| Why is Stepmothering more difficult than Stepfathering? |
|
|
|
By Rose Marie Hoffman* STEPFAMILIES Quarterly, Summer 1995 Overwhelmingly the literature paints a bleaker picture of life as a stepmother than as a stepfather. In fact, some have argued that stepmother-stepchild relationships have the potential to be particularly problematic for both stepmothers and stepchildren. This is particularly true when the stepchild resides with the father and his new wife. Consider for a moment the obstacles residential stepmothers likely
encounter. We know that after divorce noncustodial mothers maintain
more frequent and consistent contact with their children in comparison
to noncustodial fathers. As such, mothers are more likely to interfere,
consciously or unconsciously, with the development of a bond between
residential stepmothers and stepchildren. In addition, children's attachment
to their mothers is believed to be stronger than their attachment to
fathers. This stronger attachment may make it more difficult for children
to accept another mother-figure in their lives than for them to accept
another father-figure.
|
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
Syndicate
