Brian Higginbotham

Relationship Education with Both Married and Unmarried Stepcouples: An Exploratory Study

This study highlights the experience of 356 adults who attended a 12-hour stepfamily relationship education course. Referred to as “stepcouples,” these adult participants were either remarried, cohabitating, or seriously dating someone who had children from a previous relationship. Self-report measures of relationship quality were gathered before the course began, at the end of the 6-week course, and 1 month later. Results from repeated measures analysis of variance suggest that stepcouples, regardless of their race or marital status, report that they benefit from stepfamily relationship education. For both white and Latino participants, reports of commitment increased and agreement on finances, ex-partners, and parenting all improved over time. Responses from semistructured interviews are included to illustrate participants’ perspectives. The similarity in outcomes, as well as the qualitative responses, point to research and practice implications regarding whether stepfamily education should be, or needs to be, different for married and unmarried stepcouples.

Recruitment and Retention for Stepfamily Education

To assist scholars and practitioners involved with marriage and relationship education for diverse audiences, this article establishes new and verifies already existing strategies to recruit and retain couples in stepfamilies. We examine recruitment and retention strategies used by 10 different agencies who offer the Smart Steps program to low-income stepfamilies. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 20 facilitators and 40 participants. Many of the identified strategies were consistent with related research regarding the use of incentives, minimizing costs, and removing logistical barriers. Additional strategies and implications were identified including the cultivation of trust, using personal contacts, involving children and incentivizing youth attendance, tapping into the interests and motivations of potential participants, and advertising common stepfamily problems conjointly with the promise of helpful solutions.

Stepfamily Education for Latino Families: Implications for Practice

The rapidly growing Latino population in the United States underscores the need for culturally appropriate Latino stepfamily education. Research to inform relationship education about positive functioning for Latino stepfamilies is virtually nonexistent. Current research relevant to this issue includes general stepfamily research, culturally appropriate education, heterogeneity in the Latino community, and Latino acculturation. Religion and familism are highly valued by many Latinos and have implications for stepfamily education. Cultural characteristics also have implications for the effective implementation of Latino stepfamily education.

Stepfamily Education: Benefits of a Group-Formatted Intervention

This program evaluation was conducted by interviewing 40 low-income participants in a relationship education (RE) program for stepfamilies to determine specific benefits of a group-formatted intervention. The benefits that were most often identified were learning from others and having personal stepfamily challenges normalized. Participants also reported the group format facilitated social support. Participants enjoyed the opportunity to share their own approaches and solutions with the other stepfamilies. Identifiable benefits of group-formatted stepfamily education are delineated as are implementation considerations for working with large groups of low-income stepfamilies. Specifically, recommendations regarding trust and logistics are provided.

Intimate Partner Violence in a Statewide Couple and Relationship Education Initiative

As couple and relationship education (CRE) has become an increasingly common intervention, issues surrounding the awareness, prevention, and treatment of violence have been raised. Concerns include the level of risk among participants, appropriate training for educators, and the extent to which CRE increases or mitigates risks for intimate partner violence (IPV). This study reports the level of risk among CRE participants and explores the associated experiences of county Cooperative Extension agents who served as the CRE educators in Utah. The educators presumed those interested in CRE would not be experiencing IPV. However, 10% of CRE participants indicated moderate-to-severe risk, and an additional 29% indicated likelihood of at least mild violence. Implications include the need for CRE initiatives to (a) take the possibility of IPV seriously, (b) train educators to identify and handle diverse types of IPV, and (c) monitor the implementation of IPV protocols.

Facilitating Stepfamily Education for Latinos

Relationship education programs can serve as a resource to families in developing and maintaining strong familial relationships, particularly for underserved populations. This qualitative study focuses on effective strategies, used by 14 facilitators, to teach Latino participants attending Smart Steps: Embrace the Journey stepfamily education courses in a western state. Results indicated two major themes regarding culturally appropriate strategies. The first dealt with classroom management and the approach of the facilitators, which included three subthemes: encouraging class discussion and sharing, applying cultural understanding, and recognizing the importance of the parent–child relationship. The second major theme addressed modifications to the program curriculum.

Benefits of Stepfamily Education: One-Year Post-Program

There has been an increase in the prevalence of stepfamilies, and being a member of a stepfamily carries with it unique challenges. Stepfamily education programs have tried to address these specific challenges. Although it is believed these programs can have a positive influence on the lives of stepfamilies, little research has been done to evaluate the effects of such stepfamily education. The aim of this article is to address the lasting effects of stepfamily education by examining findings from qualitative interviews conducted 1 year after post-program with participants attending a research-based stepfamily program.

Endorsement of Remarriage Beliefs, Spousal Consistency, and Remarital Adjustment

The consistency of remarriage-related cognitions between stepfamily members has been posited to be of “primary importance” in functional stepfamily systems. This study evaluates the consistency tenant of the multidimensional cognitive development model using common remarriage beliefs. Using a sample of 447 newlywed remarried couples, results from hierarchical regressions indicate that individual endorsements of remarriage beliefs are more predictive of cohesion and consensus than is constancy of endorsement between husband and wife. Implications for the multidimensional cognitive development model and recommendations for future research are discussed.

Healthy Relationship Education: A Statewide Initiative Case Study and Outcome Evaluation

Couple and relationship education (CRE) is effective in improving relationship quality and communication skills. However, its methods and structures of delivery (e.g., content, intensity, and settings) vary widely and have lacked empirical scrutiny. This article examines both the structure (i.e., initiative inputs and outputs) and the outcomes of one healthy relationship initiative. First, we use the comprehensive framework for CRE proposed previously to examine ways in which relationship education may be delivered by way of a statewide initiative in which 19 Cooperative Extension County Faculty provided education. Second, we analyze and report outcome data from 2,219 participants. A variety of CRE delivery methods significantly increased perceived levels of relationship knowledge regardless of gender, income, marital status, and whether participants had previous relationship education. Perceived knowledge acquisition differed by participant ethnicity, participant satisfaction with the education, and by CRE format such as single events versus multiple events. Programmatic implications are discussed.

Stepfathers and Stepfamily Education

Although stepfamily education is believed to improve family relationships, little is known about how stepfamily education impacts stepfather relationships specifically. Using a systems theory approach, this qualitative study examines the experiences of 14 European American stepfathers who participated in a 12-hour research-based stepfamily education course. Although the majority of men initially needed some encouragement to attend, they all felt the experience was worthwhile. Participants discussed their motivation for attendance, as well as the perceived benefits of taking the course including increased family bonding, relationship skill development, and enhanced fathering practices. The findings support ongoing efforts to help stepfathers be successful in their roles and relationships with their stepchildren. Implications for practice and recommendations for engaging stepfathers are provided.