M. Coleman et al., When you're not the Brady Bunch: Identifying perceived conflicts and resolution strategies in stepfamilies, PERS RELATI, 8(1), 2001, pp. 55-73
This study was a qualitative analysis of interviews from 58 members of 17 s
tepfamilies regarding the sources of conflict and conflict resolution strat
egies. The majority of conflicts resulted from negotiation of family bounda
ries and were manifested in the following ways: (a) disagreements over reso
urces; (b) loyalty conflicts: (c) individuals holding a "guard and protect"
ideology; and (d) conflict with extended family members. Wide arrays of re
solution strategies were used, and some, but not all; resulted in positive
outcomes.