Step change: the interplay of sexual and parenting problems when couples form stepfamilies

Abstract

Patterns of living have moved away from marriage-for-life and the nuclear family towards serial dissolution and formation of partnerships, whether by cohabitation or remarriage. Stepfamilies have therefore become an increasingly common family form. The integration of a stepfamily is a complex task for a couple. In stepfamilies the adult dyad is one of the newest and possibly most vulnerable relationship, largely because the couple has had no childfree time to build common ground, mutual understanding and acceptance. In the early years the partners' insecurity and their struggles to integrate the stepfamily may hamper the development of their dyad. This paper charts some processes affecting outcomes in stepfamily life and illustrates how sexual problems presenting to therapists can mirror conflicts between the biological parent and the step-parent over parenting and partnering issues.

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