FAMILY RELATIONSHIPS AND ADOLESCENTS SOCI AL-DEVELOPMENT IN NUCLEAR, SINGLE-MOTHER, AND STEPFATHER FAMILIES

In a comparison of nondivorced and divorced families with adolescent c hildren, we examined the degree to which parental divorce is related t o an impaired family climate and parent-child interaction, differences in child-rearing values, and negative effects on adolescents' social development, which may be mediated by differences in family and child- rearing climate. Among the divorced, stepfamilies and their potential age-related vulnerabilites are of particular interest. Data come from 478 nuclear, 76 single-mother, and 59 stepfather families. Multivariat e analyses of covariace on mothers', (step-)fathers', and adolescents' reports support the idea that strains in the family and child-rearing climate are not generally found in divorced families but rather hit p atchwork families with stepfathers. There are no differences in adoles cents' self esteem or contacts with deviant peers, but an increased te ndency to transgress among adolescents from divorced, particularly ste pfather families. However, this can only partly be explained by an inc reased strain in the family and child-rearing climate. Age-related inc reased vulnerabilites of stepfamilies are mostly found among adolescen ts aged 15 to 18. Open questions concerning the limitations of this re search are discussed.