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Previous stepfamily research suggested that the parenting styles of biological parents and stepparents are related to children's behavioral adjustment. Scant research also provided evidence of the significance of combined parenting styles on emerging adults' behavioral adjustment. In conjunction with this literature, the scope of the current study served four purposes. First, the current study examined the degree to which parenting styles predict emerging adults' behavioral adjustment. Second, the degree to which biological parent and stepparent parenting styles predict the emerging adult-biological parent and stepparent relationships was examined. Third, the degree to which the emerging adult-biological parent and stepparent relationships predict adjustment was examined. Fourth, emerging adult-biological parent and stepparent relationships were examined as mediators in the relationship between parenting styles and emerging adults' adjustment. As part of this study, 100 emerging adults who were enrolled in a psychology course at the University of Central Florida were given a series of questionnaires regarding the variables of interest (i.e., parenting style, stepparenting style, biological parent-emerging adult relationships, stepparent-emerging adult relationships, and emerging adults' adjustment). Results of this study provided confirmation of previously held notions that both parenting styles and relationships are predictors of emerging adults' adjustment. Additionally, this study contributes new information concerning the significance of combined parenting styles and the use of parent-emerging adult relationships as a mediator between an authoritative parenting style and emerging adults' adjustment.

This is a qualitative study aiming to study stepparents’ view of the relationships within the stepfamily and their thoughts about what makes it work. It is based upon three stepmothers’ life stories focusing on their relationships with their stepchildren. The study is based on a symbolic interactionistic theory and explores the experiences and unique perceptions of these women in their life as stepparents. The main conclusions of this study are that it is important to begin your journey as a stepparent building a good relationship with the child, prior to acting as a co-parent. The stepmothers all describe different strategies to create a sense of common ground with the child. It is also important to feel support and mandate within oneself and from the family members to act as an important adult. Lack of support makes relationships within the stepfamily difficult. In the absence of clarity when it comes to being a stepparent, it seems that these stepmothers have created their own role, based on their ideas of "good parenting". Emotions play an important part when it comes to how relationships develop within the stepfamily.

This is a qualitative study aiming to study stepparents’ view of the relationships within the stepfamily and their thoughts about what makes it work. It is based upon three stepmothers’ life stories focusing on their relationships with their stepchildren. The study is based on a symbolic interactionistic theory and explores the experiences and unique perceptions of these women in their life as stepparents. The main conclusions of this study are that it is important to begin your journey as a stepparent building a good relationship with the child, prior to acting as a co-parent. The stepmothers all describe different strategies to create a sense of common ground with the child. It is also important to feel support and mandate within oneself and from the family members to act as an important adult. Lack of support makes relationships within the stepfamily difficult. In the absence of clarity when it comes to being a stepparent, it seems that these stepmothers have created their own role, based on their ideas of "good parenting". Emotions play an important part when it comes to how relationships develop within the stepfamily.

abstract: This study applies Relational Dialectic Theory to analyze the stepparent and stepchild relationship of one family. The data is documented in an autoethnography. Autoethnography is an approach to data collection in which the researcher’s own experience is the source of data, and the experience is studied to deepen understandings of social reality. This study highlights the complexity of the stepparent-stepchild relationship, the uncertainty surrounding the stepparent role, and identifies the dialectic tensions that exist within the stepparent-stepchild relationship. The dialectics identified by this study include: emotional-closeness-distance, past-present, autonomy connection, and parent-friend. The findings related to how these dialectic tensions emerge and are managed within stepparent-stepchild relationships have implications for stepparents and spouses of stepparents and for new parents and parents in traditional family structures. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Communication Studies 2015

The objective of this study was to explore the problems existing in stepfamilies, which affect the relationship between stepparents and adolescent children and their effects on the different systems within these families. A qualitative research approach was followed. Three focus groups were conducted with the respondents. These focus groups were exploring the way things are regarding the adolescent stepchildren’s appraisal of the problems of having a stepparent, relating to him/her; their available coping resources; and their coping responses in adjusting to the situation. The respondents reported limited family interaction. It was also discovered that they were not freely expressing their feelings, especially about their stepparents. Their respondents, their biological parents and their stepparents have received limited professional assistance regarding their to-be-established stepfamilies. The outcomes of this study have shown that the stepfamily members need more professional support in terms of coping with the family situation. The stepfamily members need guidance and assistance with the coping responses with the stressors of having a stepfamily. Further research is recommended to describe the stepparents and biological parent’s relationship to their adolescent stepchildren, in order to provide comparative data for the present study. A study can also be conducted to determine further needs of stepfamilies, especially before remarriage, with regards to professional support services, for instance pre-marital counseling, legal issues pertaining to inheritance, wills, maintenance of stepchildren, adoption and custody of stepchildren. / Dissertation (MA (SW) (Play Therapy))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Social Work and Criminology / unrestricted

The present study utilizes the relational turbulence model (RTM) to illuminate stepparent experiences of relational uncertainty and partner interference within the context of the stepparent-biological parent marriage. In-depth, semi-structured interviews with 6 stepparents revealed four primary themes pertaining to how stepparents experienced relational uncertainty: (a) enactment of parenting, (b) competing expectations, (c) shifts in attitude and behavior by spouse, and (d) differences between marriage partners. Interference from partners was experienced by stepparents in relation to the enactment of parenting and the maintaining of the marriage as an intimate relationship.

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<p>Detta är en studie med en kvalitativ ansats som syftar till att undersöka bonusföräldrars behov av riktat stöd i föräldraskapet. Den ombildade familjen består av vuxna som har barn sedan tidigare och denna studie behandlar ombildade familjer där enbart en av de vuxna har barn sedan tidigare. Vidare läggs fokus på bonusförälderns upplevelse av att bli en del i en sådan familj. Studien har genomförts med hjälp av semistrukturerade intervjuer med sju bonusföräldrar. De intervjuade bonusföräldrarnas familjesituationer skilde sig åt på många sätt vilket ger en nyanserad bild av hur en bonusförälder kan uppleva sin situation. Studiens teoretiska utgångspunkt utgörs av rollteori och generell systemteori. I resultatet framkommer att bonusföräldrarna upplever en övergripande tillfredställelse med sin roll inom familjen och även utåt mot skola, myndigheter m.m. De har givits utrymme att själva utveckla sin roll även om de inte reflekterat över det. De har haft möjlighet att söka stöd hos sin partner, sin familj och sina vänner. De flesta problem som bonusföräldrarna upplever är förknippade med den externa föräldern och rör sällan bonusföräldern personligen även om denne påverkas.</p> / <p>This is a study with a qualitative approach, with the purpose of examining bonus parents need of certain support in the parenthood. The reconstructed family consists of adults who have children from before and this research concerns reconstructed families where only one of the adults have children from before. Focus is placed on the bonus parents experiences of becoming a part of that type of family. The research has been conducted through semi structured interviews with seven bonus parents who where recruited through criterion sampling. The family situations of the interviewed bonus parents differed in many ways which offers a diverse picture of how a bonus parent can experience his or her situation. The theoretical basis used in the research is role theory and general system theory. The result shows that the bonus parents experience a general satisfaction with his or her role in the family and also outwards towards school, authorities etc. They have been given the space to develop their role even though they haven’t thought so much about it. They have had the opportunity to seek support through their partner, and among their family and friends. Most of the problems experienced by the bonus parents are associated with the external parent and do seldom concerns the bonus parent in person even if he or she is affected by it.</p>

Detta är en studie med en kvalitativ ansats som syftar till att undersöka bonusföräldrars behov av riktat stöd i föräldraskapet. Den ombildade familjen består av vuxna som har barn sedan tidigare och denna studie behandlar ombildade familjer där enbart en av de vuxna har barn sedan tidigare. Vidare läggs fokus på bonusförälderns upplevelse av att bli en del i en sådan familj. Studien har genomförts med hjälp av semistrukturerade intervjuer med sju bonusföräldrar. De intervjuade bonusföräldrarnas familjesituationer skilde sig åt på många sätt vilket ger en nyanserad bild av hur en bonusförälder kan uppleva sin situation. Studiens teoretiska utgångspunkt utgörs av rollteori och generell systemteori. I resultatet framkommer att bonusföräldrarna upplever en övergripande tillfredställelse med sin roll inom familjen och även utåt mot skola, myndigheter m.m. De har givits utrymme att själva utveckla sin roll även om de inte reflekterat över det. De har haft möjlighet att söka stöd hos sin partner, sin familj och sina vänner. De flesta problem som bonusföräldrarna upplever är förknippade med den externa föräldern och rör sällan bonusföräldern personligen även om denne påverkas. / This is a study with a qualitative approach, with the purpose of examining bonus parents need of certain support in the parenthood. The reconstructed family consists of adults who have children from before and this research concerns reconstructed families where only one of the adults have children from before. Focus is placed on the bonus parents experiences of becoming a part of that type of family. The research has been conducted through semi structured interviews with seven bonus parents who where recruited through criterion sampling. The family situations of the interviewed bonus parents differed in many ways which offers a diverse picture of how a bonus parent can experience his or her situation. The theoretical basis used in the research is role theory and general system theory. The result shows that the bonus parents experience a general satisfaction with his or her role in the family and also outwards towards school, authorities etc. They have been given the space to develop their role even though they haven’t thought so much about it. They have had the opportunity to seek support through their partner, and among their family and friends. Most of the problems experienced by the bonus parents are associated with the external parent and do seldom concerns the bonus parent in person even if he or she is affected by it.