More and more families around the world reside in stepfamilies – family units that have combined parents and children from more than one union.

Here are some interesting stepfamily statistics:

Stepfamily statistic #1: Around the turn of the century there were an estimated 5.2 million stepfamilies in the U.S. alone, and an average of more than 1,300 new ones were being formed each day. (Fantle-Shimberg, 1999) This rate has more or less held steady in recent years.

Stepfamily statistic #2: Having children not only impacts a remarriage, but it also affects the likelihood of a person getting married again in the first place. A divorced woman with no children has a 70% likelihood of remarriage, whereas a woman with two children has only a 58% chance. If 3 or more kids are involved the figure drops even lower. (Norton & Moorman, 1987)

Stepfamily statistic #3: Two-thirds of divorcing stepparents say that children are the primary cause of their breakup. (Sands, 1982)

Statistics on stepfamily relationships

Stepfamily statistic #4: In one survey, 71% of men and women in remarriages had negative feelings about their own ex-husbands or ex-wives, and 63% had negative feelings about their spouses ex. (Artlip et al., 1993) Unfortunately, this amounts to a lot of negativity permeating blended families.

Stepfamily statistic #5: Nearly two-thirds of stepfathers report that they have little direct contact with their wife’s former husband. (ibid)

 

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