Irene Lela, PhD. is Asociate Professor in the Graduate School of Social Work and Social Research at Oslo College in Oslo. Norway. She is the author of three books, Stepfamilies: Variation and manifold, Understand Everyday Life with a Symbolic lnteractionistic Perspective, and Relation. Marvin B Sussman, PhD, is UNIDEL Professor of Human Behavior Emeritus at the College of Human Resources at the University of Delaware. He is also a member of the CORE Faculty of the Union Graduate School of Union Institute in Cincinnati, Ohio. A member of many professional organizations, he received the 1980 Ernest W. Burgess Award of the National Council on Family Relations. In 1983. Dr. Sussman was elected to the prestigious Academy of Groves for scholarly contributions to the field, and, in 1984, he was awarded a lifelong membership for services to the Groves Conference on Marriage and the Family.

• Contents IntroductionStepfamilies from a Historical Perspective Stepfamilies in 1984 and Today--A Scholarly Perspective Confronting Nuclear Family Bias in Stepfamily Research Stepfamily Variations How Society Views Stepfamilies Stepfamilies from the Stepfamily’s Perspective Stepfamily as Project Stepfamilies from the Child’s Perspective: From Stepfamily to Close Relationships Stepfamilies from Siblings’ Perspectives The Stepparent Role from a Gender Perspective Stepfamily Therapy from the Client’s Perspective Current Knowledge About Child Abuse in Stepfamilies Stepfamilies from a Legal Perspective Stepfamilies from a Policy Perspective: Guidance from the Empirical Literature Stepfamily Policy from the Perspective of a Stepfamily Organization Family Life Education Programs for Stepfamilies Step- and Foster Families: A Comparison Index

Irene Lela, PhD. is Asociate Professor in the Graduate School of Social Work and Social Research at Oslo College in Oslo. Norway. She is the author of three books, Stepfamilies: Variation and manifold, Understand Everyday Life with a Symbolic lnteractionistic Perspective, and Relation. Marvin B Sussman, PhD, is UNIDEL Professor of Human Behavior Emeritus at the College of Human Resources at the University of Delaware. He is also a member of the CORE Faculty of the Union Graduate School of Union Institute in Cincinnati, Ohio. A member of many professional organizations, he received the 1980 Ernest W. Burgess Award of the National Council on Family Relations. In 1983. Dr. Sussman was elected to the prestigious Academy of Groves for scholarly contributions to the field, and, in 1984, he was awarded a lifelong membership for services to the Groves Conference on Marriage and the Family.

• Contents IntroductionStepfamilies from a Historical Perspective Stepfamilies in 1984 and Today--A Scholarly Perspective Confronting Nuclear Family Bias in Stepfamily Research Stepfamily Variations How Society Views Stepfamilies Stepfamilies from the Stepfamily’s Perspective Stepfamily as Project Stepfamilies from the Child’s Perspective: From Stepfamily to Close Relationships Stepfamilies from Siblings’ Perspectives The Stepparent Role from a Gender Perspective Stepfamily Therapy from the Client’s Perspective Current Knowledge About Child Abuse in Stepfamilies Stepfamilies from a Legal Perspective Stepfamilies from a Policy Perspective: Guidance from the Empirical Literature Stepfamily Policy from the Perspective of a Stepfamily Organization Family Life Education Programs for Stepfamilies Step- and Foster Families: A Comparison Index