALMOST OFTEN RARELY PRACTICALLY ALWAYS NEVER C19. I know what kind of relationship this child wants with me, because he/she… HAS TOLD ME HAS HINTED I JUST KNOW I’M NOT SURE IN WORDS IN ACTIONS WHAT HE/SHE WANTS C20. My relationship with this child is... BAD FAIR GOOD EXCELLENT References Aronson, E. (1992). The social animal. New York: W. H. Freeman and Company. Berg, E. C. (2003). The effects of perceived closeness to custodial parents, stepparents and non-residential parents on adolescent self-esteem. Journal of Divorce & Remarriage, 40, 69- 86. Berger, C. R & Calabrese, R. J (1975), Some exploration in initial interaction and beyond: Toward a developmental theory of interpersonal communication. Human Communication Research, 1, 99-112. Cartwright, C. (2003). Therapists’ perceptions of bio-parent-child relationships in stepfamilies: What hurts? What helps? Journal of Divorce & Remarriage, 38, 147-166. Crosbie,-Burnett, M. (1984), Assessment of stepfamily adjustment. Dissertation Abstracts International, 44(9), 2890-B Degarmo, D. S & Forgatch, M. S. (2002). Identity salience as a moderator of psychological and marital distress in stepfather families. Social Psychology Quarterly, 65(3), 266-285 Downs, K. J. M. (2003). Family commitment, role perceptions, social support, and mutual children in remarriage: A test of uncertainty reduction theory. Journal of Divorce & Remarriage, 40, 35-53. Hughes, J. (2000). Re-partnering after divorce: Marginal mates and unwedded women. Family Matters, 55, 16-21. Waite, L. J., & Gallagher, M (2000), The case for marriage: Why married people are happier healthier and better off financially. New York: Doubleday. Wilkes, C. & Fromme, D. K. (2002), Stability and change in the experiences of parents, stepparents and adolescents in stepfamilies. Journal of Divorce & Remarriage, 38, 109- 124 Read More