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Lesson 15 – Remarriage and Stepfamilies. Robert Wonser. Remarriage and Stepfamilies. 2. Remarriage. Remarriage after divorce is much more likely to occur if the divorcees are in their 20s. The odds of remarriage decline in the 30s, 40s, 50s, etc.
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Lesson 15 – Remarriage and Stepfamilies Robert Wonser
Remarriage Remarriage after divorce is much more likely to occur if the divorcees are in their 20s. The odds of remarriage decline in the 30s, 40s, 50s, etc. Remarriage typically occurs sooner for the man than the woman. Why do you think this is?
Statistics 22% of marriages in the US are of a divorced person to a 1st time marrying person 20% are divorced to divorced the other 58% are some other combination 1st - 1st widowed-widowed widowed-divorced widowed-1st 4
about 2/3 of women and 3/4 of men remarry after a divorce men more likely to remarry sooner 2nd marriage-60-67% divorce 3rd marriage-73-74% 2/3 of divorced people remarry within 5 years Whites more likely to remarry than Hispanics or Blacks
Reasons for Dating 6 Having someone to talk to and do things with (49%) To have fun (18%) Sex (11% men, 2% women) To remarry (10% men, 7% women)
Types of Dating 7 Non-exclusive (32%) Exclusive (31%) Not dating b/c can’t find the right person to date (27%) Not interested in dating (9%) Same-sex dating (7% men, 3% women)
Internet Dating One 2009 ranking reported that Match.com and eHarmony had 20 million subscribers Yahoo Personals had 9 million chemistry.com and Perfectmatch.com each had 4 million. In fact, online dating is projected to increase between 2007-2012 with revenues topping $1.9 billion by 2012. Sautter et al. (2010) reported that internet dating is more common among computer-savvy and already socially networked daters. What about homogamy and propinquity in online dating?
Types of Online Daters by Motivation First were the adventurers who thrive in the anonymity provided by the Internet which shields them from elimination through traditional social norms. Adventurers seek communication, curiosity, and even emotional support as they seek to meet new people. Escapers to a virtual world were the second category. Escapers find the real world too harsh and relax in the relatively anxiety-free cyber world. Third and finally were the Romantics who sincerely seek for love, friendship, and sex. Sex is not the major motivation, but is a common motivation for some Internet daters.
Why Remarry? Recalling what we’ve discussed so far, why would anyone remarry? Benefits? Costs?
Remarriage Remarriage is the legal union of a man and woman that follows the dissolution of a previous marriage for one or both spouses. Often leads to: Stepfamilies are formed when children from another marriage or relationship are brought into a family through a new marriage.
Benefits of remarriage for parents emotional closeness, intimacy, and sexual satisfaction greater self-esteem, contentment, and happiness have someone with whom they can share both the financial and caregiving responsibilities remarried parents report feelings of stress and depression related to the many demands they experience, the marriages still are as happy asthose in non-divorced families 12
Remarriage compared to 1st marriage http://searchcenter.intelecomonline.net/playClipDirect.aspx?id=2D3499F84909404AE0D6EC74EE5AC1068C96527F8EF8AD16A5722AE46ACFBB01BC8CF218A23E97C00E757ECE97E7908F 6:14 13
Differences from 1st marriages More egalitarian More open More pragmatic Less romantic More willing to confront conflict Why do you think this is? 14
Child Well-Being in Stepfamilies Less well adjusted More behavioral or social problems Lower academic achievement Lower social competence & responsibility Teen pregnancy School dropout Adult relationships Children’s adjustment in step families varies Often initial declines in cognitive and social competence after the remarriage tend to diminish over time similar to other crisis events 15
Factors Influencing Adjustment Gender and age # of transitions Marital quality Parenting style changes Discipline consistency 16
Perspectives: Structural Functionalism According to functionalists, individuals have the greatest chance of success if they grow up in a traditional family with father instrumental and mother expressive
Perspectives: Conflict Because family members compete for resources, stepfamilies create more conflict because of additional family members and blurred roles
Perspectives: Symbolic Interactionism Meanings of the configuration of a family are constructed, and reconstructed, through increased interactions Like all relationships, must have interaction