Todd M. Jensen, PhD, MSW
An inclusive conceptualization of “family” can enable family-serving systems and professionals to leverage high-quality family relationships, wherever they are found, to support the health and well-being of individuals. Stepfamilies are an especially common family form with distinct needs and experiences, and stepparent–child relationships can take on a variety of functions with implications for family stability and individual well-being. The purpose of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to synthesize empirical associations between stepparent–child relationships and child outcomes.
General findings from 56 studies highlighted significant associations between several dimensions of stepparent–child relationships and children’s psychological, behavioral, social, academic, and physical well-being. Meta-analytic findings from 68 effect-size estimates further substantiated significant and positive associations between stepparent–child relationship quality and child psychological well-being (mean r = .25) and academic well-being (mean r = .23), as well as significant and negative associations between stepparent–child relationship quality and child psychological problems (mean r = −.23) and behavioral problems (mean r = −.19).
Numerous helping professions and scientific disciplines acknowledge the family as a proximal context for shaping individual health and well-being. However, divergent—and in some cases, conflicting—definitions of “family” can complicate efforts to effectively understand, dignify, respect, and support families (Russell, 2020). A belief that “illness is a family affair” (Bell, 2013; Bell et al., 2009, p. 14) further encourages careful interrogation of the term “family,” prompting effort to expand one’s awareness of family structural diversity and the various roles adults can play in cultivating the well-being of children over time, whether or not the adult is biologically related to a child.
A variety of demographic trends related to how individuals form and sustain couple and parent–child relationships in the United States (and beyond) also favor an inclusive definition of family. Relevant trends include persistently high rates of couple relationship dissolution (e.g., divorce) and repartnership (e.g., remarriage), as well as an increasing number of couples opting for cohabitation in place of marriage (Raley & Sweeney, 2020; Sassler & Lichter, 2020). An increasing share of children are also part of sexual and gender minority families (e.g., families with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, asexual, intersex, and other [LGBTQAI+] parents or family members; Reczek, 2020). Stepfamilies—the focus of this systematic review and meta-analysis—are persistently common (Stykes & Guzzo, 2015), which form when one or both adults in a committed couple relationship bring a child or children from a previous relationship (Ganong & Coleman, 2017). Indeed, 42% of adults in the United States report having at least one step-relative (Pew Research Center, 2011).
Although research continues to investigate outcome differences across diverse family structures emerging from these and other related trends, there remain ongoing calls to focus on adaptive processes within particular family structures that promote well-being (e.g., Coleman et al., 2000; Jensen & Sanner, 2021). An inclusive conceptualization of family—particularly in light of the high probability family-serving systems and practitioners will engage with stepfamilies—can enrich policies, programs, and practice approaches intended to benefit families and children.
Viewing families inclusively also enables family-serving systems and professionals to leverage high-quality relationships, wherever they are found in a particular family, to promote the health and well-being of family members. On this front, substantial evidence highlights positive associations between high-quality family relationships generally and various outcomes for both adults and children (e.g., Lippold & Jensen, 2017; McLeod et al., 2007; Pinquart & Gerke, 2019; Shor et al., 2013). Although increasing attention is being placed on the specific (and perhaps unique) role of stepparents in shaping the health and well-being of children, opportunities remain to compile and synthesize findings in this literature.
A distinct focus on stepparents is warranted, in large part because stepfamilies experience a unique set of circumstances relative to other family structures. For one, many stepfamilies must navigate coparenting demands among resident parents, resident stepparents, and nonresident parents (Ganong & Coleman, 2017; Papernow, 2013). Stepfamilies can also face ambiguity with respect to the optimal role of new stepparents and identifying the most suitable patterns of engagement between children and their stepparents (Jensen, 2021b).
Children in stepfamilies can also experience conflict with new stepparents and face disruptions in the quality of relationships (e.g., parent–child relationships) that predate the formation of a stepfamily (Ganong & Coleman, 2017). These, and other common stepfamily experiences, signal the weight stepparent–child relationships can have in terms of promoting family stability and child health and well-being (Jensen & Weller, 2019).
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