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Journal of Family Issues
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Stepparents

De Facto Parents or Legal Strangers?

MARY ANN MASON

University of California, Berkeley

SYDNEY HARRISON-JAY

University of California, Berkeley

GLORIA MESSICK SVARE

University of Nevada, Reno

NICHOLAS H. WOLFINGER

University of Utah

In most states, stepparents have little or no legal decision-making authority. Stepchildren do not receive the legal recognition as dependents that triggers a safety net in the event of death or divorce, nor do former stepparents have the legal right to visitation or custody. However, the lack of legal recognition of the stepparent role may not reflect the reality of contemporary stepfamilies. This article examines stepfamily functioning with the aim of creating a new policy orientation. We draw on both the National Survey of Families and Households and an in-depth study of 27 stepfamilies to investigate the everyday functioning of stepparents with regard to caregiving tasks, discipline, distribution of economic resources, attitudes toward legal status, and perception of parental roles. The findings support a new policy initiative that would legally recognize stepparents as de facto parents for a variety of purposes.

Journal of Family Issues, Vol. 23, No. 4, 507-522 (2002)
DOI: 10.1177/0192513X02023004003
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