ABSTRACT
Surviving and Thriving in Stepfamily Relationships draws on current research, a wide variety of clinical modalities, and thirty years of clinical work with stepfamily members to describe the special challenges stepfamilies face. The book presents the concept of "stepfamily architecture" and the five challenges it creates, and delineates three different levels of strategies—psychoeducation, building interpersonal skills, and intrapsychic work—for meeting those challenges in dozens of different settings.
The model is designed to be useful both to stepfamily members themselves and to a wide variety of practitioners, from a highly trained clinician who needs to know how and when to work on all three levels, to a school counselor or clergy person who may work on the first two levels but refer out for level three. It will also be useful to educators, judges, mediators, lawyers and medical personnel who will practice on the first level, but need to understand the other two to guide their work.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
part 1|24 pages
Laying the Foundation
chapter 1|11 pages
A Map for Stepfamilies
chapter 2|11 pages
What Makes Stepfamilies Different?
part 2|102 pages
The Five Challenges
chapter 4|22 pages
The Second Challenge
part 3|28 pages
Four “Diverse” Stepfamilies
chapter 8|7 pages
Stepfamilies Headed By Lesbian and Gay Couples
chapter 10|7 pages
The Challenges for Latino Stepfamilies
part 4|16 pages
Stepfamilies Over Time
chapter 13|9 pages
Six Patterns of Becoming a Stepfamily
part 5|22 pages
Helping Stepfamilies Thrive
part 6|5 pages
Becoming a Stepfamily Is a Process, Not an Event