Stepparents and parenting stress: the roles of gender, marital quality, and views about gender roles.
Previous research suggests that stepparenting can be stressful, although the mechanisms that contribute to the experience of parenting stress in stepfamilies are less clear. This study examines gender, marital quality, and views about gendered family roles as correlates of parenting stress among 310 stepmothers, stepfathers, and biological mothers and fathers. Findings suggest that stepparents, and especially stepmothers, experience higher levels of parenting stress than biological parents. Findings also suggest that less traditional views about gendered family roles and higher dyadic adjustment are associated with lower parenting stress for stepparents, particularly in combination. Stepparents reporting both of these protective factors were indistinguishable in terms of parenting stress from biological parents. These findings indicate potential pathways to mitigate the stress associated with stepparenting.
['Shapiro|Danielle|D|']
D000293:Adolescent D000328:Adult D002648:Child D002675:Child, Preschool D005260:Female D005783:Gender Identity D006801:Humans D008297:Male D016487:Parenting D010290:Parents D013315:Stress, Psychological D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
Parenting stress Gender Marital quality Stepfamily