Description
Book SynopsisStepfamilies: History, Research, and Policy examines language use, laws, cultural stereotypes, media images, and social policies and practices to create an understanding of how predominant views about stepfamilies and stepfamily members are constructed within society. As the rates of divorce and remarriage continue to increase, it is more important than ever to overcome nuclear family ideology and abandon the model of research that compares stepfamilies with nonstepfamilies. This book shows you how honor and empowerment can be attained in new family structures and how alternative kin networks can be just as healthy as the traditional nuclear family unit.As this book examines the ability of different societies to integrate different family forms into mainstream notions of âœfamily,â you will realize the damaging effects of treating stepfamilies as incomplete, undesirable institutions. In fact, Stepfamilies: History, Research, and Policy will challenge your notions of family over and
Table of Contents
Contents
Introduction
- Stepfamilies from a Historical Perspective
- Stepfamilies in 1984 and Today--A Scholarly Perspective
- Confronting Nuclear Family Bias in Stepfamily Research
- Stepfamily Variations
- How Society Views Stepfamilies
- Stepfamilies from the Stepfamily’s Perspective
- Stepfamily as Project
- Stepfamilies from the Child’s Perspective: From Stepfamily to Close Relationships
- Stepfamilies from Siblings’ Perspectives
- The Stepparent Role from a Gender Perspective
- Stepfamily Therapy from the Client’s Perspective
- Current Knowledge About Child Abuse in Stepfamilies
- Stepfamilies from a Legal Perspective
- Stepfamilies from a Policy Perspective: Guidance from the Empirical Literature
- Stepfamily Policy from the Perspective of a Stepfamily Organization
- Family Life Education Programs for Stepfamilies
- Step- and Foster Families: A Comparison
- Index
