Chinese childbearing decision-making in mainland China in the post-one-child-policy era.

In 2016, China enacted its two-child policy, further lifted to a three-child policy in 2021, in response to low birth rates and imbalanced sex ratios resulting from the almost 40-year one-child policy. Despite this, China's birthrate is at a historic low as fewer parents are having children. Now more than ever, inductive explorations are needed to understand what motivates Chinese parents to have first and second children in the post-one-child policy era, particularly explorations that situate individual decision-making within the larger social context. Individual and relational choices occur in larger sociopolitical contexts. Understanding these "personal" actions involves considering how micro and macro processes inform each other. In this study, we elicited qualitative responses from Chinese mothers (N = 117) with two children in early childhood (firstborn ≤8 years old) from Liao Ning province. Most mothers were well educated, employed, and married to children's fathers. Using inductive thematic analysis procedures, we coded qualitative responses about the factors that motivated mothers to have first and second children. Our data revealed that (a) mothers expressed different reasons for having firstborns compared to secondborns, and (b) decision-making occurred against a backdrop of interacting micro-level and macro-level influences (e.g., cultural norms, national policy changes). In particular, mothers described the decision to have secondborns as more deliberative than with firstborns, considering long-term benefits siblinghood and shared demands of elderly caregiving. If efforts to stimulate the national birthrate are likely to succeed, policymakers should consider micro-level as well as macro-level factors that shape mothers' childbearing decision-making.

Stepparents' Attachment Orientation, Parental Gatekeeping, and Stepparents' Affinity-Seeking with Stepchildren.

Remarried stepfamilies are a sizable portion of American families; in a 2011 Pew Center survey, 42% of respondents reported at least one stepfamily member. Family clinicians and researchers suggest that stepparents' ability to develop close bonds with stepchildren may be critical to the well-being of couple and family relationships. Using actor-partner interdependence models to analyze dyadic data from 291 heterosexual remarried stepfamily couples, we explored factors related to stepparents' efforts to befriend their stepchildren. Specifically, we evaluated how remarried parents' gatekeeping and stepparents' perceptions of their attachment orientations were associated with their own and their spouse's perceptions of stepparents' affinity-seeking behaviors. Securely attached stepparents and stepparents with anxious attachment orientations engaged more frequently in affinity behaviors than did stepparents with avoidant attachment orientations; there was no difference between securely attached and anxious stepparents. Stepparents' reports of parents' restrictive gatekeeping were strongly and negatively associated with both stepparents' and parents' reports of stepparent affinity-seeking (actor and partner effects). Parents' reports of their own restrictive gatekeeping were also negatively (but more weakly) associated with parents' reports of stepparent affinity-seeking. Implications for families, clinicians, and relationship researchers and theorists are discussed.

Las familias ensambladas con parejas que se vuelven a casar constituyen una parte considerable de las familias estadounidenses; en una encuesta del Pew de 2011, el 42% de los encuestados informaron tener por lo menos un familiar con familia ensamblada. Los especialistas en familia y los investigadores sugieren que la capacidad de los padrastros de desarrollar vínculos estrechos con los hijastros puede ser fundamental para el bienestar de las relaciones de pareja y familiares (Browning & Artlelt, 2012; Ganong, Coleman, Fine, & Martin, 1999). Mediante el uso de modelos de interdependencia actor-pareja para analizar los datos diádicos de 291 parejas heterosexuales de familias ensambladas con parejas que se volvieron a casar, analizamos los factores relacionados con los esfuerzos de los padrastros para hacerse amigos de sus hijastros. Específicamente, evaluamos cómo la vigilancia de los padres que volvieron a casarse y las percepciones de los padrastros de sus orientaciones de apego estuvieron asociados con sus propias percepciones y las de su cónyuge de las conductas de búsqueda de afinidad de los padrastros. Los padrastros con un vínculo de apego seguro y los padrastros con orientaciones de apego ansioso participaron con más frecuencia en conductas de afinidad que los padrastros con orientaciones de apego evasivo; no hubo diferencia entre los padrastros con vínculo de apego seguro y los de apego ansioso. Los informes de los padrastros de la vigilancia restrictiva de los padres estuvieron asociados estrechamente y negativamente con los informes de los padrastros y de los padres sobre la búsqueda de afinidad de los padrastros (efectos de la pareja y del actor). Los informes de los padres de su propia vigilancia restrictiva también estuvieron asociados negativamente (pero más levemente) con los informes de los padres sobre la búsqueda de afinidad de los padrastros. Se debaten las consecuencias para las familias, los médicos y los investigadores y teóricos de las relaciones.

Stepfathers' affinity-seeking with stepchildren, stepfather-stepchild relationship quality, marital quality, and stepfamily cohesion among stepfathers and mothers.

Because of the potential stepparent-stepchild relationships have for tension and conflict, clinicians have identified the development of a positive stepparent-stepchild connection as one of the major tasks of stepfamily life. Stepparents often are advised to focus initially on developing friendships with stepchildren, or seeking affinity with them, particularly early in the life of the relationship. Both family systems theory and evolutionary theory suggest that stepparents' affinity-seeking behaviors are related to the quality and functioning of other stepfamily dyads, such as couple relationships, and the whole stepfamily. We extend prior work on stepparents' affinity seeking by including perceptions of both members of the stepcouple about affinity seeking, stepfather-stepchild conflicts, couple relationship quality, and stepfamily cohesion. Stepfathers and mothers from 234 stepcouples independently completed online surveys. After accounting for covariates (i.e., duration of mothers' previous relationships, duration of the stepcouple relationship, focal child's biological sex and age, number of children in the household, and mothers' report of household income), stepfathers' perceptions of affinity-seeking with the focal child significantly predicted both partners' perceptions of stepfather-stepchild conflict, marital quality, marital confidence, and stepfamily cohesion. Mothers' perceptions of stepfathers' affinity-seeking were significantly related to her marital confidence and perceptions of stepfamily cohesion. Stepfathers' perceptions of their affinity-seeking explained more variance in stepfathers' and mothers' outcomes than did mothers' perceptions. The results suggest benefits associated with stepfather affinity-seeking-less conflict with stepchildren, better couple relationships, and closer stepfamily ties. Our findings provide evidence for encouraging stepparents to focus on building affinity with stepchildren. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

A comparison of stepgrandchildren's perceptions of long-term and later-life stepgrandparents.

BACKGROUND: Multi-generational steprelationships are relatively common, and yet little is known about stepgrandparent-stepgrandchild relationships. The quality of steprelationships is relevant to understanding intergenerational support for older divorced and remarried adults. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study is to examine and compare stepgrandchildren's perceptions of two types of intergenerational step-relationships - long-term stepgrandparents who joined the stepfamily before stepgrandchildren were born and later-life stepgrandparents who joined stepfamilies when they were older. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: Grounded theory methods were used to interview 48 adult stepgrandchildren who had 44 long-term stepgrandparents and 28 later-life stepgrandparents. RESULTS: Long-term stepgrandparents more closely resembled biological grandparents' relationships with stepgrandchildren than did later-life stepgrandparents, largely because of conditions attributable to intergenerational dynamics associated with remarriage timing, shared histories, and linked lives with other kin. Middle-generation parents gatekept more in long-term stepfamilies - later-life stepgrandchildren had greater autonomy in relationships with new stepgrandparents and everyone in later-life stepfamilies experienced family structural changes concurrently. Long-term stepgrandparents were defined as kin more often than later-life stepgrandparents. Long-term relationships were often perceived as positive and emotionally close. DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS: Later-life stepgrandchildren experience more intergenerational transitions than long-term stepgrandchildren. Appreciating and understanding the implications of different pathways to stepgrandparenthood will enhance science and practice with older stepfamily couples and intergenerational stepfamilies.

Relationships with former stepgrandparents after remarriage dissolution.

Increases in stepfamily formation and longevity suggest that more children have stepgrandparent relationships than ever before. Because remarriages end in divorce more often than first marriages, many children experience the involuntary dissolution of stepgrandparent ties. Little is known about stepgrandparent relationships in general, and even less is known about how these relationships are affected by remarriage dissolution. Guided by symbolic interaction theory, the purpose of this study was to understand how stepgrandchildren make sense of their relationships with former stepgrandparents. We explored their perceptions of why relationships were or were not maintained and the impact of continued or dissolved ties on their personal well-being. Former stepgrandchildren (N = 29) aged 18 to 37 were interviewed about their former stepgrandparents. The quality and continuity of these relationships were contingent on stepgrandchildren's relationships with former stepparents, biological parents' relationships with former stepgrandparents, and efforts by former stepgrandparents to remain involved. Losing ties with former stepgrandparents was upsetting, especially when relationships with biological grandparents were not close. Individuals who maintained relationships with former stepgrandparents benefitted from continued access to valuable resources (e.g., positive role models, additional sources of love and support). Our findings have important implications for clinicians' and researchers' understanding of the effects of remarriage dissolution on children as well as the intergenerational efforts that may be critical for preserving meaningful stepfamily ties. (PsycINFO Database Record

Negotiating a Place in the Family-A Grounded Theory Exploration of Stepgrandmothers' Enactment of Roles.

Purpose: Stepgrandparents are becoming more common, and they can, and often do, provide affective and instrumental support to families. Little is known, however, about how they negotiate and enact their roles within families, especially with stepgrandchildren. Stepgrandmothers warrant special attention because researchers have found that women experience more challenges than men in stepfamilies. Guided by symbolic interactionism, the purposes of our study were: (a) to explore stepgrandmothers' role enactment and (b) to explore the intrapersonal, interpersonal, and contextual factors that contribute to role enactment in intergenerational steprelationships. Design and Methods: Eighteen stepgrandmothers participated in semi-structured interviews, discussing their relationships with 94 stepgrandchildren. Consistent with grounded theory methods, data collection and analysis occurred simultaneously. Results: Interviews with stepgrandmothers revealed that they spend considerable time and energy defining their roles with stepgrandchildren. Stepgrandmothers' role enactment is a complex, reflexive process. A few perceived that their roles were shaped by their own dispositions, desires, and expectations (evidence for role-making), but most stepgrandmothers described their roles as reflecting the dispositions, desires, and expectations of others (evidence for role-taking). Stepgrandmothers reflected on their roles as a delicate balance of intra- and inter-personal negotiations, operating within cultural expectations. Implications: Findings draw attention to the complex nature of role-taking, role-making, and gendered, relational processes in multigenerational stepfamilies. We discuss implications for research and theory related to stepgrandmotherhood as an incomplete institution.