Child Development

father initially forms a warm relationship with the
child and supports the mother’s discipline, and later
begins to provide authoritative discipline (warmth
with moderate control). Early adolescents adjust best
when stepfathers begin immediately to establish a
warm, supportive relationship with moderate
amounts of control.

In contrast, stepmothers often immediately be-
come more involved in discipline. If the biological fa-
ther supports the stepmother’s discipline attempts,
children generally receive more effective parenting
from both parents. Stepmothers perceive parenting
as more challenging than mothers in intact families,
although research suggests that stepmothers are actu-
ally less negative and coercive in their interactions
with their stepchildren than mothers in intact fami-
lies. Stepmothers who provide authoritative parent-
ing, providing warmth and moderate control, have
stepchildren who are better adjusted than the step-
children of stepmothers who provide authoritarian or
neglectful parenting.

Suggestions for Parents in Stepfamilies

Children’s and adolescents’ adjustment in step-
families can be encouraged several ways. First, par-
ents can help children and adolescents adjust to
stepfamilies by taking into account issues related to
gender and age. The most successful stepfamilies
have parents who are flexible and able to adjust to the
varying demands that children’s gender, age, and in-
dividual differences place on parents. Parents should
have realistic expectations of new family relationships
and should not expect close bonds immediately. Par-
ents also should be aware that fathers and mothers in
stepfamilies face different challenges and try to pro-
vide support for their partner’s parenting. A strong
marriage is the foundation of a successful new step-
family. Finally, parents should work together to
create warm, supportive relationships with their chil-
dren and stepchildren. One technique for doing so is
to create new family traditions to add to the traditions
of the original families. In conclusion, although chil-
dren’s and adolescents’ development in stepfamilies
can be adversely affected by many factors, with paren-
tal support, most children and adolescents in step-
families do not develop significant problems.

See also: DIVORCE; MEDIATION; PARENTING

Bibliography
Booth, Alan, and Judith Dunn. Stepfamilies: Who Benefits? Who Does
Not? Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum, 1994.
Ganong, Lawrence, and Marilyn Coleman. Remarried Family Rela-
tionships. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 1996.

Hetherington, E. Mavis. Coping with Divorce, Single Parenting, and

Remarriage: A Risk and Resilience Perspective. Mahwah, NJ: Law-

rence Erlbaum, 1999.

Anne Dopkins Stright

STRANGER ANXIETY

Stranger anxiety is discomfort at the approach of an

unfamiliar person. Babies differ greatly in how they

show it: some cry vigorously, cling and hide their

faces, or merely become subdued and wary. Because

of differences among researchers with regard to be-

haviors used as evidence of stranger anxiety, there is

disagreement about when it first occurs. Clearly, how-

ever, by the time they are one year old, most babies

react with some degree of stranger anxiety. These re-

actions show that they can discriminate between fa-

miliar and unfamiliar people, an accomplishment of

cognitive development. As the child continues to

grow, new ways of showing discomfort appear. Pre-

schoolers, for instance, may whisper or refuse to talk

when strangers make a near approach. Babies and

preschoolers who have had considerable experience

encountering strangers or who are approached by a

stranger while an attachment figure is closeby may

show little or no stranger anxiety.

See also: ATTACHMENT; SEPARATION ANXIETY

Bibliography

Morgan, George, and Henry N. Ricciuti. ‘‘Infants’ Responses to

Strangers during the First Year.’’ In Brian M. Foss ed., Deter-

minants of Infant Behavior. New York: Wiley, 1969.

Sroufe, L. Alan. ‘‘Wariness of Strangers and the Study of Infant De-

velopment.’’ Child Development 48 (1977):731–746.

Anne McIntyre

STREET CHILDREN

Street children are defined as often unsupervised

children who work, play, and/or live in street environ-

ments. As of 1998, there were about 1.5 million chil-

dren in the United States categorized as out-of-

school, homeless, runaway, throwaway, and system

youths (i.e., youths in foster care, institutions, shel-

ters, and group homes). More than 100 million street

children are found in poor countries of Africa, Asia,

and Latin America. Street children are broadly sub-

grouped into children on the street (working) and of

the street (living and working). Factors that contrib-

ute to homelessness and street children include pov-

erty; physical, emotional, and sexual abuse;

abandonment and family indifference; desire for a

better life; and the lure of the street. Street children

exhibit many physical health problems (such as respi-

388 STRANGER ANXIETY