This task aims at partners replacing benign ignorance with awareness of stepfamily realities, and then forming realistic expectations from them. The prior page summarized how stepfamilies are like typical biofamilies. This page summarizes 35 structural biofamily - stepfamily differences. In other words, average stepfamilies are more structurally different from intact biofamilies than any other kind of normal family. Ownership and allocation conflicts are more common.
Ownership is usually joint and uncontested.
Allocation conflicts can occur, as the family matures. Probably higher on average, because there are ewer people, conflicts, and adjustment tasks. Professionals' accurate knowledge of related family norms, realities, stressors, and dynamics Much lower . Most legal, media, clergy, and clinical professionals have no informed stepfamily training. Many of these structural family differences generate stepfamily-unique tasks .