Marital and Family Therapy with Racially/Culturally Intermarried Stepfamilies: Issues and Guidelines

As more and more remarried couples and their children form racially andlor culturally exogamous stepfamilies, they are beginning to seek therapeutic assistance for difficulties specific to stepfamily living involving intermarriage. This paper focuses on the difficulties experienced by intermarried stepfamilies and seeks to sensitize mental health professionals to issues specific to treating such families. Effective therapy with these families requires that therapists be sensitive to their personal attitudes, feelings, and beliefs with regard to intermarriage and cognizant of how these can intrude and negatively affect both the therapeutic process and its outcome. Guidelines for therapy are offered.