Achieving stepfamily harmony: An intergroup-relations approach.

This study examined the utility of an intergroup-relations perspective in studying stepfamily harmony. University students who identified themselves as stepfamily members completed a survey revealing that the relationship between favorable intergroup contact conditions (e.g., cooperation, equal status) and stepfamily harmony was mediated by the perception of the stepfamily as 1 group rather than 2. Additionally, a 1-group representation of the stepfamily partially mediated the relation between a positive stepparent-stepchild relationship and increased harmony. The more the stepfamily was perceived as 1 group, the greater was the stepfamily harmony. These results offer an explanatory model of stepfamily harmony, involving members' perception of social categorization within the stepfamily unit.